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PowerUP Unveils 250 New Sites in 43 States Connect Underserved Youth to Technology and Resources By End of 2000

PowerUP Unveils 250 New Sites in 43 States Connect Underserved Youth to Technology and Resources By End of 2000

Published 04-17-00

Submitted by AOL Time Warner, Inc.

PowerUP, the groundbreaking national initiative to give underserved youth access to technology and guidance on how to use it, today unveiled its first wave of 250 new fully-equipped and staffed sites to be launched nationwide in 43 states by the end of 2000.

Today's announcement was made jointly with President Clinton as part of the White House New Markets Tour at Plugged In, a PowerUP affiliate community technology center in East Palo Alto.

From Fairbanks, Alaska to Tampa, Florida, PowerUP will establish and equip each of these new sites with partner-donated resources, including Gateway computers, America Online Internet accounts, full-time Americorps*Vista staffing and other resources including snacks, mentors, training and equipment. In addition to providing access to technology, each PowerUP site offers local youth ways to find mentors, fun and safe after-school activities, community service opportunities and more.

Launched in November, 1999, PowerUP is a collaborative and inclusive effort that gains its power from its partners: corporations, non-profits and government organizations focused on ensuring that America's underserved youth acquire the skills, experiences and resources they need to succeed in the digital age. Today's announcement of the initiative's first major wave of sites nationwide is a strong indication of the widespread momentum PowerUP has gained in just five months.

Partners that will contribute significantly to the launch of these first 250 PowerUP sites in 2000 include: America Online, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Sun Microsystems, America's Promise, the Steve Case Foundation, the Waitt Family Foundation, Americorps*Vista, Boys & Girls Clubs, Communities in Schools, National Urban League, Save the Children, YMCA and the Department of Education. Additional partnerships are already being created for the 2001 launch of even more sites, including a major partnership with HUD to create hundreds of PowerUP centers in public and assisted housing facilities.

The new PowerUP sites will be located in urban, rural and suburban communities across the country and housed in places young people congregate: schools, after school programs, residential complexes, community centers, and other settings including Boys & Girls Clubs and YMCAs. A complete list of the centers slated for 2000 is attached.

Steve Case, Chairman of PowerUP and America Online Chairman and CEO, said: "As we enter the Internet Century, nothing is more important than providing our young people - all our young people - with the skills and resources to thrive in this new age. We're grateful for the support that we've received from across the industry, the non-profit world and government. Something exciting is happening here and the momentum is just beginning."

Rae Grad, CEO of PowerUP, said: "PowerUP is about more than just connecting young people with technology; it's about empowering them to use that technology to improve their lives, whether that means locating a mentor online, applying to college or finding a way to give back to the community. PowerUP is an inclusive and collaborative program and we invite all communities, including existing technology centers, to contact us and see if we can partner on behalf of your community's youth."

To increase PowerUP's reach and effectiveness, a unique "PowerUP Online" content guide is available. The guide aggregates information and organizes activities and resources on: tools on how to find a mentor; fun and productive activities to do after school; healthy lifestyle information; exploration of career opportunities and how to acquire the skills needed to take advantage of them; community service; and links with real-time community youth program opportunities provided by participating local youth serving organizations. PowerUP Online, developed by the AOL Foundation, also includes a scholastic/academic component addressing educational achievement.

The Case Foundation, established by Steve and Jean Case, has provided an initial grant of $10 million to establish PowerUP. Half of the grant covers all staff and administrative costs of the program. The other $5 million will be given in direct grants to community- and school-based centers across the country that need additional assistance to participate in the PowerUP program.

To support the growth of thousands of PowerUP sites across the country, America Online is providing 100,000 free Internet accounts, with a retail value of $26 million per year and the Waitt Family Foundation is donating 50,000 Gateway computers, valued at approximately $30 million.

Last Friday, PowerUP announced 12 new sites in youth serving organizations across the country in celebration of Youth Service Day. AOL employee volunteers devoted their time and expertise to renovate and wire the sites.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to Join Next Wave of PowerUP Sites

Even as the first wave of 250 sites is being launched in 2000, a larger, second wave of PowerUP sites will be readied for launch in 2001. As an important element of the 2001 plans, PowerUP and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced that they will create hundreds of new sites serving residents of public housing expanding HUD's existing Neighborhood Networks program across the country.

