Bell Atlantic - Maryland Volunteers Lead Effort To Wire Schools For Internet Access

Bell Atlantic-Maryland Volunteers Lead Effort To Wire Schools For Internet Access

Company Is Lead Sponsor For State of Maryland's Net Weekend '97

September 26, 1997

BALTIMORE -- Thousands of Maryland public school students soon will

be able to tap the global resources of the Internet, thanks to a

grassroots, volunteer project known as Net Weekend '97. Bell

Atlantic-Maryland is the lead corporate sponsor of the statewide

effort to wire schools to the Internet during Net Weekend, September

26-27.

Bell Atlantic-Maryland employees and retirees, along with hundreds of

other volunteers, will donate their time and talents to string wire

and install jacks and other equipment at about 450 schools.

"Bell Atlantic is proud to take the lead in preparing our children for

the 21st century," said Sherry F. Bellamy, president and CEO of Bell

Atlantic-Maryland. "Net Weekend is a natural extension of Bell

Atlantic's long-standing commitment to improve the quality of

education throughout our region.

"With an Internet connection, Maryland students will have a vast new

resource at their fingertips, one that will broaden their horizons and

make learning as creative and fun as a child's imagination, " she

said.

In addition to recruiting volunteers for Net Weekend, Bell

Atlantic-Maryland has contributed $55,000 and provided technical

support for the project.

"By wiring Maryland's classrooms, we're giving our youngsters access

to the technology and information that are so essential to their

futures," Bellamy said. "We believe it's important that all students

have equal access to the information superhighway. Net Weekend is a

major step toward this goal."

Bell Atlantic has been working on educational initiatives in Maryland

for over a decade, and the company's employees play an important part

in its educational support.

The new Bell Atlantic - formed through the merger of Bell Atlantic and

NYNEX - is at the forefront of the new communications, information and

entertainment industry. With 40 million telephone access lines and

5.5 million wireless customers worldwide, Bell Atlantic companies are

premier providers of advanced wireline voice and data services, market

leaders in wireless services and the world's largest publishers of

directory information. Bell Atlantic companies are also among the

world's largest investors in high-growth global communications

markets, with operations and investments in 21 countries.