RICHMOND, Va. — Through its Educational Equity Scholarship Program, Dominion Energy is awarding $500,000 in scholarships to 60 students in 2022. In its second year of the six-year $10 million initiative, the program assists with undergraduate higher education expenses for underrepresented minority students who reside in the company’s service area.

“We recognize the importance of education as an equalizer in society,” said Robert M. Blue, Dominion Energy’s president and chief executive officer. “This program helps reduce the financial hurdle many underrepresented students face, which allows scholarship recipients greater access to post-secondary education and additional opportunities to propel their futures.”

The scholarship application period is open Nov. 30, 2021, through Jan. 25, 2022, 4 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. To be eligible, students must:

• Self-identify as Black or African American; Hispanic or Latino; American Indian or Alaska Native; Asian; or Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander with higher education expenses,
• Be high school seniors or graduates, or current college undergraduates residing in Connecticut, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Wyoming or Utah, with plans to enroll full time at an accredited two- or four-year college, university or vocational-technical school for the entire upcoming academic year; and
• Have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale (or its equivalent).

In all, 60 scholarships totaling $500,000 will be awarded in 2022. Of those, 20 scholarships of $5,000 each will be made available for students enrolled in two-year schools, while 40 scholarships of $10,000 each will be awarded to students enrolled in four-year schools. Scholarship recipients will be able to renew scholarships as they progress in school, provided they meet certain criteria, such as GPA requirements and residence in an eligible state.

The program is administered by Scholarship America, a nonprofit specializing in managing scholarship and tuition assistance programs. Scholarship America will support Dominion Energy in the selection of finalists.

Students can learn more and apply at DominionEnergy.com/EquityScholarships.

Clinton Washington III, a student at Furman University in South Carolina, was among the 2021 first class of Dominion Energy Educational Equity Scholars from eight states in the company’s service area.

“In early December, life was extremely stressful due to the impact of COVID-19,” Washington said. “Between having only my mom working, and balancing school with financial stress, it was very difficult to maintain a happy state of mind going into my spring semester. When I received the news regarding the Dominion Energy Educational Equity Scholarship, I was so ecstatic because I knew it would create an immense amount of relief for my family and myself going into my senior year. This scholarship has truly changed the trajectory in my mental health by giving me the freedom to pursue all my goals for my senior year. Rather than spending an immense amount of time pursing on campus jobs, I can go all in on school, graduate school plans, and my clubs/organizations. The amount of gratitude that I have for this scholarship does not suffice by just words alone, and I truly hope this can be continued for future students like myself.”