Activision's Call of Duty Endowment Awards Half Million Dollars in Grants to Combat Veterans' Unemployment

Recipient organizations will use funding to help returning veterans and wounded warriors obtain civilian careers

WASHINGTON, March 11, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, the Call of Duty Endowment, a non-profit organization which is focused on helping veterans transition to civilian careers, awarded $500,000 in grants to five organizations working to train and place returning service members and wounded warriors into the workforce.  The organizations that will receive funding include: the USO, AMVETS, Military to Medicine, Student Veterans of America and Veterans Green Jobs.

The announcement comes on the heels of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) yearly Veterans' Employment Summary, which was released today.  According to the new report from BLS, there are currently more than one million veterans who are out of work in the country.  The problem is worst for the youngest veterans between the ages of 18-24. Male veterans in that age range experience an unemployment rate of 21.9 percent, and women veterans in the same age range experience an unemployment rate of 15.3 percent.

"It is a great honor to support these organizations that are training and placing our military men and women in 21^st century careers," said Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) "For those who give selflessly to defend our freedom, we must continue to increase the public's awareness of this problem, and we must work together with businesses around the country to find our heroes fulfilling and sustainable jobs."  

The five grant recipients will each receive $100,000 to assist them in their efforts with career training and job placement throughout the country. The programs chosen each have a different avenue and audience as to how they are combating the unemployment issue.  

The USO will provide career support to wounded warriors and their families through the creation of two new facilities at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland and a new medical campus at Fort Belvoir, Virginia.  Student Veterans of America works mostly with younger veterans on college campuses, while Amvets will expand their Career Centers pilot program, which has been helping veterans living in Ohio.  Veterans Green Jobs, based out of Colorado, looks to train veterans in the emerging field of sustainable green jobs, and Military to Medicine provides veterans with online healthcare training and employment assistance in the medical field.

Sloan Gibson, president of the USO expressed his gratitude to Activision and Bobby Kotick for the Call of Duty Endowment's grant, "Considering their character, drive and discipline – our men and women who serve in the Armed Forces - should be seen as ideal candidates to hire for any employer.  I hope that more companies will help promote that theme, just as Activision and Bobby Kotick have done through the Call of Duty Endowment."

Since Activision Blizzard, Inc., the worldwide online and console video game publisher and producer of the Call of Duty® video game, established the Call of Duty Endowment it has delivered more than $500,000 in grants and scholarships to assist veterans gain new careers in the civilian workforce. This past November, Activision committed another $1 million to the Endowment and pledged to find 1,000 jobs for veterans.  

To learn more about fighting veterans' unemployment and the grants announced today, visit www.callofdutyendowment.org

To see the U.S. Department of Labor's 2010 veterans' unemployment report, visit http://www.bls.gov/news.release/vet.nr0.htm

About The Call of Duty Endowment

The Call of Duty Endowment is a non-profit, public benefit corporation created by Activision Blizzard. The organization seeks to help soldiers transitioning to civilian life find work and establish careers and to assist organizations that provide job placement and training. For more information about The Call of Duty Endowment, please visit www.callofdutyendowment.org.

About Activision Publishing, Inc.

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure products. Activision maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Australia, South Korea, China and the region of Taiwan. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company's website, www.activision.com.

Call of Duty and Activision are registered trademarks of Activision Publishing, Inc. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners.

SOURCE Call of Duty Endowment