SAN FRANCISCO – Pacific Gas and Electric Co. announced that scholarship applications are now being accepted for college-bound high schoolers as well as current college and continuing education students living in Northern and Central California.

More than 150 awards totaling nearly $500,000 are being made available through PG&E scholarships, which includes the employee resource group, or ERG; engineering network group, or ENG; and Better Together STEM scholarship programs.

PG&E scholarships information, including criteria and applications, is available on PG&E’s website. To be considered for a scholarship, all applications must be submitted by Feb. 7.

“Helping students in our communities attend college and achieve their goals is a big step toward improving lives. These individuals, many of whom are the first in their families to attend college, will be the leaders and innovators of tomorrow. We’re proud to invest in these promising young people,” said Mary King, PG&E vice president of human resources and chief diversity officer.

PG&E scholarships are awarded annually to help offset the cost of higher education.

ERG scholarship winners will receive awards ranging from $1,000 to $7,000 for exemplary scholastic achievement and community leadership.

Better Together STEM Scholarship recipients will receive a one-time scholarship of $1,000 to $10,000 to assist in their pursuit of higher education in engineering, computer science, cybersecurity or environmental sciences.

Since 1989, PG&E’s ERGs and ENGs have awarded more than $4.5 million in scholarships to thousands of recipients.

The funds are raised totally through employee donations, employee fundraising events and Campaign for the Community, the company’s employee giving program.

Since 2012, PG&E’s Better Together STEM scholarship program has given nearly $3.6 million to accomplished students based on a combined demonstration of community leadership, personal triumph, financial need and academic achievement.

Funds for Better Together STEM scholarships come from the PG&E Foundation, which is dedicated to supporting charities that address critical social, educational and environmental challenges in the company’s service area. These scholarships are supported by PG&E shareholders.

More than 5,000 PG&E employees belong to the ERGs and ENGs. Each group helps further the company’s commitment to serving its communities and growing employee engagement.

PG&E’s ERG and ENG scholarships are available through these 12 groups:

– Access Network (individuals with disabilities).
– Asian.
– Black.
– Latino.
– Legacy (tenured employees).
– National Society of Black Engineers (STEM career employees).
– NuEnergy (new employees).
– PrideNetwork (LGBT employees).
– Samahan (Filipino).
– Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers (STEM career employees).
– Veterans.
– Women’s Network.

In addition to the PG&E scholarships, the Pacific Service Employees Association, a nonprofit mutual benefit organization serving PG&E employees and retirees, also provides scholarships for dependents of company employees.