The General Mills Foundation Awards Grant to American Indian College Fund

Grant enables college scholarships for 26 American Indian students

DENVER, April 20, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American Indian College Fund has received a $60,000 donation from the General Mills Foundation to continue the General Mills Foundation Tribal College Scholarship Program. The grant will provide scholarships each semester to 26 American Indian students attending tribal colleges in Minnesota and New Mexico.

"The General Mills Foundation has partnered with the American Indian College Fund for 20 years to support Native student education," said Richard B. Williams, President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund. "Most American Indian students cannot afford to attend college without financial assistance due to high rates of poverty. The General Mills Foundation has helped many American Indian students to earn a college degree as a result of their generosity, and have given them a chance to make positive contributions to their communities and Indian Country."

"General Mills has long been an advocate for youth education," said Ellen Goldberg Luger, General Mills vice president and General Mills Foundation executive director. "The scholarships provided through the General Mills Foundation Tribal College Scholarship Program will help provide students with enriching educational experiences, and help put them on a great path for the future."

About the American Indian College Fund

With its credo "Educating the Mind and Spirit," the American Indian College Fund is the nation's largest private provider of scholarships for American Indian students, and provided more than 3,500 scholarships last year to students seeking to better their lives and communities through education, and support to the nation's 33 accredited tribal colleges and universities. For more information about the American Indian College Fund, please visit www.collegefund.org/.

About the General Mills Foundation

The mission of the General Mills Foundation, celebrating 58 years of giving, is to nourish communities. Continuing its tradition of generous giving and global community support, General Mills contributed nearly $120 million to charitable causes in fiscal year 2011—up 18 percent from the previous year. We invest in and collaborate with community organizations and programs that unleash the power of food across a spectrum of social issues, including hunger, nutrition and healthy active lifestyles. In addition, 83 percent of U.S. employees volunteer.  To learn more about the ways General Mills nourishes lives through philanthropy and community engagement, please join us on Facebook at Facebook.com/GeneralMillsGives or visit us at GeneralMills.com/en/Responsibility/Community_Engagement.

SOURCE American Indian College Fund