Entergy is committed to creating a diverse, inclusive and engaged culture that inspires all individuals to work together to operate a world-class energy business for our customers, employees, communities and owners. But that commitment does not end at the front door. It extends into the community and is reflected through our philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy that encourages individuals to take action.

In 2021, Entergy Corporation contributions to diverse organizations totaled $5.5 million or 34% of total charitable contributions. Of that total, $1.2 million was allocated to social and racial justice organizations and $4.4 million was allocated to minority-serving non-profits and institutions. View a list of these organizations here.

Since 2010, Entergy has donated charitable contributions totaling more than $24 million to more than 600 nonprofit organizations, schools and institutions focused on creating inclusive communities of opportunity for all individuals.

Creating opportunities through education

Education plays a critical role in providing opportunities for all individuals to realize their full potential, build a future and contribute to society. To that end, Entergy partners with several organizations to provide scholarships and support for minority students. Since 2009, Entergy has awarded grants totaling almost $6.2 million to the United Negro College Fund, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, the American Indian College Fund and historically Black colleges and universities, or HBCUs, located within our service area.

Our HBCU partners are: 

A future free from hate, divisiveness, discrimination and bigotry begins with teaching our children.

Entergy volunteers have been partnering with school administrators, teachers and community leaders to do just that since 2009 through the "No Place for Hate" program. The formal, school-based initiative helps educators create school cultures that embrace and celebrate diversity and inclusion. The program combines a series of positive messages, thought-provoking activities and rewards to inspire children to rise above small-minded, unfair notions of racism and stereotyping. The program fights bias in all its forms by promoting acceptance of others regardless of their membership in groups different from one's own.

"No Place for Hate" is provided free of charge to schools through a grant from Entergy to the Anti-Defamation League. The ADL provides materials with which schools can run the program. Components include a "resolution of respect," and a series of suggested activities ranging from essay contests to film festivals to hosting guest speakers. The school is required to complete three activities during the school year. Schools that meet the criteria earn designation as "No Place for Hate" schools, along with a banner declaring them so.

Developing a diverse workforce

Entergy partners with colleges and universities as well as organizations such as American Association of Blacks in Entergy, the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering, and Women in Nuclear to provide support and training for minorities who are pursuing careers in STEM or energy.

Through a partnership with Alcorn State University, Entergy provides scholarships to students who are pursuing careers in radiation health physics, helping to meet our workforce needs and support the future of nuclear energy. Entergy has awarded more than $400,000 in scholarships since 2008. Students who graduate from the program are in high demand, landing jobs at Entergy and other nuclear facilities.

A $500,000 grant from Entergy established the Jackson State University Power Systems Laboratory to train the next generation of engineers to power the future. The donation helped Jackson State University receive approval for an electrical engineering degree program.

PowerMoves.NOLA is a nonprofit initiative designed to increase the number of venture-backed, minority-founded companies by connecting entrepreneurs of color to advisors, capital and technical assistance. With support from Entergy, PowerMoves.NOLA has hosted successful business pitch competitions linking minority startups with venture capitalists seeking to fund high growth potential businesses. Hundreds of entrepreneurs, investors and entrepreneurs attended the 2015 PowerMoves. NOLA conference in New Orleans for three days of networking, pitch events, boot camps and demos. Collectively, the 140 companies that have completed the programming nationally have raised more than $70 million in venture capital and created more than 1,000 jobs ― and participation continues to grow.

Advancing economic prosperity

Entergy partners with nonprofit agencies to help low-income families in Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi and Texas achieve economic stability, through programs such as Individual Development Accounts, which are matched savings accounts for low wage earners.

Participants commit to monthly savings and attend financial literacy and budgeting classes. They set personal goals such as home ownership, paying for college tuition, vehicle purchase or small business startups. Their savings are matched 4-to-1 through financial contributions made by Entergy and other funding partners. To date more than 500 families have participated. Nearly 300 have completed their savings goals, and more than 200 families have become first-time homeowners. In the 10 years since the program's inception, none have foreclosed.

Although the programs are open to all individuals who meet the program's income eligibility guidelines, special outreach efforts target underserved communities including African American and Latino families.

