Boys & Girls Clubs of America and Comcast NBCUniversal Announce Major Partnership and the Launch of the My.Future Technology Initiative
Partnership is Comcast NBCUniversal's Largest with the Nonprofit; My.Future Provides Hands-On Technology Training to Equip Youth with Skills Needed to Succeed in Digital Age
ATLANTA and PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 13, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) and Comcast NBCUniversal announced today that they have entered into a five-year national partnership valued at tens of millions of dollars in cash and in-kind support. This is the largest partnership between Comcast NBCUniversal and BGCA and includes the launch of My.Future, a new technology initiative designed to teach Club members about our digital world and ignite their passion for technology.
Comcast NBCUniversal is the Presenting Sponsor of My.Future, which is available to the nearly 4 million youth served by more than 4,100 Boys & Girls Clubs. My.Future allows Club members to select from more than 40 activities that reinforce digital literacy, including areas of exploring the web, communicating with others digitally and building media. Additional experiences allow members to explore advanced topics, such as robotics, coding and game design. My.Future is part of BGCA's Great Futures Campaign, launched in July to call attention to the crisis facing kids and elevate the role of out-of-school time in reversing negative trends and empowering more youth toward success through enriching after-school and summer programs.
To celebrate this exciting announcement, Comcast NBCUniversal has renovated four Boys & Girls Clubs, located in Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Washington, DC, with state-of-the-art technology that reflects today's mobile environment, including computers, tablets, smartboards, digital cameras, music studio tools and video-editing technology. In addition to providing this new technology to each of these Clubs, the Comcast Foundation also provided on-site renovations, including new paint, furniture and structural repairs.
"Today's young people are digital natives, born into a world where technology is ever-present and constantly changing. In order to ensure great futures for all our youth, it is our job to keep up to date with technology and make sure it reaches the communities that need it most," said Jim Clark, President and CEO of BGCA. "Through our partnership with Comcast NBCUniversal, My.Future will give Club members the technology skills needed to pursue promising careers and thrive in today's digital world."
"We are proud to partner with Boys & Girls Clubs of America to teach youth about the endless possibilities that technology offers, while helping to bridge the digital divide," said David L. Cohen, Executive Vice President, Comcast Corporation. "We have supported local Boys & Girls Clubs for nearly 15 years because they truly make a difference in the lives of children across the country, inspiring youth to reach their full potential through hands-on programs that encourage children to explore and innovate."
Additionally, through the new partnership, Comcast will provide in-kind support that will include national airtime for BGCA's public service announcements to communicate the benefits Boys & Girls Clubs provide to youth most in need during out-of-school-time.
By partnering with BGCA, Comcast NBCUniversal is harnessing the power of technology and the Internet to expand digital literacy and help conquer the digital divide. Since 2011, Comcast and the Comcast Foundation have dedicated more than $200 million in cash and in-kind support to fund digital readiness initiatives nationwide, reaching more than 1.75 million people through non-profit, digital literacy partners, including Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
According to STEMConnector.org, STEM jobs in the U.S. are expected to grow nearly twice as fast as other fields by 2018. There will be more than 8 million STEM jobs in the U.S. by 2018, but 3 million of them may go unfilled because of a lack of people with required skills. The project-based learning experiences that are a part of My.Future will introduce more young people to STEM-related activities to help address this large, unmet need.
About Boys & Girls Clubs of America
For more than 100 years, Boys & Girls Clubs of America (GreatFutures.org) has enabled young people most in need to achieve great futures as productive, caring, responsible citizens. Today, more than 4,100 Clubs serve nearly 4 million young people annually through Club membership and community outreach. Clubs are located in cities, towns, public housing and on Native lands throughout the country, and serve military families in BGCA-affiliated Youth Centers on U.S. military installations worldwide. They provide a safe place, caring adult mentors, fun, friendship, and high-impact youth development programs on a daily basis during critical non-school hours. Priority programs emphasize academic success, good character and citizenship, and healthy lifestyles. In a Harris Survey of alumni, 57 percent said the Club saved their lives. National headquarters are located in Atlanta. Learn more at http://www.bgca.org/facebook and http://bgca.org/twitter.
About Comcast Corporation
Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) is a global media and technology company with two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is the nation's largest video, high-speed Internet and phone provider to residential customers under the XFINITY brand and also provides these services to businesses. NBCUniversal operates news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal Parks and Resorts. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.
About the Comcast Foundation
The Comcast Foundation was founded by Comcast Corporation in June 1999 to provide charitable support to qualified non-profit organizations. The Foundation primarily invests in programs intended to have a positive, sustainable impact on their communities. The Foundation has three community investment priorities—promoting service, expanding digital literacy, and building tomorrow's leaders. Since its inception, the Comcast Foundation has donated more than $153 million to organizations in the communities nationwide that Comcast serves. More information about the Foundation and its programs is available at www.comcast.com/community.
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SOURCE Boys & Girls Clubs of America
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