government INITIATIVES from 1999
2007 PowerUp owned by Network Solutions LLC (R63-LROR) who also owns www.powerup.org to show advertising
of
all kinds.
This happened BECAUSE the PowerUp folks who were responsible for this site in the first
place never thought about how to bury it in a responsible manner. [THEY NEVER HAD AN EXIT PLAN] and
now
another website www.awana.org uses the POWERUP name for their right wing fundementalist agenda -
Christians
memorize God's Word. That's what PowerUP is all about—getting as much of
God's Word as we can, as deep into hearts as we can, of as many children as we can.
[Good old November 1999 when nobody cared how to bury a k-12 dot.com with dignity]
Major coalition of businesses, non-profit organisations and the US government
launch PowerUP, a major initiative to cross the Digital Divide.
A Powerful Program Offering Partnership Brings Funds, People, Skills and Resources Community Learning Centers.
More than a dozen non-profit organisations, major corporations and federal agencies have launched a major new multimillion dollar initiative to help ensure that America's underserved young people acquire the skills, experiences and resources they need to succeed in the digital age.
The new initiative, called PowerUP tm, is a unique partnership to give underserved children access to technology and guidance on how to use it. Based in schools and community centres around the country, PowerUP not only will provide young people with access to the wide range of content and information on the Internet; it will also help them develop additional skills they need to succeed in the 21st century.
PowerUP will be able to scale quickly and reach thousands of young people because it will leverage partnerships with numerous public and private organisations, and build on thousands of exiting community centres, schools and other locations nationwide. PowerUP partners will provide technology, funding, trained personnel, in-kind support and other resources to help close the divide between young people who have access to computer-based information or technology-related skills and those who don't.
Gateway Chairman and CEO Ted Waitt, a founding member of the board of PowerUP, said, "The gap between the Internet haves and have-nots is widening along racial, economic and geographic lines, and we absolutely, positively cannot afford another divide in this country. We can pull together. Nothing is more important in our lives and in the future of our communities than ensuring all of our children have access to the tools and information they need to get ahead, and stay ahead."
Created as a non-profit organisation, PowerUP is guided by a board of directors that in addition to Case
and Waitt includes: Erskine Bowles, partner at Forstmann Little and former White House chief of staff;
Jean
Case, President of the Case Foundation; Carly Fiorina, President and CEO of Hewlett-Packard Company; Jack
Kemp, Co-Director of Empower America; David Mercer, National Executive Director of YMCA; Sam Nunn, Partner
at King and Spalding and former U.S. Senator; Leon Panetta, Director of the
Panetta Institute and former Director of OMB and White House chief of staff; Retired Army General Colin L.
Powell, Chairman of America's Promise; Franklin Raines, Chairman and CEO of Fannie Mae; and Roger
Staubach, Chairman and CEO, The Staubach Company.
A Powerful Program Offering
PowerUP brings together several critical and innovative program elements to create a powerful offering for
community centres, schools and other locations nationwide.
Key elements include:
Computers and Internet Access - Through major grants from the Waitt Family Foundation and the AOL
Foundation, PowerUP will provide 50,000 computers and 100,000 AOL accounts for free Internet access to
sites
throughout the country.
Innovative, Life-enriching Interactive Programming - A unique "PowerUP Online" guide aggregates
information and organises activities and resources according to the "five promises" identified
by
America's Promise as essential for children to become successful adults including: tools on how to
find
a mentor; fun and productive activities to do after school; healthy lifestyle information; exploration of
career opportunities and how to acquire the skills needed to take advantage of them; community service;
and
links with real-time community youth program opportunities provided by participating local youth serving
organisations.
PowerUP Online, developed by the AOL Foundation, also includes a scholastic/academic component addressing
educational achievement.
An Army of Trained Workers - PowerUP will provide the people power needed to effectively train young
people
in attaining digital literacy skills while offering them an ongoing relationship with a caring adult in a
safe environment. Initially more than 400 specially trained, full-time AmeriCorps*VISTA members and other
staff will provide a sustained and trained presence at PowerUP-supported centres where needed. One of the
shortcomings in technology education efforts to date has been lack of dedicated, capable adult staff to
work
with young people in centres on a regular basis.
Partnering with Key Groups to Scale Quickly and on a Large Scale - PowerUP's goal is to scale quickly
to
reach a national level. It will do this in two ways: by engaging key partner groups at the national and
local levels, and by providing flexible program options for existing centres.
Youth-serving organisations - PowerUp will partner with local YMCAs, Boys & Girls Clubs, Save the
Children's "Web of Support" centres, National Urban League, and other organisations with
roots
in thousands of communities across the country to connect young people with additional learning and
positive
youth development activities such as after-school sports, arts and crafts, or other classes and technology
services. Federal agencies - In keeping with a PowerUP goal of enhancing scholastic achievement and
digital
literacy, PowerUP will partner with the U.S. Department of Education's Computer Technology Centres and
21st Century Community Learning Centres to supplement and complement educational goals of children both
during and after school hours.