In addition, Entergy and United Way of Southeast Louisiana partnered to create the J. Wayne Leonard Prosperity Center, a one-stop resource connecting low-to-moderate-income individuals and families to employment and financial capability services.

Building inclusive communities

Entergy is committed to partnering with organizations who are working to create inclusive communities that offer all individuals the opportunity to realize their full potential.

To that end, over the past 10 years we have awarded grants totaling more than $900,000 to support the efforts of our strategic advocacy partners, including the Human Rights Campaign, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the Urban League, the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute.

Leveraging lessons from the past

It has been said that those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. As painful as the past may be, acknowledging and learning from those chapters in our nation's history is critical. To that end, Entergy partners with museums and other organizations dedicated to telling the stories of the struggles of the men and women, institutions and organizations that have led the way to a more just and equitable society for all.

The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, funded in part by a $500,000 gift from Entergy, opened in 2017 as a centerpiece of Mississippi's bicentennial celebration. The state-of-the-art, interactive facility located on the Mississippi Department of Archives and History campus in downtown Jackson explores African American Mississippians' struggle for equal rights during the period from 1945 to 1976. Visitors learn not only a Mississippi story, but an American story. The Civil Rights Museum provides a unique and compelling educational experience and serve as an international tourism attraction and a portal to other cultural and historic sites across the state. It is also the first state-constructed and state-operated civil rights museum in the nation.

Fighting for the Right to Fight: African American Experiences in WWII debuted at The National WWII Museum in July 2015 with support from a $75,000 grant from Entergy, the official program sponsor. This traveling exhibition focuses on the sacrifices and contributions of African Americans during WWII as they fought for freedom abroad only to face discrimination back at home. It examines how hopes of equality inspired many to enlist, the discouraging reality of the segregated non-combat roles given to Black recruits, and the continuing fight for "Double Victory" that laid the groundwork for the Civil Rights Movement. The centerpiece of the exhibit is an original eight-minute video about the Tuskegee Airmen, who in many ways became the focus of African American participation during the war.

The innovative Hamilton educational program that debuted at "Hamilton" on Broadway continued in New Orleans in 2019, when more than 2,600 students and teachers from 41 high schools attended a matinee performance of the musical at the Saenger Theatre. The "Hamilton" producers made tickets for this educational partnership available for $70, $60 of which was subsidized in part by a grant from Entergy Corporation. The students had the opportunity to experience the hit musical "Hamilton" after having spent several weeks in their classrooms studying American history through a special integrated curriculum about Alexander Hamilton and the nation's Founding Fathers. Following the performance, students participated in a question-and-answer session with members of the "Hamilton" company. Students representing various schools in attendance also performed an original work they created based on their classroom studies – songs, rap, poetry, scenes, monologues – on the Saenger Theatre Arts stage in front of their peers.

With support from Entergy, more than 10,000 students in Louisiana attended free screenings of "Selma" in 2015. The Academy-Award nominated film tells the story of three marches led by Dr. Martin Luther King from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama ― events that were pivotal in the success of the Civil Rights Movement and paved the way for the Voting Rights Act of 1965. As part of a national campaign, Entergy partnered with the Urban League and other sponsors to underwrite free admission for seventh, eighth and ninth-grade students in Orleans and surrounding parishes. Students were required to present a student ID or recent report card to see the movie free of charge. In addition to providing financial support, Entergy helped publicize free screenings throughout the community to ensure that as many students as possible had an opportunity to see "Selma."

Purchased Lives: The American Slave Trade from 1808 to 1865 is a traveling exhibit made possible by a partnership between Entergy and the Historic New Orleans Collection. Funding from Entergy will allow the exhibit to be shown at sites throughout Louisiana from September 2016 to February 2018, including libraries, museums and community centers. Purchased Lives explores the history of the domestic slave trade ― from the abolition of international trade in 1808 to the end of the Civil War ― and examines how slavery and the slave trade shaped American society. It also examines New Orleans' role as the country's largest and most profitable slave market. First shown in New Orleans in 2015, Purchased Lives was one of the Historic New Orleans Collection's most well-attended exhibits.