AT&T/JA Job Shadow Student Wins Trip to Support Team USA(TM) at Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games

DALLAS, Feb. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- To provide additional opportunities for students involved with the AT&T/JA Worldwide Job Shadow Initiative, AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is honoring the winner of an essay contest with a trip to Vancouver to attend the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

16-year-old Badr Raissi, a junior from Passaic County Technical Institute in Wayne, NJ, was chosen for his outstanding essay that addressed how the AT&T/JA Worldwide Job Shadow Initiative made a powerful difference in his life and outlook towards school and his future. He is one of more than 23,000 students in over 200 cities that have participated in the AT&T/JA Worldwide Job Shadow Initiative since its inception in 2008. The program enables AT&T employees to team up with students to provide a firsthand experience in the working world and demonstrates how education is essential to future success.

"I felt so fortunate to be a part of the Job Shadow experience and now with this opportunity to go to the Olympic Winter Games, I am overwhelmed," said Badr Raissi. "This is something I will tell my grandchildren about."

While in Vancouver, Badr will explore the Olympic Village and attend numerous events, including men's freestyle skiing, women's curling, men's speed skating, and men's ice hockey. During his trip, he will share his experience via video postings, which can be followed at AT&T's Job Shadow Web site (www.att.com/jobshadow) and on Facebook and YouTube.  

"Badr's essay spoke directly to what we hope to achieve with the AT&T/JA Worldwide Job Shadow Initiative," said Laura Sanford, President of the AT&T Foundation. "It's wonderful to see how the program has made such an impact in his life and helped him make the crucial connection between his education and his future. We are thrilled to be able to provide him with this once in a lifetime opportunity."

After coming to the U.S. from Morocco three years ago, Badr has overcome a daunting language barrier to become both an Honor Student at his high school and a National Honor Society member. According to Badr, hearing from AT&T employees who have faced similar challenges has taught him to "embrace obstacles when you're not sure of the outcome," knowing that "success does not come easily," but can be attained.  

In addition, Pam Jaggers, Regulatory Affairs Analyst, AT&T External & Legislative Affairs- Louisville, KY, will travel to Vancouver. Pam won a trip to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games for the outstanding job she did serving as a site coordinator for the AT&T/JA Worldwide Job Shadow Initiative in which she facilitated the Job Shadow Days in Louisville, KY for 182 students.

"Helping students understand how education impacts future job opportunities has been an incredibly rewarding experience for me and other AT&T employees," said Jaggers. "Since the initiative started in 2008 through fall of 2009, employees have spent close to 92,000 volunteer hours helping students."

Ten other student essay contest winners will receive AT&T Team USA gear that includes a messenger bag, Team USA blanket, and other items for sharing what they learned through the AT&T/JA Worldwide Job Shadow Initiative.  

AT&T and Junior Achievement congratulate all of the contest winners, and send its support for Team USA™, wishing our nation's athletes the best of luck in the upcoming 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

About AT&T

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is a premier communications holding company. Its subsidiaries and affiliates, AT&T operating companies, are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. Among their offerings are the world's most advanced IP-based business communications services, the nation's fastest 3G network and the best wireless coverage worldwide, and the nation's leading high speed Internet access and voice services. In domestic markets, AT&T is known for the directory publishing and advertising sales leadership of its Yellow Pages and YELLOWPAGES.COM organizations, and the AT&T brand is licensed to innovators in such fields as communications equipment. As part of their three-screen integration strategy, AT&T operating companies are expanding their TV entertainment offerings. In 2009, AT&T again ranked No. 1 in the telecommunications industry on FORTUNE^® magazine's list of the World's Most Admired Companies. Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at http://www.att.com.

About Philanthropy at AT&T

AT&T and the AT&T Foundation are committed to advancing education, strengthening communities and improving lives. Through its philanthropic initiatives and partnerships, AT&T supports projects that create learning opportunities; promote academic and economic achievement; and address community needs. The AT&T Foundation celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2009, and more than $160 million was contributed through AT&T corporate-, employee- and AT&T Foundation-giving programs in 2008 alone.

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About Junior Achievement® (JA)

Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to inspiring and preparing young people to succeed in a global economy. Through a dedicated volunteer network, Junior Achievement provides in-school and after-school programs for students which focus on three key content areas: work readiness, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy. Today, 128 individual area operations reach more than four million students in the United States, with an additional five million students served by operations in 123 other countries worldwide. For more information, visit www.ja.org.

SOURCE AT&T Inc.