Club Tech Impact Grants Will Provide Youth Nationwide with Access to Advanced Technology Programs
ATLANTA, April 11, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) announced today that 40 Boys & Girls Clubs across the country will receive Club Tech Impact Grants to take technology programming to a higher level. The grants provide an opportunity for Clubs to expand their current tech center programs with new activities and programs aimed to enhance technology skills among youth.
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Through the support of founding sponsor Microsoft and Comcast, the Club Tech Impact Grants will provide each Club with $5,000 which will be matched with an additional $2,500 by local donors. The grants will allow Clubs to purchase additional equipment, software or fulfill a fun, innovative project idea related to program areas like digital arts, robotics or career development.
"The Club Tech Impact grants are a great way for Clubs already doing wonderful things with technology to take programming to that next level and provide additional skill development for Club members," said Dan Rauzi, senior director of technology programs at Boys & Girls Clubs of America. "Thanks to Microsoft and Comcast, youth are able to expand creativity, perform better in school and eventually take their technology know how into the workplace."
The grants celebrate technology and build on the success of the Club Tech Centers of Excellence, implemented in 11 Clubs across the country in 2010 and 2011. The state-of-the-art technology centers provide youth access to fully loaded computers with software. Club Tech is a BGCA program initiated by a $100 million donation from Microsoft in 2000 to provide software, training and development of digital literacy curriculum. In 2010, Comcast joined as a partner in delivering essential digital literacy opportunities through technology grants to Clubs. Comcast also supports digital literacy trainings for Club staff to help youth learn important technology skills.
"If you can help a young person take the first step, chances are they will put themselves on a path to succeed," said Akhtar Badshah, senior director of Global Community Affairs, Microsoft. "We are committed to programs such as Club Tech that provide the technology, training and experiences to help young people move from 'opportunity imagined' to 'opportunity realized.'"
Currently, nearly one million youth and teens participate in the Club Tech program every year at more than 3,600 Boys & Girls Clubs around the world. Club Tech provides youth and staff with basic and advanced tech skills needed to succeed in a technology-driven world.
"The Club Tech program aligns perfectly with one of Comcast's key community initiatives: taking aim at the digital divide by making digital literacy and computer training available where it is needed most," Charisse Lillie, President of the Comcast Foundation, said. "We are happy to join Microsoft in support of these efforts at Boy & Girls Clubs across the country."
For more information on Club Tech and to view success stories please visit www.bgca.org/clubtech.
About Club Tech
Club Tech was created by Boys & Girls Clubs of America (www.bgca.org/clubtech) and Microsoft (www.microsoft.com) in 2000 to technologically enable Clubs worldwide, transforming Clubs from "swim and gym" to "point and click" destinations. Partnering with longtime supporter Comcast (www.comcast.com) and Microsoft, BGCA provides technology program access to some 4 million youth served through Club membership and community outreach at nearly 4,000 Clubs. By leveling the virtual playing field, kids of all ages and circumstances now have access to the same resources and skills to help them discover their world, expand creativity, perform better in school, and eventually take their technology know-how into the workplace.
About Microsoft
Microsoft is focused on creating opportunities for youth through technology, training, and experiences that empower them to imagine and realize their full potential and make a real impact for a better tomorrow. Our longstanding partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America is an example of how technology can create opportunities for youth. For more information visit: http://www.microsoft.com/citizenship or follow us on Twitter at @msftcitizenship.
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 community service, expanding digital literacy and building tomorrow's leaders. Since its inception the Comcast Foundation has donated more than $90 million to organizations in the communities nationwide that Comcast serves. More information about the Foundation and its programs is available at www.comcast.com/neighborhood. More information about the Foundation and its programs is available at www.comcast.com/community.
SOURCE Boys & Girls Clubs of America
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