AT&T Creates $1.5 Million Grant Program for Education

The AT&T Foundation recently announced their launch of a $1.5 million competitive grant to help nonprofit organizations extend their educational outreach programs with wireless communication technology. It is a one-time award ranging from $2,500 to $25,000 for wireless applications and hardware.

"AT&T is committed to improving education and to supporting innovative applications of wireless and other technologies that help students achieve academic success," said Laura Sanford, AT&T Foundation president. "Mobile technology provides students of all ages with opportunities to learn anytime and anywhere."

Qualifications for the grant include:

• Open to 501(c)(3) public charities and government instrumentalities nationwide
• Funds are to be utilized to enhance education through wireless technology
• Program must engage youth and adults in the process of life-long learning
• 51 percent or more of the project must target underserved populations, including racial and ethnic groups, low-income populations, seniors, youth and/or people with disabilities

For more information, such as deadline for submission and specific guidelines see the AT&T press release.

DTE Energy Offers Safety Tips for Local Farmers

DTE Energy is reminding local farmers to be aware of potential hazards during the fall harvest. Farmers should be especially aware of overhead power lines and underground utilities in their work areas.

It is essential to use extra care when operating large farm equipment near electrical lines and poles, and underground utility cables and pipelines," said Vince Dow, DTE Energy vice president of Distribution Operations. "If you are using equipment like elevated truck beds, raised
conveyors or other large folding farm implements, it is critical to remember to take the time to survey the area, even if you are familiar with it, to be sure that it is free of potential hazards."

DTE also offers the following safety tips:

• Be aware of the clearance your equipment needs when truck beds are elevated or harvester arms are fully extended or raised.
• Keep all equipment at least 20 feet away from overhead power lines, guy wires and utility poles.
• Report any activity that might have damaged or undermined the stability of a utility pole, including damaged guy wires or severe erosion.
• If your farm equipment has snagged an overhead power line, remain inside the equipment. If possible, try to drive the equipment away from the hazard. If you cannot drive it away, stay where you are and wait for rescue. Call or signal for someone to call 911 and your local electric
  company. Warn others to stay away.
• If you must get off the equipment because of fire or other danger, remember that your body should NEVER contact the ground and the metal equipment at the same time. Jump clear, then hop with feet together or shuffle away. Voltage is highest near the equipment and decreases with distance. Hopping with feet together or shuffling prevents your body from becoming a conductor of electricity from a high to low voltage area.
• Tires are not insulators. Although rubber is not a good conductor of electricity, metal, which also is found in tires, is. If a power line is in contact with your vehicle, electricity will travel through the metal skin and tires into the ground. If you touch both the vehicle and the ground at the same time, electricity will take the path of least resistance and travel through your body to the ground.
• Never touch a downed power line or anything it is in contact with - even if there are no sparks. A live wire may whip or sweep through a wide area. A live wire also may lie still on the ground.
• To report equipment entangled in a power line, potential damage to a utility pole or any downed wire, or damage to an underground utility cable or pipe, DTE Energy customers should call (800) 477-4747.
• Always exercise caution when undertaking any task that requires digging. Before beginning excavation projects like tiling, terracing or fence post installation, call MISS DIG toll-free at 811 or (800) 484-7171 to avoid damaging underground utility cables and pipes.

For additional information please see the DTE press release.

Comcast Gives Record Donation to YMCA of Philadelphia

The YMCA of Philadelphia & Vicinity's Y Achievers Program received an $800,000 donation from Comcast, the largest in YMCA Philadelphia's history.

"The YMCA is grateful for this tremendous commitment from Comcast," said John Flynn, CEO of the YMCA of Philadelphia & Vicinity. "Both the Y and Comcast are dedicated to building strong communities and this gift is an example of how corporations can help improve the lives of young people in the communities that we serve. With Comcast's support, the Y Achievers Program will be able to serve more students with broader services, creating a win-win situation for all."

Comcast's donation projects to help double the 500 students currently participating in the Y Achievers Program, and provide the YMCA with funding to improve the program's infrastructure, recruit additional staff and teen mentors. The additional funding will also be applied to the program's current offerings, including college tours, parental support programs, college readiness training, SAT preparation and tutoring.

"Comcast is thrilled to provide this gift to the YMCA of Philadelphia & Vicinity, as it will enable the Y Achievers program to grow dramatically and serve more students," said Comcast Executive Vice President David L. Cohen. "Moreover, Y Achievers is a model program that helps youth learn about careers and build relationships, and we are very proud to help provide our area's young people with opportunities for success."

The YMCA Y Achievers Program is an extracurricular educational and team mentoring program that focuses on 7th - 12th grade minority youth and engages them in leadership training, career exploration and character development. Participants also meet semimonthly at local universities to take part in training and workshops aimed at developing and mentoring career interest.

The financial contribution is part of the Pennsylvania Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program (EITC), in which businesses are encouraged to support state education via donation.

Cox Communications Rolls Out More HD Channels

Cox Communication's President, Pat Esser, set a goal for the multisystem operator to offer its customers a minimum of 50 HD channels across all channels by the end of 2007, with planned expansion to 100 by the end of 2009.

To accomplish this high-definition programming roll-out, Cox is utilizing BigBand Networks and Switched Digital Video (SDV) technology in the Northern Virginia market, expecting to eventually expand this technology to additional systems in 2007.

SDV is unique in its capabilities. It allows cable operators to deliver more channels to its subscribers using the same amount of bandwidth, but instead of operating the same as other digital video technologies, SDV sends a specific channel to those who choose to view at that given time. This allows cable programmers such as Cox to offer numerous, additional channels on its customers' TVs without them knowing it. This system works primarily on the theory that not every single channel in an operator's subgroups will be watched simultaneously.

The SDV system should be available in the next 30 days, though Cox is remaining flexible on the type of top-box technology it plans to use to deliver SDV to its customers.

Qwest Donates $8,000 to the Montana Conservation Science Institute's Camp Eureka

In keeping with their company motto to give back to the community they serve, Qwest has generously donated $8,000 to the Montana Conservation Science Institute's Camp Eureka.

Camp Eureka is a summer natural history camp for blind children between the ages of nine through 14. At camp, the children can learn to explore Montana's nature using blindness skills. This is also a chance for the kids to come together with peers that face the same daily challenges and mentors that are there to guide them and teach them new tools.

Beth Underwood, director of Camp Eureka, expresses her extreme gratitude for Qwest's donation. She knows that because of Qwest's generosity, the children can know realize their dreams.

Please see the Qwest press release for more information.