Corporations - Companies that have established their own sites or technology programs may choose to add
PowerUP program elements, and/or supply additional financing or in-kind support either at the national or
local level.
Private individuals and foundations - Financial and in-kind support. Millions of Dollars in Local
Community
Grants - PowerUP will provide an initial total of $5 million in direct grants to community- and
school-based
centres who wish to participate in the PowerUP program. Grants may be used for any activities or resource
needs that are consistent with PowerUP's program goals. Links with Schools - PowerUP works to enhance
scholastic achievement and national digital literacy goals by forming partnerships with local schools and
educators. A section of the PowerUP Online guide features a scholastic approach to educational attainment
linked to academic curricula, and AmeriCorps*VISTA members are responsible for connecting the PowerUP
program with local schools to supplement and complement educational goals of young people both at school
and
after school.
Healthy Snacks - Through its partnership with PowerBar Inc., PowerUP will provide PowerUP-supported sites with healthy snacks, including PowerBars, PowerBar Harvest bars, and PowerBar Essentials bars.
Steve Case said, "We recognise that there are many projects underway in communities across the nation that seek to bridge the digital divide, but they are fragmented and lack the scale necessary to attract significant resources. PowerUP will help knit these initiatives into a national tapestry and jump-start a crusade that can change the lives of millions of kids, bringing together an unprecedented combination of people, skills and resources.
"PowerUP offers us the opportunity to make dramatic progress in establishing consistent, quality-oriented methods and resources to ensure that technology centres and programs across the country share a common standard of excellence in driving positive youth development," Case said. "Just as the nation made a successful commitment to ensuring that every child has access to public education starting at the age of five, we must now commit ourselves to ensuring that in the 21st century every child in America has access to technology so that no one falls behind. This mission is what PowerUP is all about."
Partnership Brings Funds, People, Skills and Resources
The PowerUP partnership brings a range of support services and resources to community centres, schools and other youth service locations around the country:
* National Benefactors - National benefactors of PowerUP include the CaseFoundation, the Waitt Family
Foundation, AOL Inc./AOL Foundation, and TheCorporation for National Service (which houses
AmeriCorps*VISTA), and The YMCA of the USA. These organisations will bring money, computers,
access,interactive programming, trained staff and other community-based services on a large scale to sites
across the nation:
* The Case Foundation, established by Steve and Jean Case, will provide aninitial grant of $10 million to
establish PowerUP. The grant includes $5 million to cover all staff and administrative costs of the
program,
enabling partnershipcontributions to go directly to supporting or establishing in-site programs foryouth
at
centers across the country. Another $5 million will provide the localcommunity grants to benefit up to
5,000
local community centres andschool-based sites nationwide.
* The Waitt Family Foundation, established by Ted and Joan Waitt and theirfamily, will supply computer
hardware to PowerUP by providing 50,000 Gateway computers and Internet appliances over the next three
years.
* AOL Inc./The AOL Foundation has donated its resources and staff to develop PowerUP Online, a
first-of-its
kind interactive programming guide built around the "five promises" that America's Promise
has
identified as essential for children to become successful adults. PowerUP Online aggregates valuable
content
and organises activities and resources in an easy-to-use format for use in grades K-12. In addition,
100,000
AOL accounts are being provided for centres that need them.
* The Corporation for National Service (AmeriCorps*VISTA) is bringing people power to PowerUP. Initially
more than 400 AmeriCorps*VISTA members and others in AmeriCorps will be trained and deployed to provide
dedicated, full-time mentoring and other assistance to schools, YMCAs, Boys & Girls Clubs, National
Urban League centres, Save the Children "Web of Support" centres, the U.S. Department of
Education's Computer Technology Centres and 21st Century Community Learning Centres, and other
community
technology centres across the country.
* The YMCA of the USA will provide service-learning and positive youth development opportunities for young
people at PowerUP-supported sites, including providing a sustained presence of caring, supportive adults
who
regularly interact with parents and teachers in the community.
* Founding National Partners - Founding national partners who will support the program through their
existing networks of community-based centres, training programs, in-kind contributions and other
activities
include Sun Microsystems, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Save the Children, National Urban League,
Communities in Schools, Family Education Network, PowerBar Inc., and the U.S. Department of
Education's
Computer Technology Centres and 21st Century
Community Learning Centres
* Founding Local Sponsors - Founding local sponsors who have established pilot sites for PowerUP in their communities include Microsoft, Sun Microsystems, the Northern Virginia Technology Council, and the Case Foundation. The sites are located in San Jose, CA; Seattle, WA; Alexandria, VA; and Washington, DC. The sites are additionally supported by the YMCAs of Santa Clara Valley, Greater Seattle, and Metropolitan Washington, which provide service-learning and positive youth development opportunities.
PowerUP is a commitment to America's Promise. America's Promise - The Alliance for Youth led by General Colin Powell, is dedicated to mobilising individuals, groups and organisations from every part of American life, to build and strengthen the character and competence of our youth.