Key Points

• The new school year in Utah’s Davis School District will include expanded training opportunities for students and free gasoline for the district’s teacher of the year.
• Expansion of a high school welding program will involve training for instructors in industry-standard practices along with new equipment.
• Grants from Marathon Petroleum’s Salt Lake City refinery through the district’s nonprofit arm are helping to make these opportunities possible.

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The new school year is bringing stronger career-focused instruction to a high school in the Davis School District, Utah’s largest. The welding program at Clearfield High School will expand with equipment and training for instructors in industry-standard practices through help from a $40,000 grant from Marathon Petroleum Corporation’s (MPC) Salt Lake City refinery.

“Marathon’s funds for equipment and training represent a kind of start-to-finish vision and support that no other community partner has demonstrated.” 

“Clearfield sits within a federally designated Opportunity Zone, and many students experience economic instability. This welding program provides opportunities to gain marketable skills that will change the trajectory of students’ lives,” said Jodi Lunt, Executive Director of the nonprofit Davis Education Foundation (DEF), which administered the grant and supports educational initiatives in the district. “Marathon’s funds for equipment and training represent a kind of start-to-finish vision and support that no other community partner has demonstrated.”

Beyond helping the welding program, the refinery will also provide free gasoline throughout the school year to fourth-grade teacher Hollie Fisher, the school district’s teacher of the year. MPC representatives presented the prize during a celebration of Fisher’s selection for the award. 

“Every teacher knows what a year of gas is worth,” said DEF Partnerships and Development Coordinator Sherry Miggin. 

These examples of assistance from the refinery are just the latest in its ongoing collaboration with the foundation. The refinery’s community investment grants and employee volunteers have helped DEF with many other efforts in recent years to meet needs across the 71,000-student district, including: 

• Scholarships for students in a dual enrollment program with Davis Technical College
• The No Hunger Zone program to fight childhood hunger
• Construction of the Teen Living Center for displaced students
• The Child Spree event to provide clothing for students in need

The school district serves residents of Davis County, part of the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The refinery’s Corporate Social Responsibility & Community Relations Representative Dean Adam described how assisting the district aligns with MPC’s commitment to make a positive, measurable impact wherever it operates. 

“Davis County adjoins the northern side of the refinery, giving us many connections to the area. We want to be a strong supporter of the school district in line with our desire to build thriving communities through quality education,” Adam said. “We, as employees, are fortunate to work for a company so vested in local communities.”