Wal-Mart Donates $3 Million to Hispanic Scholarship Fund

BENTONVILLE, Ark. - The Wal-Mart Foundation is donating a $3 million, multi-year grant to the Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF), to aid in providing scholarships to deserving Hispanic students, Wal-Mart said Friday.

The first check for $640,000 was presented in Bentonville, Ark. during a meeting between the president and c.e.o. of Wal-Mart Stores USA, Eduardo Castro-Wright, and the HSF leadership.
(Story continues below.)

"At Wal-Mart, we firmly believe there are few things more important than education, and we make it a priority to contribute to the educational growth of our associates and the people in the communities we serve," said Castro-Wright. "We are proud to support the Hispanic Scholarship Fund and to help provide young people with an opportunity to make their dreams come true."

HSF president and c.e.o. Sara Martinez Tucker welcomed Castro-Wright to the Hispanic Scholarship Fund board of directors, a position he recently accepted. She said his leadership will help strengthen HSF in a period of transition, since Martinez Tucker has been nominated by President George W. Bush to be Under Secretary of Education and will be leaving HSF in October.

Wal-Mart claims to be one of the largest corporate supporters of teachers and education. Last year alone, the company contributed more than $45 million in support of educational initiatives. At the local level, each store also shows its commitment to education by providing grants that help support local schools, YMCA, and other youth-oriented programs.

In other Wal-Mart news, the retailer said same-store sales rose 1.8 percent in September from the same period a year ago.

"Please bear in mind that we are up against strong comparisons in geographic areas affected by last year's hurricane and also in specific categories impacted by hurricane preparation and recovery," Wal-Mart said in a weekly recorded sales update.
X
This ad will auto-close in 10 seconds