Month: March 2024

MIDLAND, Mich., March 11, 2024 /3BL/ – Dow (NYSE: DOW) recently announced that for the fifth year it has been named to the JUST 100 list by JUST Capital and CNBC – placing 35th overall, up 20 spots in the ranking from last year, and securing the top spot for Customers in the Chemicals sector. This year marks the Company’s first time ranking in the top 50.

“Being recognized as a JUST 100 company is a testament to the values and principles that drive Dow,” said Jim Fitterling, Dow chair and CEO. “We are committed to creating a more equitable, sustainable and inclusive future, and this recognition indicates our intentional work is making a positive impact on our team, our communities and our stakeholders.”

JUST Capital is an independent nonprofit that demonstrates how just business – defined by the priorities of the public – is better business. The Rankings of America’s Most JUST Companies are the only measure of how the nation’s largest corporations are performing on the business issues that matter most to Americans. The issues – which include paying a fair, living wage, creating jobs in the U.S., supporting workforce retention and training, providing benefits and work-life balance, protecting customer privacy, minimizing pollution and more – are defined annually by an extensive nationwide polling process done on a fully representative basis. The top 100 companies – the JUST 100 – are determined by scoring performance across the full range of criteria and comparing companies head-to-head.

For the annual Rankings, JUST Capital collects and analyzes corporate data to evaluate the 1,000 largest public U.S. companies across 20 issues identified through comprehensive, ongoing public opinion research on Americans’ attitudes toward responsible corporate behavior. JUST Capital has engaged more than 170,000 participants, on a fully representative basis, since 2015.

“American capitalism has to work for more Americans. For this to happen, the private sector, and especially big corporations, must take the lead in creating value for all their stakeholders,” said JUST Capital CEO Martin Whittaker. “That’s exactly what the JUST 100 are doing. They show that just business is better business.”

CNBC will delve into the data, highlighting company-specific results and showcasing key stakeholder performance stories about this year’s JUST 100 leaders across the network’s broadcast and digital platforms at cnbc.com/just100. An exploration of the JUST 100 companies can be found at justcapital.com/rankings.

This is one of several recent recognitions that highlight Dow’s progress toward its ambition to be the most innovative, customer-centric, inclusive and sustainable materials science company in the world. In December, Dow earned a top score in LGBTQ+ equality in Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index and achieved its 23rd year on the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index. The recognition also follows Dow’s placement on Great Place To Work and FORTUNE’s World’s Best Workplaces list for 2023.

About Dow

Dow (NYSE: DOW) is one of the world’s leading materials science companies, serving customers in high-growth markets such as packaging, infrastructure, mobility and consumer applications. Our global breadth, asset integration and scale, focused innovation, leading business positions and commitment to sustainability enable us to achieve profitable growth and help deliver a sustainable future. We operate manufacturing sites in 31 countries and employ approximately 35,900 people. Dow delivered sales of approximately $45 billion in 2023. References to Dow or the Company mean Dow Inc. and its subsidiaries. Learn more about us and our ambition to be the most innovative, customer-centric, inclusive and sustainable materials science company in the world by visiting www.dow.com.

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For further information, please contact:

Mary Fournier 
989-636-7475 
mkfournier@dow.com

Verizon

When Dawn Martesi started college, she hadn’t yet considered becoming a teacher. Education was important to her and her family — Martesi’s mother was always adamant that her daughter get a good education — but it wasn’t until she started working at a daycare during college that she found her calling.

“I remember the daycare director,” Martesi says. “She told me, ‘You’re going to be a teacher — you know that, right?’”

From that point, Martesi, now the principal at Mill Creek Elementary School in Levittown, Pennsylvania, started her journey into education. Martesi earned a bachelor’s degree in the field, as well as a master’s in reading, then worked as a literacy coach and English Language Arts special education teacher for over a decade.

But it was becoming a coach at her school’s Verizon Innovative Learning program that would change the trajectory of Martesi’s career. She led the program’s tech integration at Neil A. Armstrong Middle School in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania, which was one of the first schools in the program. In this role, Martesi ensured teachers and students alike made the most of the devices, data plans and professional development provided by Verizon.

It wasn’t smooth sailing, initially. Martesi says she wasn’t comfortable with the technology at first, but her love of her students pushed her through the challenge. “I cared about growing our school,” she says. “It didn’t matter that we didn’t have experience with the technology. We knew it was about the kids, and we held on to that. As long as you know your ‘why,’ you’re going to be okay.”

Remembering her “why,” Martesi dove into her new role in a creative way. She was the mentor to Tiger Tech, Armstrong’s student tech team composed of middle and high school students for the Verizon Innovative Learning program. These students act as an in-house IT department. The opportunity to be on the team provided participating students with a leadership role (and influenced some of them to later pursue STEM majors and careers). Leading the team also inspired Martesi to take on more. As a coach, she presented to teachers, ran district-wide professional development training and participated in curriculum meetings with the superintendent.

“I didn’t look at [the coach] position as a tech position,” she adds. “I felt very strongly that my position was really important as an advocate for teachers and a liaison for the teachers between the administration, community and students.”

Thanks to the experience, Martesi decided to pursue administration, receiving the certifications she needed to work her way up to principal, as well as obtaining a second master’s degree in administration and curriculum. “After being a [Verizon Innovative Learning Schools] Coach, I saw that in a different leadership role, I can have a larger say in what programs we have and how we get kids and families more involved,” Martesi explains. “I’m not just impacting my class: I can impact entire grade levels and schoolwide systems. From this position, you can have a bigger ripple effect.”

Martesi moved from assistant principal at a high school to her new principal role in summer 2023. As principal, she hopes to integrate STEM education into the curriculum and is determined to foster an environment where students and their families can thrive.

“I want to make sure I build community,” Martesi says. “I want kids to leave here as problem-solvers, readers, creators and thinkers, so when they hit those difficult adolescent years, they’re better equipped and they can really be the best people they can be.”