Community Relations

Michelin's Signature Program Focused on Education

Michelin Challenge Education

This year, Michelin North America celebrates 10 years since the launch of its signature education program, Michelin Challenge Education. Michelin Challenge Education provides support to public Title 1 elementary schools in the forms of tutors, mentors, lunch buddies and financial contributions.

The goal of the program is to provide much-needed human capital that will positively impact the lives of disadvantaged children. Since its launch in 2009, the program is part of 23 schools in North America where more than 500 employee volunteers visit weekly. Further, Michelin has donated more than 150,000 books to local elementary schools over the past ten years.

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iMAGINE Upstate STEM Festival

iMAGINE Upstate is a program of South Carolina’s Coalition for Mathematics & Science (SCCMS) at Clemson University.  As the demand for a skilled and indigenous workforce continues to grow, local employers like Michelin are placing increasing emphasis on science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) education in Upstate schools.  Through collaboration with Michelin, other industries, academic institutions, non-profit organizations and the community, iMAGINE Upstate creates meaningful experiences that promote a culture of lifelong learning and professional growth with an emphasis on S.T.E.A.M., innovation, and entrepreneurial activity in Upstate South Carolina.

Urban League - MLK Scholarships

Urban League - MLK Scholarships continue to give Greenville citizens an opportunity to honor the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., while celebrating the diversity of the community in which we live.  Each year Michelin awards two $5,000 scholarships to local, deserving youth.

Michelin Tech Scholars Program

The Michelin Technical Scholars program allows currently enrolled technical school students to co-op with Michelin in its facilities so they can experience the real world application of their studies. Michelin pays for their books and tuition, and the scholars are paid to work 20 hours a week with Michelin technicians. Upon successful completion of their education, Michelin Technical Scholars are often hired into the company for a full-time position with a starting annual salary of around $50,000. This program combines Michelin’s commitment to diversity (women and minorities are a focus) with the effort to consistently fill the company’s employment pipeline with talented individuals.

Learn more about Michelin Technical Scholars program at the participating techncial colleges: Greenville Tech, Midlands Tech, TriCounty Tech and Spartanburg Community College.

Reading Allstars Program in Partnership with the Greenville Drive

The Greenville Drive Reading All-Stars Program, sponsored by Michelin, N.A., is a proven reading incentive program designed to promote reading enjoyment and academic success among youth through the excitement and appeal of professional sports. Since the program was launched in 2008 over 90,000 students have qualified across three school districts and two library systems.

Michelin Has Been Committed to the United Way for More Than 15 Years

United Way

Michelin and the United Way share the common goal of making a positive impact on local communities. Like Michelin, the United Way is an international operation but a majority of its efforts are focused on supporting local charities. United Way’s goals include improving education, financial stability and promoting healthy lives.

Michelin’s employees throughout North America established a new company-best for United Way giving during the 2011 campaign.

Michelin Development

Michelin Development provides low interest loans and business expertise to start-ups and small businesses in key regions where Michelin has operations and facilities. The Upstate of South Carolina is home to Michelin’s North America headquarters and several major tire facilities. Michelin Development program has aimed to support economically and socially disadvantaged small business owners here since 2009.

Learn more about Michelin Development.

Special Olympics

Michelin and Special Olympics first came together nearly 25 years ago in an effort to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.

Michelin’s support has grown significantly over the years and now includes the Annual Torch Run in Nova Scotia and Annual Spring Games in Greenville County, South Carolina engaging more than 400 Michelin employees across North America. 

Michelin Junior Bike

Michelin Junior Bike events promote bicycle and helmet safety for young bike riders in Canada. Sponsored by Michelin North America (Canada) Inc., nearly 900 children participate on two-wheels, training wheels and even tricycles each year. Each child is fitted for a new complimentary bike helmet.

The Michelin Youth Empowerment through Service (YES!) Program

The Michelin Youth Empowerment through Service (YES!) Program exists to provide middle school students with opportunities for leadership development, personal empowerment and community service initiatives at The Upstate Children's Museum in Greenville, South Carolina. The program is designed for Middle School Students currently enrolled in grades 6-8.

Students volunteer within the Museum and at community events where the Museum is represented. Students will mostly be responsible for helping with special event activities and programming. Additional opportunities may include story & more, open art studios, and birthday parties.  YES! volunteers receive monthly training sessions where students participate in team building and leadership activities, hear from guest speakers and learn more about how the Museum operates.

Bib's World Exhibit at The Children's Museum of the Upstate

The Children's Museum of the Upstate (TCMU), a leader in innovative family activities and dynamic learning, is pleased to announce a new permanent outdoor exhibit, “Bib’s World."

Bib’s World is a gift from the Michelin Corporate Foundation, and named after Bibendum, a symbol of the Michelin tire company that is commonly referred to as the Michelin Man. The exhibit will feature various play structures made from tires and other sustainable materials, multi-cultural elements including interactive pathways with maps and signs, a two-story futuristic interactive city scape, and a wheelchair-accessible merry-go-round for children with special needs.  Bib's World is an outdoor exhibit in the back of the Museum grounds, and will be accessible through a new gallery on the first floor.

InTireNational Art Contest

The InTIREnational Art Contest is part of Upstate International 2016, a month-long series of community events and activities that celebrate the cultural diversity of South Carolina’s Upstate.

