Best Buy Social Impact

By John Vomhof Jr. Company News

09 Mar: After Nashville Tornado, Best Buy Brings Support, Volunteers

Best Buy employees in the Nashville area are rallying to support the community after the deadly tornado that struck last week.

The company is donating money and sending teams of volunteers to help with the local response and recovery efforts.

“We see the customers who are in our stores every day all across Nashville who are trying to figure out next steps, and we’re hoping to just bring a little relief this week,” said Best Buy District Manager Kavin Johnson, who has lived in the area for 20 years.

By Chris Havens Lifestyle

02 Feb: Tour Michael Johnson’s Selma, Best Buy Teen Tech Center [Video]

Ten seasons as a professional football player have given Michael Johnson the ability to give back to his hometown of Selma, Alabama.

One way he’s doing that is by sponsoring a Best Buy Teen Tech Center. In a Teen Tech Center, youth learn new tech skills, stay on-track with school, nurture positive adult and peer relationships and get exposed to new career possibilities.

Michael sees the Teen Tech Center as a way to provide access and opportunity to students in Selma.

By Natalie Albers Company News

30 Oct: How Best Buy is training today’s girls for tomorrow’s tech careers

Tomorrow’s careers will require today’s students to know more than just reading, writing and arithmetic. Demand for technology skills is on the rise, and Best Buy is providing youth — especially girls — with ways to discover what’s new, dream about what’s possible and develop a plan for a successful future.

“Giving young women an opportunity to succeed in a tech-reliant career is an important focus of the social impact programming we develop at Best Buy,” said Andrea Riehl, manager of Best Buy’s signature social impact programs.

By Best Buy Company News PR News Alerts Sustainability

29 Oct: Best Buy Funds $2.5 Million Scholarship for University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management Students

The new Best Buy Scholarship fund supports the pipeline of talent from Minnesota schools to areas of growth in tech-reliant careers.

MINNEAPOLIS, October 29, 2019 – Best Buy is teaming up with the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management to help create brighter futures and make earning a degree more accessible for students. The new Best Buy Scholarship includes $2.5 million in funding – one of Best Buy’s largest education endowment gifts ever – for students pursuing tech-reliant careers in business.

By Best Buy Company News PR News Alerts Sustainability

24 Oct: Best Buy’s first Give-Back Sale will help prepare teens for tech careers

Let the giving season begin. Starting today, Best Buy is giving its customers an opportunity to get a jumpstart on the season and support teens from underserved communities with its first Give-Back Sale.

Starting today and running through Oct. 27, 5% of profits from select sale items at Best Buy (in stores and online) will be donated to Teen Tech Centers — safe, after-school learning spaces equipped with cutting-edge technology where youth learn new skills, stay on track with school, nurture positive adult and peer relationships, and discover career pathways.

Best Buy Denver Teen Tech Center Opening

By Best Buy Lifestyle

27 Sep: Teen Tech Center alumni carry passion on to college

Juanluis Monje has always had a creative streak, ranging from painting to drawing to making video games.

In high school, he started going to the Best Buy Teen Tech Center in suburban Denver. It had all kinds of cutting-edge technology, including 3D printing, virtual reality, music production and robotics. What he found was a way to give some structure to that creativity and passion.

“The Teen Tech Center gave me all of the design tools, like Photoshop and Illustrator, which sparked my interest in design,” he said.

By Chris Havens Company News

27 Aug: Best Buy, pro athlete partner to bring Teen Tech Center to Selma

The first Best Buy Teen Tech Center in Alabama officially opened its doors on Tuesday.

Located on the campus of Wallace Community College in Selma (WCCS), the center is the result of a partnership among the college, Best Buy and pro football veteran Michael Johnson’s MJ 93-90 Foundation. Area teens will be able learn hands-on tech and workforce readiness skills, including music and video production, graphic design, robotics, virtual reality, coding and resume building.

The opening is a big milestone for Best Buy because it’s our 30^th Teen Tech Center in operation, bringing us halfway toward our goal of 60 centers opened or identified by the end of 2020.

By Kevin Flanagan Community Relations Company News Geek Squad Sustainability

21 May: Geek Squad Academy aims to reach record 10,000 teens this season

Young people from across the U.S. are about to learn essential tech skills as Best Buy’s Geek Squad Academy (GSA) summer camp season begins this month. More than 10,000 students from ages 11 to 18 are expected to attend 60 camps this year — the biggest GSA season ever.

“Youth from underrepresented communities face real challenges as job readiness resources and opportunities remain few and far between,” said Andrea Wood, head of social impact at Best Buy. “These two-day tech immersion camps will help thousands of students explore their passions and gain critical tech skills as they look ahead to their future studies and careers.”

By Suzanne Hilker Community Relations Company News

13 May: Best Buy Now Accepting Community Grant Applications

Best Buy has a long history of partnering with nonprofit organizations in communities across the country through our Community Grants program. This year, we are looking to award more than $2 million to eligible organizations.

We will prioritize proposals that include hands-on learning opportunities for young people and that creatively engage youth in experimenting and interacting with technology.

Our involvement doesn’t stop with financial support, though. Many of our employees give back to their communities by volunteering with the organizations that receive support through Community Grants.