Building With Our Community
For nearly a century, Shell has been an integral part of the rhythm of Louisiana and the heart of Norco, fulfilling an ongoing commitment to the economy, the culture, and most importantly, the quality of life.
From our Partner in Education program to workforce development activities, from endowment grants to building playgrounds, Shell Norco remains a viable community partner. As our business and our site evolves through the energy transition, we will continue and build upon community relationships and partnerships as key enablers to our future shared success.
- Workforce Development – Shell Norco is not only a major employer in St. Charles Parish and Louisiana today, but works to ensure a skilled workforce for the future. The site partners with local community and technical colleges to enrich process technology, instrumentation technology, and maintenance programs. The facility currently provides between 12-30 internships through the Colleges and other programs at the site, as well as scholarship opportunities. Shell employees engage in activities with students at campus career fairs and site tours to provide mentoring around interviewing, resume creation, and female career development.
- Education – Over the last 8 years, Shell Norco has awarded more than $300,000 to 52 teachers in the St. Charles and St. John Parishes to support school science lab makeovers and curricula to enhance teaching and learning in the classroom through the National Science Teachers Association. Shell coordinates with our local Partner in Education schools, Destrehan High School, Harry Hurst Middle School and Norco Elementary School, to support a wide variety of educational initiatives. We pay special attention to K-12 programs that boost math and science skills and prepare future industry workforce for engineering and technical programs.
- Civic & Community Need – Shell Norco has several programs developed to serve the surrounding community and wider St. Charles Parish. The Norco Community Fund (NCF), founded in 1999, is a $1 million Shell endowment that disburses grants to non-profit organizations for projects that serve the Norco community. From 1999 to 2023, $987,000 in grants have been disbursed. A second fund, the Norco Economic Development Fund (NEDF), created in 2003, is a $5 million Shell endowment that prioritizes economic development, business and job creation, and workforce and skills training. Both funds are stakeholder-driven, donor-advised community funds through the Greater New Orleans Foundation (GNOF), designed to address social and economic issues at local, grassroots levels in a manner that increases the capacity of the community, and provides leadership, governance, and vision in identifying community needs and in creating sustainable solutions.
- Norco Community Advisory Panel (CAP) – The CAP is an important representative community group that is an interactive engagement channel between Shell Norco and the Norco community. Made up of local residents and leaders, it represents a diverse group of citizens who meet to discuss initiatives and updates emphasizing future workforce opportunities such as current and future workforce opportunities, health, environment, infrastructure, traffic, company philanthropy and community partnerships. The CAP, which began in the early 2000’s and meets every other month, bi-annually invites new members to ensure community representation is robust.