About PowerUP Power UP: Bridging the Digital Divide is a major national initiative launched in November 1999 by more than a dozen nonprofit organizations, corporations and federal agencies to ensure that America's underserved young people acquire the skills, experiences and resources they need to succeed in the digital age. PowerUP will be able to reach thousands of young people by leveraging its partnerships with numerous public and private organizations, and by building on thousands of existing community centers, schools and other sites. PowerUP partners provide technology, funding, trained personnel, innovative interactive programming, in-kind support and other resources to help close the divide between young people who have access to computer-based information or technology-related skills and those who don't. PowerUP, a nonprofit organization, has been established as a commitment to America's Promise to deliver positive youth development opportunities to the nation's young people. PowerUP's national partners include the Case Foundation, the Waitt Family Foundation, AOL Inc./The AOL Foundation, the Corporation for National Service/AmeriCorps*VISTA, and YMCA of the USA as well as Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Communities in Schools, Family Education Network, National Urban League, PowerBar, Inc., Save the Children, Sun Microsystems, and the U.S. Department of Education. A live Webcast of the event will be available at www.digitaldividenetwork.org on Monday, April 17, 2000 starting at 8AM Pacific (11 AM Eastern). B-ROLL SATELLITE FEEDS: Feed Date: Monday 4/17/00 Feed Time: 9:30 - 9:45 AM ET Coordinates: C_BAND: TELSTAR 6 /TRANSPONDER 8 /AUDIO 6.2 & 6.8 Re-feed: Monday 4/17/00 Re-Feed Time: 2:00-2:15 PM ET Coordinates: C_BAND: TELSTAR 6 /TRANSPONDER 8 /AUDIO 6.2 & 6.8

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PowerUP: 250 sites in 2000

Alaska Anchorage (3) Bethel Fairbanks (2) Kenai (2) Alabama Birmingham Opelika Arkansas Marvell/Phillips Co. North Little Rock Arizona Phoenix (2) Safford Scottsdale (2) Tempe (3) Tucson (3) Yuma California Diamond Bar East Palo Alto El Monte Greenville Los Angeles (4) Mountain View Oakland (2) Palo Alto Richmond Sacramento (3) San Diego San Francisco (12) San Leandro San Jose Santa Ana Tustin Upland Colorado Colorado Springs (2) Denver (3) Pueblo Connecticut Bridgeport (2) Greenwich Hartford District of Columbia (11)

Delaware Wilmington (2) Florida Broward County (Ft. Lauderdale) Dania Beach Jacksonville Milton Oakland Park Panama City Tampa Georgia Albany Atlanta (3) Columbus Fairburn Forest Park Hawaii Honolulu (2) Illinois Aurora Chicago (4) Lake County (Waukegan) Peoria Chicago Indiana Angola Bloomington Gary Indianapolis South Bend Kansas Chanute Kansas City Wellington Wichita Kentucky Louisville Whitesburg/Letcher Co. Louisiana Ferriday (2) New Orleans Shreveport Massachusetts Dorchester (2) Holyoke Lawrence Malden Marlboro Springfield (2) Taunton Maryland Aberdeen Baltimore (2) Randallstown Silver Spring (2) Maine Portland Michigan Detroit Flint Jackson Muskegon Warren Minnesota St. Paul (2) Missouri Independence Kansas City (4) Saint Louis Springfield Mississippi Jackson Starkville Vicksburg Montana Billings Bozeman Lame Deer Missoula

North Carolina Durham High Point Nebraska Omaha (2) New Hampshire Concord East Derry Manchester Nashua (2) Salem New Jersey Englewood Essex County (Newark) Newark (2) Plainfield New Mexico Albuquerque Crownpoint, (Navaho Nation) Shiprock New York Bronx Brooklyn (2) Jackson Heights New York (6) Schenectady White Plains Ohio Cincinnati Cleveland (4) Columbus (2) Dayton Oklahoma Oklahoma City Tulsa (3) Oregon Portland Salem Pennsylvania Greenville Lancaster Philadelphia (4) Reading Puerto Rico Carolina Rhode Island Pawtucket South Carolina Beaufort Charleston (3) Greenville North Charleston (2) Spartanburg (3) South Dakota Pine Ridge Watertown Tennessee Chattanooga Knoxville (2) Memphis Texas Austin (2) Dallas (2) Edinburg Fort Worth Galveston Harlingen Henderson Houston (3) Utah Salt Lake City (2) Virginia Alexandria Fairfax County (10) Hampton Richmond (2) Washington Bellevue Lynnewood Seattle (2) Wisconsin Green Bay (2) Hayward Howards Grove Kenosha (2) Madison Milwaukee (2) Wausau

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