(The following appeared on the Progressive Railroading website on July 22, 2010.)
CN recently donated $325,000 to the University of Illinois’ railroad engineering program. Since 2002, the Class I has donated more than $1 million to the program, which is part of the university’s civil and environmental engineering department.
“This gift allows us to continue and extend our success in developing courses, conducting research and teaching students about rail transport and engineering,” said Professor Christopher Barkan, the railroad engineering program’s director, in a prepared statement.
Through the CN Stronger Communities Fund, the Class I aims to support health and safety programs for youth, transportation education and the United Way. CN contributes 1 percent of pre-tax profits to registered non-profit organizations in communities where it operates or employs workers.
“The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign provides its engineering students with a strong knowledge of railroading evident in the talented graduates and interns we have hired from this program in recent years,” said Jim Vena, CN senior vice president-southern region.