Groups Combine Annual Conferences to Meet “Blueprint Mississippi” Goals
JACKSON, Miss. – Nearly 500
representatives and leaders from Mississippi’s non-profits, government agencies,
foundations and volunteer organizations are gathered in Jackson May 23 through
25 for a historic conference addressing poverty, education, disaster relief, the
creative economy and volunteer service.
Formerly known as Entergy
Mississippi''s Low Income Summit, the annual event, in its 13th year, was
expanded to include a broader spectrum of speakers, participants and topics and
has been renamed “Positioned for Progress.”
“Instead of holding their regular
annual conferences at different times and places, each organization joined
together to meet the goals of the Mississippi Economic Council’s ‘Blueprint
Mississippi’ at a single gathering,” said Liz Brister, external affairs manager
for Entergy Mississippi, Inc. “Many of Blueprint’s goals can’t be accomplished
without improving coordination among private and public leaders, supporting the
state’s creative economy, cultivating diversity and improving education.”
“Entergy’s focus at the annual
conference continues to be on low-income issues,” Brister added. “For example,
we hosted a pre-conference Energy Assistance Fair to bring representatives from
utilities, nonprofits and community action agencies together in one place to
offer bill payment assistance, credit counseling, energy-efficiency education
and free weatherization items to those in need.”
Keynote speakers included Governor
Phil Bryant, MEC Executive Director Blake Wilson, Charlie Mitchell, newspaper
columnist and University of Mississippi journalism professor, and Paul Schmitz,
CEO of Public Allies and author of Everyone Leads: Building Leadership from the
Community.
“One of Blueprint Mississippi’s key
goals focuses on improving communication and coordination among public, private
and non-profit leaders,” said Blake Wilson, president of the Mississippi
Economic Council. “Entergy’s program hits this square on providing a maximum
opportunity for leaders from the non-profit community to connect to both public
and private sector resources in a meaningful way…and catapults the progress
toward making a meaningful difference.”
Conference participants and sponsors
include Entergy Mississippi, Inc., Mississippi Arts Commission, Mississippi
Association of Grantmakers, Mississippi Center for Nonprofits, Atmos Energy,
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi, The Phil Hardin Foundation, Mississippi
Commission for Volunteer Service and the Mississippi Association of Community
Action Agencies
Entergy Mississippi, Inc. provides
electricity to more than 435,000 customers in 45 counties. It is a subsidiary of
Entergy Corporation. Entergy is an integrated energy company engaged primarily
in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns
and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric
generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the
United States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.8 million utility customers in
Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
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entergy-mississippi.com
Twitter: @EntergyMS
