RICHMOND --Thirteen college students from military families across Virginia will receive full tuition and other assistance as Dominion Energy Fellows attending Virginia’s Community Colleges. These thirteen students are the first to benefit from the Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation’s grant to the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education (VFCCE).The $300,000 two-year grant establishes the Dominion Energy Fellows Program to support military-connected students at Virginia’s Community Colleges who are within one year of completing their studies. Active-duty service members, veterans, as well as their spouses and dependents areeligible to receive this fellowship. The inaugural class of Dominion Energy Fellows completes a group of 43 total Fellows offered through the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education. Out of more than 280,000 people who attend Virginia’s Community Colleges each year, only a handful of second-year students areselected for a Fellows program.This Fellows program provides full tuition, book expenses, fees, andopportunities to participate in a unique curriculum of intellectual andcultural activities. A cornerstone of the program is a commitment tocommunity engagement. Each Fellow will volunteer 80 hours of service during the academic year to strengthen their leadership skills and develop a strong foundation for future success. The 2019-2020 Class of Dominion Energy Fellowship recipients are studentsthroughout Virginia who have a wide variety of career goals and academicmajors. They include:•Corinna Carr of Newport News who attends John Tyler Community College.She is a military spouse pursuing a degree in Business with a long-termcareer goal to serve in hospital administration.•Ryan Miller of Herndon attends Northern Virginia Community College andmajors in Science. Miller is a U.S. Air Force veteran pursuing a career inelectrical engineering.•Katrina Duff of Bumpass attends Germanna Community College. She is amother of four and the spouse of a disabled veteran. She is working on her Nursing degree and plans to transfer to complete her Bachelor of Sciencein Nursing. The Dominion Energy grant will also provide Military Student Success Fundsto support military-connected students with expenses outside of tuitionand standard fees, such as specific program costs, books, neededmaterials, and technology. These supplements can also help with food, housing, and other emergency situations that may keep a student fromattending class. The Veterans Resource Centers will allocate the fundingat seven of Virginia’s Community Colleges: Germanna in Fredericksburg; Reynolds and John Tyler in the Richmond area; Northern Virginia; Tidewater; Thomas Nelson on the Virginia Peninsula; and Virginia Westernin Roanoke.“Virginia’s Community Colleges have a strong support system in place forour military-connected students, from our Credits2Careers initiative which translates military service into college credits to our Veteran Education Resource Initiative for Transition, Advising, and Success program at sevencommunity colleges. This grant is a powerful recognition of the growing needs of this important population to the future of Virginia,” said Glenn DuBois, chancellor of Virginia’s Community Colleges. “We appreciate the continued partnership of Dominion Energy in fueling student success across Virginia. ”The application for the 2020-2021 Dominion Energy Fellowship opens in March, 2020. For more information visit www.vfcce.org.About the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education (VFCCE): TheVirginia Foundation for Community College Education (VFCCE) is thesupporting arm of Virginia’s 23 community colleges. The VFCCE works tobroaden educational access, support student success, and provide innovative solutions to workforce needs. Our mission is “providing accessto education to all Virginians,” with a focus on expanding access andprograms for underserved populations. To ensure access to high quality, affordable education, the VFCCE provides statewide leadership in raisingfunds for community college education, supplementing and supporting theactivities of the 23 individual colleges, and securing support for majorsystem-wide initiatives that could not be undertaken by any singlecollege. For more information, please visitwww.vfcce.org<http://www.vfcce.org>. About Virginia’s Community Colleges: Since 1966, Virginia’s Community Colleges have given everyone the opportunity to learn and develop theright skills so lives and communities are strengthened. By making highereducation and workforce training available in every part of Virginia, we elevate all of Virginia. Together, Virginia’s Community Colleges servemore than 241,000 students each year. For more information, please visitwww.vccs.edu<http://www.vccs.edu/>.