It's a good time to be around the Detroit area this holiday season, as Ford Motor Company announces $9.2 million in gifts to three local institutions.

The City of Dearborn is getting $5 million from the company for its Ford Community and Performing Arts Center. The center will serve as a space for theater performances, community meetings, and senior citizens' activities, along with fitness and health programs.

The University of Detroit Mercy will get $3 million over five years to support computer science programs, a global learning center, renovated business education facilities and scholarships for minority students in engineering. The university -- the largest Catholic school in the state -- leads Michigan in the percentage of minority engineering graduates.

The Henry Ford Academy, a public charter school started on the grounds of Henry Ford's Edison Institute in Dearborn, will get $1.2 million for operating expenses and new programs. The school -- started with a $4.8 million grant from Ford in partnership with the Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village -- offers a "hands-on approach to education, encouraging projects that reflect the real world."

Full text of these press releases are currently found at:
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/991213/mi_henry_f_1.html
and
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/991213/mi_u_of_d__1.html
and
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/991213/mi_ford_gi_1.html