Duke Energy awards $3.2 million to innovative education programs as part of its Powerful Communities grant program

- 131 organizations across six states to receive grants supporting early childhood literacy and STEM programming

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Apr 30, 2019, 11:10 ET

CHARLOTTE, N.C., April 30, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Duke Energy announced today it is awarding $3.2 million in grants to support 131 innovative K-12 education programs across the communities served by the company.

"Bright futures begin in the classroom, and every child deserves a fair chance at academic success," said Cari Boyce, president of the Duke Energy Foundation. "The grants we are making today are focused on providing equal opportunity for all students to have the strong educational basis that has proven to be a key determinant to future success."

The 2019 Powerful Communities grants, from the Duke Energy Foundation with support from Piedmont Natural Gas, aim to close the achievement gap that often separates low-income students from their peers by funding programs that prevent summer reading loss and out-of-school programs.

"Funding provided by Duke Energy helps to support the YMCA Camp Readers Program," states Joanna Castle, district vice president of the Citrus Memorial Health Foundation YMCA. "Our goal is to serve 500 children in Citrus County Y Summer Camps through Camp Readers, which provides a minimum of 30 minutes per day, five days a week of purposeful reading activities throughout the summer at camp."

Grants also support energy, engineering and environmental education programs to equip students with the skills needed for successful careers in the energy sector.

"Florence 1 Schools is very excited to partner with Duke Energy to provide the Clean Energy curriculum to our students," said Chris Rogers, Director of STEM Education for Florence District 1 in South Carolina. "This four-course curriculum will expose our students to real-world problem solving. Our students will work with Duke Energy engineers to develop a better understanding of the work they could possibly do if they decide to pursue that career path."

The grants are part of Duke Energy's new Powerful Communities philanthropic program, which award strategic charitable grants to nonprofit organizations working to build powerful communities by bolstering education, developing the future workforce of the energy sector and conserving and protecting our environment.

In 2018, Duke Energy Foundation invested more than $31 million to support communities throughout Duke Energy's seven-state service area.

A complete list of the 131 grant recipients and summaries by state can be found here:

North Carolina – $1,345,727 to support 46 projects
South Carolina – $485,000 to support 13 projects
Florida – $669,000 to support 21 projects
Ohio and Kentucky – $264,168 to support 21 projects
Indiana – $448,250 to support 30 projects

Duke Energy Foundation

The Duke Energy Foundation provides philanthropic support to meet the needs of communities where Duke Energy's customers live and work. The foundation contributes more than $30 million annually in charitable gifts, and is funded by Duke Energy shareholder dollars. More information about the foundation and its Powerful Communities program can be found at duke-energy.com/foundation.

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 125 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of the largest energy holding companies in the U.S. It employs 30,000 people and has an electric generating capacity of 51,000 megawatts through its regulated utilities, and 3,000 megawatts through its nonregulated Duke Energy Renewables unit.

Duke Energy is transforming its customers' experience, modernizing the energy grid, generating cleaner energy and expanding natural gas infrastructure to create a smarter energy future for the people and communities it serves. The Electric Utilities and Infrastructure unit's regulated utilities serve approximately 7.7 million retail electric customers in six states – North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. The Gas Utilities and Infrastructure unit distributes natural gas to more than 1.6 million customers in five states – North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The Duke Energy Renewables unit operates wind and solar generation facilities across the U.S., as well as energy storage and microgrid projects.

Duke Energy was named to Fortune's 2019 "World's Most Admired Companies" list, and Forbes' 2019 "America's Best Employers" list. More information about the company is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos, videos and other materials. Duke Energy's illumination features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Contact: Candice Knezevic
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SOURCE Duke Energy