BLS Bellsouth Cp

ATLANTA, Nov. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- The BellSouth Foundation will award $100,000 each to Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina and Tennessee to support e- Learning initiatives. These awards are a part of a larger grant made through the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) to aid state high school improvement efforts. The NGA Center is focused on making sure high school students are prepared for college or the workforce and accepted 17 state grant proposals in which each applicant outlined its strategy for high school improvement. "Our mission is to close the achievement gap by expanding access to quality online instruction," said Mary Boehm, president, BellSouth Foundation. "So, joining forces with NGA to promote online learning as one of the tools for improving America's high schools was a natural response." "The Foundation's e-Learning initiative is a critical element to ensuring students across the Southeast have equal opportunity to rigorous coursework such as Advanced Placement courses," said Dane Linn, director of NGA's education division. "BellSouth's partnership with NGA on their high school initiative will make certain more students are better prepared for their futures." The states receiving e-Learning grants will each utilize technology to improve student performance. Georgia will provide access to Advanced Placement and college prep courses online with a focus on districts with low- income and high minority populations. Kentucky will help at-risk seniors with English and math to reduce remediation rates as they enter college. Low- income and minority students will be part of the focus in North Carolina as it strives to increase the number of students involved in online honors and Advanced Placement courses. Tennessee will train additional teachers to support students who enroll in online courses to help those students meet college entrance requirements. "We believe online learning can play a vital part in redesigning high schools," continued Boehm. "We are thrilled that governors are making this part of their strategies for high school improvement." About BellSouth Corporation BellSouth Corporation (NYSE:BLS) is a Fortune 100 communications company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. BellSouth has joint control and 40 percent ownership of Cingular Wireless, the nation's largest wireless voice and data provider with 52.3 million customers. Backed by award-winning customer service, BellSouth offers the most comprehensive and innovative package of voice and data services available in the market. Through BellSouth Answers(R), residential and small business customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial-up and high-speed DSL Internet access, satellite television and Cingular(R) Wireless service. For businesses, BellSouth provides secure, reliable local and long distance voice and data networking solutions. BellSouth also offers online and directory advertising through BellSouth(R) RealPages.com(R) and The Real Yellow Pages(R). BellSouth believes that diversity and fostering an inclusive environment are critical in maintaining a competitive advantage in today's global marketplace. More information about BellSouth can be found at http://www.bellsouth.com/. DATASOURCE: BellSouth Corporation CONTACT: Karen Pace of BellSouth Corporation, +1-404-249-2504, or cell, +1-404-862-6517, or Web site: http://www.bellsouth.com/ Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/095650.html

Copyright