CITGO Invests Nearly $840,000 for STEM Education in Illinois, Louisiana, and Texas
CITGO Petroleum Corporation is making a significant investment of approximately $840,000 to support 35 initiatives focused on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education across Illinois, Louisiana, and Texas. This funding aligns perfectly with the national celebration of STEM Day, which took place on November 8. Throughout November, CITGO is also sponsoring various local STEM events in partnership with community organizations. These initiatives include exciting field trips with CITGO Innovation Academies, the GEMS (Girls Exploring Math and Science) Day at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, a STEM Day event at the Lakefront in Lake Charles, Louisiana, as well as STEM Night events at schools located in Lemont and Lockport, Illinois, and Corpus Christi, Texas.
Kresha Sivinski, CITGO's Vice President of Human Resources and Support Services, stated, "STEM skills are essential for fostering innovation and advancement for companies like CITGO. Our objective with the STEM Program is to fund projects that ignite the imagination and curiosity of the next generation of engineers, scientists, and professionals in finance, IT, and other areas."
Central to CITGO’s STEM Program are two major initiatives: the CITGO Innovation Academies and the CITGO Innovation Scholarship Program. The Innovation Academies consist of STEM-centric educational programs designed to cultivate a K-12 pipeline of future innovators in communities close to CITGO’s operational locations. Currently, CITGO supports 14 Innovation Academies across Illinois, Louisiana, and Texas, impacting about 30,000 students and educators each year.
Moreover, the CITGO Innovation Scholarship Program provides $2,000 scholarships to high school students intending to pursue college education in STEM majors and to college students who have engaged in a CITGO internship or co-op program and aspire to further their education within the energy sector. In 2025, the program awarded scholarships to 25 students attending CITGO Innovation Academies and another 21 college students.
In addition to the Innovation Academies, CITGO grants funding to schools situated in underserved regions, with an aim to enhance interest and learning opportunities in STEM, particularly focusing on hands-on experiences in coding, robotics, and engineering. A few beneficiaries of the 2025 CITGO STEM grants include:
- Lemont-Bromberek School District 113A
- Lockport Township High School District 205
- Robotics/STEM Mini Grants for:
- Taft District 90
- Will County School District 92
- Valley View School District 365U (Romeoville High School)
- LeBlance Middle School
- Sulphur High School
- W.W. Lewis Middle School
- Dolby Elementary School
- Region 5 STEM Center
- Vinton High School Robotics Program
- Dr. J.A. Garcia Elementary School
- Foy H. Moody High School
- West Oso Independent School District
- Richard King High School
- Sterling B. Martin Middle School
- Tuloso-Midway Independent School District
- E.A. Olle Middle School
- Klentzman Intermediate School
- Houston City College Foundation
- Northbrook High School
- Spring Oaks Middle School
- Spring Woods Middle School
William Marsh Rice University is involved in distributing BuoyBead biotechnology kits for schools throughout Illinois, Louisiana, and Texas.
CITGO Petroleum Corporation continues to be a leader in the refining industry, operating under its well-known brand. With refineries in Lake Charles, Louisiana; Lemont, Illinois; and Corpus Christi, Texas, CITGO manages a vast network of active terminals, pipelines, and packaging plants. Employing around 3,300 individuals and boasting a crude capacity of approximately 807,000 barrels per day, CITGO ranks as one of the largest independent refiners in the United States, dedicated to marketing a broad array of transportation fuels, lubricants, and other essential products to a network of about 4,000 branded retail outlets across the eastern United States.
Kresha Sivinski, CITGO's Vice President of Human Resources and Support Services, stated, "STEM skills are essential for fostering innovation and advancement for companies like CITGO. Our objective with the STEM Program is to fund projects that ignite the imagination and curiosity of the next generation of engineers, scientists, and professionals in finance, IT, and other areas."
Central to CITGO’s STEM Program are two major initiatives: the CITGO Innovation Academies and the CITGO Innovation Scholarship Program. The Innovation Academies consist of STEM-centric educational programs designed to cultivate a K-12 pipeline of future innovators in communities close to CITGO’s operational locations. Currently, CITGO supports 14 Innovation Academies across Illinois, Louisiana, and Texas, impacting about 30,000 students and educators each year.
Moreover, the CITGO Innovation Scholarship Program provides $2,000 scholarships to high school students intending to pursue college education in STEM majors and to college students who have engaged in a CITGO internship or co-op program and aspire to further their education within the energy sector. In 2025, the program awarded scholarships to 25 students attending CITGO Innovation Academies and another 21 college students.
In addition to the Innovation Academies, CITGO grants funding to schools situated in underserved regions, with an aim to enhance interest and learning opportunities in STEM, particularly focusing on hands-on experiences in coding, robotics, and engineering. A few beneficiaries of the 2025 CITGO STEM grants include:
Illinois
- - CITGO Innovation Academies located at:
- Lemont-Bromberek School District 113A
- Lockport Township High School District 205
- - Grants awarded to:
- Robotics/STEM Mini Grants for:
- Taft District 90
- Will County School District 92
- Valley View School District 365U (Romeoville High School)
Louisiana
- - CITGO Innovation Academies in Calcasieu Parish:
- LeBlance Middle School
- Sulphur High School
- - Grants awarded to:
- W.W. Lewis Middle School
- - Robotics/STEM Mini Grants for:
- Dolby Elementary School
- Region 5 STEM Center
- Vinton High School Robotics Program
Texas (Corpus Christi)
- - CITGO Innovation Academies include:
- Dr. J.A. Garcia Elementary School
- Foy H. Moody High School
- West Oso Independent School District
- - Grants awarded to:
- - Robotics/STEM Mini Grants for:
- Richard King High School
- Sterling B. Martin Middle School
- Tuloso-Midway Independent School District
Houston
- - CITGO Innovation Academies in Alief Independent School District:
- E.A. Olle Middle School
- Klentzman Intermediate School
- - Grants awarded to:
- Houston City College Foundation
- - Robotics/STEM Mini Grants in Spring Branch ISD:
- Northbrook High School
- Spring Oaks Middle School
- Spring Woods Middle School
Region-wide
William Marsh Rice University is involved in distributing BuoyBead biotechnology kits for schools throughout Illinois, Louisiana, and Texas.
CITGO Petroleum Corporation continues to be a leader in the refining industry, operating under its well-known brand. With refineries in Lake Charles, Louisiana; Lemont, Illinois; and Corpus Christi, Texas, CITGO manages a vast network of active terminals, pipelines, and packaging plants. Employing around 3,300 individuals and boasting a crude capacity of approximately 807,000 barrels per day, CITGO ranks as one of the largest independent refiners in the United States, dedicated to marketing a broad array of transportation fuels, lubricants, and other essential products to a network of about 4,000 branded retail outlets across the eastern United States.
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