ArcelorMittal Calvert joins Gulf Star Program to fund school STEM and marsh restoration

ArcelorMittal Calvert has joined the Gulf of America Alliance’s Gulf Star Program, becoming the first manufacturing-sector partner in Alabama. The investment will expand a school-based Native Plant Producer Network in Mobile and Baldwin counties to give students hands-on STEM experience while supporting coastal restoration.

Why it matters: - The new partnership links workforce development and environmental restoration in Alabama schools. - The project is designed to help students build STEM skills while growing native plants used to restore marsh habitat. - The Gulf Star Program uses public-private funding to support coastal priorities that can be harder for small communities and organizations to carry out on their own.

What happened: - The Gulf of America Alliance announced that ArcelorMittal Calvert has joined the Alliance’s Gulf Star Program. - ArcelorMittal Calvert is the second organization in Alabama to join Gulf Star. - ArcelorMittal Calvert is the first partner from the manufacturing sector in the program. - The company is funding expansion of the Native Plant Producer Network in schools in Mobile and Baldwin counties, Alabama.

The details: - The Gulf Star Program is a public-private partnership that combines contributions from agencies and businesses. - The program supports projects tied to healthy beaches, clean waters, productive ecosystems and thriving coastal communities across the five Gulf states. - The Native Plant Producer Network started in Mississippi in 2024. - The network expanded to Mobile and Baldwin counties earlier this year with separate Gulf Star support. - The project aims to provide hands-on STEM opportunities for middle and high school students. - The project also aims to grow native plants for restoration and restore marshes to improve habitat. - ArcelorMittal Calvert specializes in advanced automotive steel and the production of pipe and tube steel. - ArcelorMittal Calvert is a leading steel manufacturer in Calvert, Alabama, and one of the nation’s most advanced steel facilities. - The site serves the automotive, energy, construction and appliance industries. - The company says continued investment is expanding domestic steelmaking capacity while supporting education, health and quality of life in the region. - The Gulf Star partner list includes Genesis Energy, L.P., 1PointFive, Alabama Power, the National Academies' Gulf Research Program, Shell, Motiva Enterprises, Valero, Freeport McMoRan, Sempra Infrastructure, Chevron, Williams, Clean Gulf Associates, NOAA and the five Gulf states. - The Gulf of America Alliance says its network includes more than 165 participating organizations. - The network includes state and federal agencies, local governments, communities, academia, non-governmental organizations and industry. - The Alliance focuses on coastal community resilience, data and monitoring, education, habitat, water resources, wildlife and fisheries, and marine debris. - ArcelorMittal Calvert’s website is more information.

Between the lines: - The partnership gives the Alliance another corporate backer in Alabama while broadening the mix of industries involved in Gulf Star. - Pairing student STEM work with native plant production creates a practical pipeline from classroom learning to environmental restoration. - The emphasis on school-based restoration suggests the Alliance is using education projects to build long-term local capacity, not just short-term grant support.

What’s next: - ArcelorMittal Calvert’s funding will support continued development of the Native Plant Producer Network with additional schools in Mobile and Baldwin counties. - Students in the expanded network will continue producing native plants for marsh restoration projects. - The Gulf of America Alliance is likely to keep adding Gulf Star partners as it expands work in Alabama and across the Gulf region.

The bottom line: - The deal adds a new manufacturing partner to a Gulf restoration program and turns local schools into a training ground for both STEM education and coastal recovery.