SAN DIEGO, June 28, 2009 – Sempra Energy (NYSE:  SRE) has awarded $129,000 in college scholarships to 36 high school seniors as part of the company’s annual scholarship program for children of employees.
 
        The program offers support to the students as they continue their education at a four-year college or university, community college, or trade or technical school.

        “It’s a great tradition that Sempra Energy is able to recognize such outstanding students through this program year after year,” said G. Joyce Rowland, senior vice president of human resources for Sempra Energy.  “Investing in the education of our next generation of leaders is very important and I would like to congratulate the recipients and their families.”

        To maintain impartiality in the selection of recipients, the program was administered by Scholarship Management Services®, a division of Scholarship America®, the nation’s largest non-profit, private-sector scholarship and educational support organization.  The top scholarship applicants were then interviewed by a panel of Sempra Energy executives to determine grand-prize winners.  All winners were selected based on academic and non-academic criteria, including:  academic achievement, leadership, community involvement, work experience, extra-curricular activities, educational goals, career aspirations and educators’ appraisals.
 
        The scholarship winners can use the funds for tuition and fees, room and board, books and other required tools at a college or university.  The funds also may be used to pursue a trade such as computer programming, auto mechanics, welding, pipe-fitting or any other profession at an accredited vocational or technical school.

        The California winners of the company’s grand-prize scholarship of $16,000 were:   Samuel Banuelos of St. Augustine High School in San Diego; Lauren Bernales of Mission Hills High School in San Marcos; Ty James of Poway High School; Kayla Pang of Arcadia High School; Rebecca Sponberg of Woodrow Wilson Classical High School in Long Beach; Preethi Venkat of Diamond Bar High School; and Ashleigh Zambada of Central Union High School in El Centro.

        The following students received one-year, $4,000 scholarships:
 
        California
        Crystal Agoncillo, Scripps Ranch High School (San Diego)
        Sean Young, St. Augustine High School
        Connor Mortland, Mt. Carmel High School (San Diego)
        Emily Nanninga, High Tech High International (San Diego)
        Catherine Schneider, Academy of Our Lady of Peace (San Diego)
        Molly McNab, La Jolla High School
        Taylor Renteria, San Dieguito Academy (Encinitas)
        Nicole Bristol, El Capitan High School (Lakeside)
        Gabriela Trenton, Capistrano Valley High School (Mission Viejo)
        Kallie Rodgers-Bell, Los Osos High School (Rancho Cucamonga)
        Kimberly Marks, Esperanza High School (Anaheim)
        Michele Ortega, California High School (Whittier)
        Bridget Wieczorek, Valencia High School
        Megan Nido, Valley Center High School (Valley Center)
        Ashton Pike, Diamond Bar High School
        Christine Hall, Immaculate Heart High School (Los Angeles)
        Sarah-Rose Reyes, Revival Christian Academy (Menifee)
        Victoria Drake, San Marino High School (San Marino)
        Alexandra Mateus, West Ranch High School (Stevenson Ranch)
        Mackenzie Gordon, Elsinore High School (Wildomar)

        Outside California
        Carrie Bray, Murphy High School (Mobile, Ala.)
        Madeleine Downing, UMS Wright Preparatory School (Mobile, Ala.)
        Kelsey Machicado, St. Agnes Academy (Houston)

        Additionally, six California students received one-year, $1,500 scholarships: 
        Joel Brewer, Abundant Grace Christian School (Lancaster)
        Jenna Matthews, El Segundo High School
        Avanlea Meister, Tehachapi High School
        Rebecca Mendiola, Verdugo Academy (La Crescenta)
        Chana Schmidt-Pines, University High School (Los Angeles)
        Samantha Scissons, Beaumont High School

        Since the program’s inception in 1999, Sempra Energy has awarded more than $1.9 million in scholarships to help 376 students advance their education.

        The Sempra Energy employees whose children are eligible to apply for the scholarship program include those based both domestically and internationally with the parent company and its subsidiaries, including San Diego Gas & Electric, Southern California Gas Co., Sempra Generation, Sempra LNG and Sempra Pipelines & Storage.

        Sempra Energy, based in San Diego, is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company with 2009 revenues of more than $8 billion.  The Sempra Energy companies’ 13,800 employees serve more than 29 million consumers worldwide.

Sempra Pipelines & Storage, Sempra Generation, Sempra LNG and RBS Sempra Commodities dba Sempra Energy Solutions and Sempra Energy Trading are not the same companies as the utility, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) or Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas), and Sempra Pipelines & Storage, Sempra Generation, Sempra LNG and RBS Sempra Commodities dba Sempra Energy Solutions and Sempra Energy Trading are not regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission.

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