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UGI Energy Services presented $28,000 in scholarships to organizations in Berks County on Thursday.

The scholarship contributions were divided among three check presentations throughout the day. The first, an $8,000 donation to the Penngift Foundation, took place at High Point Baptist Church in Geigertown. The second was a $15,000 gift to the Berks County Community Foundation in Reading, and the final check, worth $5,000, was presented to ACSI Children’s Community Foundation in Reading. All three organizations work to provide financial assistance for students to attend private schools.Thursday’s contributions were part of the $400,000 in total scholarships that UGI is providing in 2017 as part of Pennsylvania’s Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC) Program. This is the fourth year that UGI has participated in the OSTC Program. The scholarships are intended for students in underperforming public schools to use to enroll in nonpublic schools, according to a press release from UGI.

“We recognize that not every family that wants to send their child to either a private or parochial school has the means or wherewithal to do that,” said Larry Godlasky, director of government affairs for UGI. “We’re hoping that our contribution today will help to achieve that.”