PURCHASE, N.Y., June 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), the world's second largest food and beverage company with a portfolio of some of the world's most respected brands, such as Quaker Oats, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay, Sabritas, Gamesa and Pepsi-Cola, announced today a $50,000 contribution to the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) for scholarships and internships to support Latino students pursuing careers in communications, journalism and social media. The announcement was made during the NAHJ Annual Convention in Orlando, as part of La Promesa de PepsiCo, the company's Hispanic corporate initiative focused on helping build stronger Latino communities in the United States. This year PepsiCo is the exclusive sponsor of NAHJ's Newsmaker Luncheon, the landmark conference event for the organization. PepsiCo's overall contribution to NAHJ totals $100,000 in its initial engagement with the prestigious national media organization.

"PepsiCo is proud to support NAHJ in its efforts to recognize Hispanics in the news industry and provide opportunities for professional advancement," said Julie Hamp, Senior Vice President, Chief Communications Officer, PepsiCo. "We are committed to investing in Latino talent by engaging and developing Hispanic professionals and by supporting education to help them succeed."

PepsiCo's contribution to NAHJ will benefit a total of 15 Hispanic students with scholarship and internship opportunities. PepsiCo will award ten $2,500 scholarships to Latino students pursuing careers in print, broadcast and online journalism in English- or Spanish-language media. PepsiCo will support five journalism internships at media outlets across the country in which the students will gain experience in covering specialized topics such as health, education, and other areas of true importance to the Latino community.

"We are thrilled to have PepsiCo as a new partner committed to building a stronger Latino community," said Ivan Roman, Executive Director for NAHJ. "The company's support as we get more Hispanics into journalism to tell our stories is key to making sure our communities are represented fairly in the news media, while giving them a louder voice in the civic dialogue."

Deborah Rosado-Shaw, one of America's leading Latina entrepreneurs and author of Dream BIG! joined Hamp at NAHJ to announce PepsiCo's contribution. Rosado-Shaw, born into a Puerto Rican family, is a member of PepsiCo's Ethnic Advisory Board. She is among a group of prominent Hispanic community leaders that PepsiCo relies on for counsel and insights on how to help Latino families and youth.

"I believe that no matter how humble your beginnings or difficult your circumstances, you can defy the odds and build the life you deserve," said Rosado-Shaw. "A PepsiCo scholarship or internship opportunity can help change the life of a young Latino student. That is the company's goal when it speaks of La Promesa de PepsiCo, and I'm proud of their work."

PepsiCo's Performance with Purpose mission is a promise to deliver sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for consumers, the planet, its associates and external partners in the communities it serves. La Promesa de PepsiCo focuses specifically on Latino empowerment and the issues that matter most to Hispanics including Latino education, employment opportunities, promoting active lifestyles, and investing in science to develop healthier products.

As part of La Promesa de PepsiCo, the company is building relationships with the community, strengthening its strategic partnerships, and sponsoring national Hispanic organizations like: CHCI (Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute), HACR (Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility), LULAC (League of United Latin American Citizens), NAHJ (National Association of Hispanic Journalists), and NCLR (National Council of La Raza) among others.

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo offers the world's largest portfolio of billion-dollar food and beverage brands, including 19 different product lines that generate more than $1 billion in annual retail sales each. Our main businesses -- Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay, and Pepsi Cola -- also make hundreds of other enjoyable and wholesome foods and beverages that are respected household names throughout the world. With net revenues of approximately $60 billion, PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet, which we believe also means a more successful future for PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose: PepsiCo's promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages for local tastes; to find innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment, including by conserving energy and water usage, and reducing packaging volume; to provide a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support, and invest in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.

About NAHJ

Founded in 1984, NAHJ's mission is to increase the percentage of Latinos working in our nation's newsrooms and to improve news coverage of the Latino community. NAHJ is the nation's largest professional organization for Latino journalists with more than 1,400 members working in English and Spanish-language print, photo, broadcast and online media. NAHJ is a 501 (c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit organization. For more information, visit www.nahj.org.

SOURCE PepsiCo