NATIONAL VOCATIONAL EDUCATION GROUP HONORS BELL ATLANTIC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 30, 1996

NATIONAL VOCATIONAL EDUCATION GROUP HONORS BELL
ATLANTIC

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Vocational education officials from
throughout
the U.S. today recognized Bell Atlantic - Virginia as "an
outstanding
contributor" to vocational technical education.

The National Association of State Directors of Vocational Technical
Education cited Bell Atlantic for helping fund an interactive distance
learning network between the Richmond (Va.) Technical Center and
Richmond's John F. Kennedy High School for Mathematics, Science and
Technology. Bell Atlantic stepped forward earlier this year with a
grant of $158,000 to launch the effort.

Interactive distance learning lets a teacher at a remote location
instruct students in as many as four different classrooms at the same
time. Cameras, microphones and monitors allow teachers and students
to see and hear each other live.

Using distance learning technology, students at John F. Kennedy High
School will be able to enroll in select technical courses without
having to travel across town each day to the technical center. The
interactive network is expected to foster closer cooperation between
academic and vo-tech teachers.

Bell Atlantic's grant is part of a commitment announced in 1994 to
award Virginia schools up to $1 million a year for seven years for
interactive distance learning. Schools eligible for the grants
include state-supported colleges and universities, community colleges,
and public secondary schools in the Bell Atlantic - Virginia service
area.

Distance learning initiatives also are underway throughout the rest of
Bell Atlantic's mid-Atlantic region.

Founded in 1920, the National Association of State Directors of
Vocational Technical Education is the Washington-based organization of
some 50 state vocational education agency heads committed to
leadership and outstanding performance in vocational technical
education.

The association has a growing membership of over 200 senior state
staff and concerned business, labor and other education officials who
share the directors' commitment to quality occupational education at
the secondary, post-secondary and adult levels.

Bell Atlantic Corporation (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.

####

Media contacts:

Paul Miller, 804-772-1460
miller@ba.com

Irving Taylor, 804-772-1081