In its third year, the Michelin InTIREnational Art Contest is hosted by Michelin North America in conjunction with Upstate International. This year, Michelin challenged participants to create a piece of art that answers the question of how the Upstate of South Carolina celebrates international inclusion.

Using up to four scrap tires donated by Michelin, participants are asked to convert ordinary tires into extraordinary works of art. Two winning works of art are selected. One winner, the People’s Choice, is awarded to the entry that receives the most votes online at inspiredtires.com between March 1 – 31, 2016. The second winner is selected by a panel of judges. Each winning entry receives a $5,000 donation to a charity, school, or non-profit of its choice.

Entries will be on display at the Hughes Main Library, Heritage Green, Downtown Greenville during Upstate International Month in March 2016 and photos of each entry are posted on www.inspiredtires.com. 

Boy Scouts - Blue Ridge Council

Pete Selleck, chairman and president of Michelin NA, was presented with a Distinguished Eagle Scout award by the Blue Ridge Council, Boy Scouts of America, during the council's signature fundraiser.

The award was established in 1969 to recognize Eagle Scouts who, after 25 years or longer of having received the Eagle Scout Award, have reached the highest national level of success in their field. Recipients of the award have also demonstrated a strong record of volunteer leadership and service to their community.

Michelin Children's Concerts presented by Greenville Symphony Orchestra

Each year, the Greenville Symphony Orchestra presents an educational version of one of our Masterworks Series concerts to Greenville County elementary students free of charge, sponsored in part by Michelin.

Peace Voices

With help from generous Peace Partners like Michelin and accessible
educational programming - a youth performance series, community engagement events, professional development opportunities and master classes with renowned artists - the Peace Outreach Program reaches more than 56,000 people from all walks of life, annually.

Peace Voices is about developing your voice. It’s about using poetry as a vehicle to tell your stories.  And with professional poet, author, storyteller and teacher Glenis Redmond at the helm, participants develop valuable skills that extend well beyond pen and paper.  Engaging in the art forms of spoken word and poetry, Peace Voices participants experience master classes, workshops, open mics, poetry readings and poetry slams at the Peace Center that are free and open to the public, creating a space and a stage for the community to write and share original work.

Greenville Technical College and Michelin North America Partner on Habitat build

Greenville Technical College (GTC) and Michelin North America, Inc. have partnered many times to build the local workforce and now they are partnering to build a house for a local family with Habitat for Humanity Greenville County.

The Habitat for Humanity build is the first time the college and the tire giant have come together to impact housing in the community. For the last 10 years, Michelin and its employees have helped build a house for Habitat for Humanity. This is Greenville Technical College’s first build. Together, they are constructing a home that is expected to be completed in late April 2016. The build has brought together more than 350 volunteers from Greenville Technical College including Building Construction Technology students and every major student organization. It has also been supported by hundreds of Michelin volunteers, serving as a team building exercise for many departments.

“Michelin is honored to stand shoulder-to-should with our Greenville Technical Partners to build a new home, from the ground up, for a well-deserving member of our community,” said Leesa Owens, director of community relations for Michelin North America.

Michelin Employees Participate in March of Dimes Walk

From a global standpoint, the entire Michelin organization has a demonstrated and direct commitment to the well-being and development of its employees and to live in harmony with the local communities.  From company-wide volunteers who support the March of Dimes to teams of employees cleaning up a local landfill to be used as wildlife refuge, Michelin’s commitment to acting responsibly extends far beyond dollar values.  

Michelin employees contributed over 675 hours of service to the March of Dimes. Over the years, Michelin facilities across North America have organized 5k walks, charitable golf tournaments, and autocross races to support the March of Dimes.

Michelin's Keystone Environmental Program

Partnership with Yellowstone National Park Foundation

Michelin has been a partner to Yellowstone National Park since 2008 and has helped to reduce Yellowstone’s carbon footprint, saving more than $300k each year by equipping its fleet of more than 800 vehicles with tires, providing engineer and training support, and forming dealer partnerships for retreading tires.

Yellowstone "Old Faithful" Pathway Build

As a Yellowstone Park Foundation partner, Michelin is proud to provide funding for the a pathway and give our employees the opportunity to participate in the renovation effort.

Michelin North America held a contest in which we gave our employees from the U.S., Canada and Mexico a chance to spend a week at Yellowstone to work on an innovative new pathway to help be a part of this partnership and also experience the beauty of one of America’s great national treasures.

We had more than 2,200 employees enter the contest and the 10 winners were selected at random and are here today ready to get to work on the new FlexiPave that will recycle used Michelin tires from Yellowstone.

Michelin Provides 100K in Environmental Stewardship Grants

Michelin has improved its overall environmental efficiency by one-third over the past six years. From the choice of materials to tire architecture to manufacturing processes and services, Michelin is deeply committed to safeguarding the natural environment. Respect for the Environment is one of the company’s core values 

Michelin awards $100,000 in environmental stewardship grants yearly with the primary purpose of the project must be to provide an environmental benefit, to improve public or community relations.  

Tire Rack Street Survival

The Tire Rack Street Survival was founded in 2002 by the BMW Car Club Foundation of America. The program teaches students to avoid accidents by thinking and looking ahead through classroom and behind-the-wheel instruction. Tire Rack Street Survival is unique in that it offers students instruction in their own cars so that they learn the limitations of the car they drive daily. Michelin, as a mobility company, is supportive of this program to educate inexperienced drivers in an effort to stem the tide of teen fatalities experienced in the U.S. every year.