Gen. Colin Powell Going 'Live' on Bell Atlantic-Sponsored Web Site

Gen. Colin Powell Going 'Live' on Bell Atlantic-Sponsored Web Site

American Academy of Achievement's Virtual Book Club
Features On-line Chat with Powell Wednesday Night

February 4, 1997

ARLINGTON, Va. -- Students from around the world will be
able to chat
online with Gen. Colin L. Powell, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs
of Staff, during an innovative program Feb. 5 designed to engage youth
in discussions with outstanding Americans.

Powell will field questions over the Museum of Achievement web site,
http://www.achievement.org/library/chat.html, at 8 p.m. Wednesday as
part of the American Academy of Achievement's Virtual Book Club. His
best-selling autobiography, My American Journey, is expected to
provide inspiration for the chat, which is just one feature of this
education-focused web site, which is sponsored in part by a grant from
Bell Atlantic.

Participants should consider visiting the site prior to the event to
download free chat software and then join the event Wednesday night.

Leaders in the arts, business, public service, science and exploration
and sports are inducted to the academy each year and engage students
from around the world in face-to-face discussions, via televised and
taped panel discussions and through special programs like Wednesday's
on-line chat. Gen. Powell was inducted into the academy in 1988.
Bell Atlantic Chairman and CEO Raymond W.
Smith is also a member.

The Museum of Achievement web site (http://www.achievement.org) holds
biographies and interviews with dozens of inductees. It is intended
to inspire visitors to pursue their own goals following six steps to
success: passion, vision, preparation, courage, perseverance and
integrity. The interview sections include sound bites from the
featured achievers. Guests are invited to register at the site, and
after answering a short list of questions, are given "mentors,"
members of the academy whose interests and goals mesh with those of
the visitor.

Also at the site are schedules for airing of Achievement TV forums on
issues ranging from the arts to science and politics, which are
telecast over cable TV networks. Each show has a curriculum guide and
student materials to be used in classroom discussions of the programs.

"Bell Atlantic recognized the potential of this web site to make
history
come alive for students by sharing the insights of people making history
today," said Patrick C. G.
Coulter, vice president-corporate
communications and president of the Bell Atlantic Foundation. "We
awarded the academy funds in l996 to open up this web site and make those
insights available through this dynamic medium."

Bell Atlantic Corp. (NYSE: BEL) is
at the forefront of the new
communications, entertainment and information industry. In the
mid-Atlantic region, the company is the premier provider of local
telecommunications and advanced services. Globally, it is one of the
largest investors in the high-growth wireless communication
marketplace. Bell Atlantic also owns a substantial interest in
Telecom Corporation. of New Zealand and is actively developing
high-growth national and international business opportunities in all
phases of the industry.

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