BayPort Credit Union is more than just a credit union. Its philanthropic foundation has become an eager partner in assisting communities through dedicating funds to organizations in need. BayPort Credit Union launched the BayPort Foundation, its 501(3)(c) nonprofit organization, in 2020. The credit union does not profit from its fundraising that benefits the Foundation.
The Accelerating Change Together (ACT) Grant came into being in 2022. Dedicating $500,000 to radically affect communities for the better, the grant stands as an ongoing example of corporate commitment to positive growth beyond just business. Expanded from an existing Newport News Shipbuilding grant, it connected the nonprofit entities of three corporations in 2024: HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding, Ferguson Enterprises and BayPort Credit Union. The ACT Grant prioritizes education and workforce development.
The BayPort Foundation already awards 12 scholarships each year to 36 high school seniors, college students and working adults continuing their education. Much of the credit union’s grant giving proceeds through the Foundation. The change that the ACT Grant creates within the community around it touches many types of people.
Regarding the ACT Grant, Christine Clemente, communications and community engagement supervisor at BayPort, says, “The intent of [the grant] was to award it to a local nonprofit needing help to fund a project focused on educational and workforce development.” As Clemente explains, the needs to maintain a skilled workforce, enhance education where possible and boost the economy can all be addressed through the existence of the ACT Grant benefiting a nonprofit.
In 2022, the first ACT Grant cycle benefited the Virginia Beach Education Foundation through funding Virginia Beach City Public Schools’ (VBCPS) Renewable Energy Technologies program. Through a three-year step-down grant, equipment is funded to further the growth of budding careers in renewable energy.
In December 2024, the ACT Grant was awarded to the Newport News Education Foundation to fund Newport News Public Schools’ (NNPS) New Teacher Institute (NTI) program. This most recent allocation included Virginia Natural Gas in the partnership among the original three corporations. The three-year funding will allow the expansion of first- and second-year teaching programs, plus funding model program development, offering credentialing assistance and supporting CTE and ESL teachers.
“BayPort is excited to be a leader in the ACT Grant,” says Nancy Porter, vice president of BayPort’s marketing and executive director of the BayPort Foundation. “So many nonprofits have creative ideas about how to address pressing community challenges but don’t have a mechanism to fund the implementation of those ideas. The goal of the ACT Grant is to invest in a project with the most significant potential to leave a lasting legacy on our community,” Porter says.
BayPort’s commitment to selfless giving can be reaffirmed at the head of its operations. After working with the company for more than three decades, Jim Mears was promoted to chief executive officer of BayPort Credit Union in 2019. He also serves as president and chairman of the BayPort Foundation. Mears was recently honored with a 2025 Humanitarian Award from the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities.
Under BayPort Credit Union, the BayPort Foundation puts action and power behind its dedication to creating positive and visible change. Through the generosity of its various outreaches, facets of the community have been and can continually be improved by these philanthropic commitments.
TO THE POINT:
BayPort Credit Union
Address: One Bayport Way, Ste. 300, Newport News, VA 23606
Phone: 800-928-8801, 757-928-8850
Website: www.bayportcu.org
