Dominion Awards HU J-School Grant to Increase Energy Awareness

Professor Joy McDonald and Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communication Interim Dean Rosalynne Whitaker-Heck, grant co-principal investigators, accept the award from Melanie R. Beale, External Affairs Manager, Dominion.

Hampton, Va. – Hampton University’s Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications has been awarded a $40,000 grant from the Dominion Foundation to implement student-produced multimedia energy-related projects.

The grant funding will support the creation of student-produced journalism and public relations projects aimed towards increasing the public’s energy awareness.  Topics will include natural resource exploration, energy transportation and storage, power generation and energy delivery, renewable power projects and energy conservation efforts in the Hampton Roads region. The information campaign will be disseminated via web-based multimedia platforms. The grant will also support a series of training workshops for students and faculty and software upgrades.

“Through this project, our students will be able to produce relevant content for people to make informed decisions about energy use and consumption,” said Rosalynne Whitaker-Heck, interim dean of the Scripps Howard School and co-principal investigator for the grant.  Assistant Professor and internship coordinator Joy McDonald will also serve as co-principal investigator.

The award is one of five to be presented to area universities today, Oct. 20, at a luncheon hosted by the foundation at The Founders Inn in Virginia Beach from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.  Old Dominion University, Norfolk State University, Thomas Nelson Community College and Tidewater Community College also received grants ranging from $10,000 to $40,000.

The grants total $150,000 and will support various programs in business, skilled craft, engineering, environmental and technical studies, and for student-led conservation programs. The Dominion Foundation is the charitable arm of Dominion Virginia Power.

"This new program was created specifically for higher education," said Bill Hall, vice president for corporate communications and community affairs with Dominion Virginia Power and president of the Dominion Foundation. "We see the importance in funding and cultivating the innovative studies that are happening at our colleges and universities and their potential for the future."

Dominion, its charitable foundation and its employees this year will donate millions of dollars and more than 125,000 volunteer hours to programs that help improve the quality of life for people in the states in which Dominion operates. The Dominion Foundation's focus areas include preservation of natural resources, work force development and education, diversity initiatives, neighborhood and community development, and basic needs for food and shelter.