Buffalo Center for Arts & Technology awarded

Bank of America named the Buffalo Center for Arts & Technology (BCAT) its 2021 Neighborhood Champion in Buffalo. The program is one of the bank’s signature initiatives that focuses on advancing economic mobility and nonprofit leadership. It provides recipients $50,000 in grant support and an opportunity to engage in comprehensive leadership training.

In addition to providing the area’s youth with arts and technology after-school programs, the Buffalo Center for Arts & Technology offers tuition-free workforce development programs to adults seeking careers in medical coding, phlebotomy and pharm tech. As this year’s Neighborhood Champion, BCAT plans to use its funds to expand its workforce development hub to adults who are struggling with underemployment and unemployment.

Alongside Buffalo, Bank of America will bring the Neighborhood Champions program to more than 42 additional communities across the U.S. this fall as part of its commitment to investing in the long-term health of communities. The Neighborhood Champions program is an extension of the bank’s signature philanthropic initiative, Neighborhood Builders, which it called the largest corporate philanthropic investment in nonprofit leadership in the country. 

Bank of America Buffalo Market Executive Laura Dolan (middle) presents Buffalo Center for Arts and Technology President and CEO Gina Burkhardt and BCAT Chairman and The John R. Oishei Foundation President Robert Gioia with the 2021 Bank of America Neighborhood Champion Award. (Submitted photo)