Massachusetts Nonprofits Received More Than $ 3.5 million in 2009 From the Verizon Foundation to Support Education, Literacy and
January 28 2010 - 12:55PM
PR Newswire (US)
BOSTON, Jan. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly 1,300 nonprofit groups in
Massachusetts received more than $3.5 million from the Verizon
Foundation in 2009, enabling these organizations to improve
literacy skills, enhance educational opportunities for children,
and assist domestic violence survivors. In addition, Verizon
employees volunteered nearly 46,000 hours to nonprofit groups
throughout the state in 2009. "Verizon and its employees are proud
to partner with thousands of nonprofit organizations throughout
Massachusetts to bring about positive change in the areas of
education, domestic violence prevention and Internet safety," said
Verizon Region President Donna Cupelo. Among the grant recipients
are: -- Boston Private Industry Council -- $50,000 to support its
Classroom at the Workplace: MCAS Preparation and SAT Preparation
program for Boston public school students who have failed the MCAS
or are first-generation college-bound students who otherwise would
not have access to SAT preparation and college counseling. --
Domestic Violence Solutions Awards -- Thirteen nonprofit agencies
that provide domestic violence prevention and service programs
received a total of $160,000 in grants. The award winners are: Abby
Kelly Foster's House of Worcester; Close to Home of Dorchester;
Elizabeth Freeman Center Inc. of Pittsfield; Elizabeth Stone House
of Jamaica Plain; Gay Men's Domestic Violence Project of Cambridge;
Healthcare of Southeastern Massachusetts of Brockton; Manet
Community Health Center of Quincy; Massachusetts Alliance of
Portuguese Speakers of Cambridge/Lowell; New Bedford Women's Center
of New Bedford; Northeastern University School of Law Domestic
Violence Institute of Boston; Portal to Hope of Medford; Reach
Beyond Domestic Violence of Waltham; and Womanshelter/Companeras of
Holyoke. -- i-Safe America -- $75,000 to provide Internet safety
workshops for students, parents, teachers and law enforcement
officials that help students to remain safe online. -- Think Ahead
with Thinkfinity Awards -- Fifteen public schools that are using
Thinkfinity.org in the classroom to help improve student
achievement were awarded a total of $150,000 in grants. The schools
are in Blackstone-Milleville, Brockton, Fitchburg, Framingham,
Hamilton-Wenham, Tewksbury, Peabody, Lawrence, North Adams,
Plymouth, Roxbury, Northampton, Taunton, Truro and Worcester. --
University of Massachusetts at Amherst -- $200,000 to digitize an
estimated 100,000 items from its Du Bois collection that will
provide online access for the first time to original diaries,
letters, photographs and other material related to W.E.B. Du Bois,
one of the most influential African-Americans in U.S. history. The
Verizon Foundation, supports the advancement of literacy and K-12
education through its free educational Web site, Thinkfinity.org,
and fosters awareness and prevention of domestic violence. In 2009,
the Verizon Foundation awarded more than $67.5 million in grants to
nonprofit agencies in the U.S. and abroad. It also matched the
charitable donations of Verizon employees and retirees, resulting
in an additional $26.1 million in combined contributions to
nonprofits. Through Verizon Volunteers, one of the nation's largest
employee volunteer programs, Verizon employees and retirees have
volunteered more than 5 million hours of community service since
2000. For more information on the foundation, visit
http://www.verizonfoundation.org/. Verizon Communications Inc.
(NYSE:VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in
delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications
services to mass market, business, government and wholesale
customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable
wireless network, serving more than 91 million customers
nationwide. Verizon also provides converged communications,
information and entertainment services over America's most advanced
fiber-optic network, and delivers innovative, seamless business
solutions to customers around the world. A Dow 30 company, Verizon
employs a diverse workforce of approximately 222,900 and last year
generated consolidated revenues of more than $107 billion. For more
information, visit http://www.verizon.com/. VERIZON'S ONLINE NEWS
CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive speeches and biographies,
media contacts, high-quality video and images, and other
information are available at Verizon's News Center on the World
Wide Web at http://www.verizon.com/news. To receive news releases
by e-mail, visit the News Center and register for customized
automatic delivery of Verizon news releases. DATASOURCE: Verizon
CONTACT: Phil Santoro, +1-617-743-4670, Web Site:
http://www.verizon.com/ Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/094251.html
Copyright