ADVISORY/Community, Officials to Celebrate Grand Opening of Computer Learning Center At `Wired' Low-Income Housing Development.

Business/News Editors

ADVISORY...for Thursday (Feb. 3)

--(BUSINESS WIRE)

Corporate-Community Partnership Means Residents of

West &uot;A&uot; Homes Now Will Have Access to

Training and Technology to Bridge the Digital Divide

WHAT:   Dedication of new, state-of-the-art computer learning centers
        at West &uot;A&uot; Homes -- an affordable housing project located in
        the heart of South Central Los Angeles.

WHEN:   Thursday, Feb. 3
        10 a.m.

WHERE:  West &uot;A&uot; Homes, 4100 S. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles

WHO:    Mayor Richard Riordan, City Council Member Rita Walters,
        Bishop Charles E. Blake, pastor, West Angeles Church of God
        and chairman, West Angeles Community Development Corporation,
        Joseph Loeb, founder of the nonprofit Break Away Technologies,
        Kerry Bollendonk, Southern California Marketing Manager,
        Microsoft Corporation (Microsoft has donated more than
        $2.3 million to Break Away over the past two years to support
        community technology initiatives), West &uot;A&uot; residents adults
        and children who will benefit from the project, local
        educators and other dignitaries will be on hand for interviews
        and hands-on training on the new computers.

A MODEL PROJECT

West &uot;A&uot; Homes, a 44-unit affordable housing complex, is a model of what can be done when community organizations, such as West Angeles CDC, USC and Break Away Technologies, and private corporations, such as Microsoft, Sony and AT&, partner to meet pressing social needs -- in this case, the need of low income Angelenos to learn computer skills and access advanced technology. Project highlights include:

-- Two new computer labs in the complex with Internet-connected PCs,

training in operation and certification on the latest Windows

software programs;

-- State-of-the-art wiring in every rental unit; and

-- For a nominal $25 monthly maintenance fee, residents can have an

Internet-connected PC in their unit, complete with the latest

Windows software.

IMPACT OF THE DIGITAL DIVIDE

A recent U.S. Dept. of Commerce report points out that by the Year 2000, 60 percent of jobs will require skills with technology. A just-released survey by Computer World shows that, while African-Americans comprise 11% of the population, they hold less than 7% of technology jobs.

The Information Association of America estimates that one in 10 technology jobs goes unfilled because of a shortage of trained workers. President Clinton, in his State-of-the-Union address, and Congressional leaders from both parties have talked about the need for public/private initiatives to address the problem.