Sixty students from diverse backgrounds, including five from North Carolina, make up the first class of Dominion Energy Educational Equity Scholars and will receive over $500,0000 to help pay for educational expenses as part of Dominion Energy’s larger commitment to African American and other underrepresented minority students. North Carolina recipients of the Educational Equity Scholarship Program are:

• Alexa Brzoska of Cornelius, Duke University
• Jamel Clarke of Raleigh, North Carolina State University
• Cecilia Chavez of Charlotte, Columbia College
• Jael Hall of Mooresville, Longwood University
• Wisdom Talley of Elon, Howard University

These scholarships are the first in a six-year, $10 million initiative to provide assistance with higher education expenses. The inaugural class is comprised of students hailing from eight states. Seventeen students enrolled in two-year schools will receive $5,000 each. Forty-three students enrolled in four-year schools will receive $10,000 each. 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 that specializes in management of scholarship and tuition assistance programs.

Another $9.5 million in Dominion Energy Educational Equity Scholarships will be awarded over the next five years. Dominion Energy also committed $25 million to 11 historically Black colleges and universities in Virginia, Ohio, North Carolina and South Carolina. The six-year HBCU PromiseSM program will support endowments, capital projects, operating expenses and educational programs in clean energy.