PA Nonprofits Receive Internet Safety Education Grants from Verizon Foundation

• By Scott Aronowitz
• 12/11/09

Eleven non-profit organizations in the state of Pennsylvania have received a total of more than $200,000 in grants from the Verizon Foundation to raise awareness of and promote Internet safety to children and offer educational outreach services to students, parents, and educators.

The Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications, supports literacy advancement and K-12 education through a number of projects, including the free educational and professional development Web site Thinkfinity.org and Verizon Volunteers, through which employees of the company volunteer their time to community service efforts.

The Internet safety outreach grants went to a number of education institutions and other types of organizations, including:

• Bar Association of Lehigh County, Allentown: $20,000;
• Berks Economic Partnership, Reading: $20,000;
• Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh: $20,000;
• The Crime Victims' Center of Chester County, West Chester: $20,000;
• Harrisburg Public School Foundation, Harrisburg: $22,500;
• Junior Achievement of Western Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh: $15,000;
• Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, Enola: $24,800;
• Susquehanna Valley Women in Transition, Lewisburg: $15,000;
• The Wayne County Community Foundation, Honesdale: $20,000;
• West Philadelphia Alliance for Children, Philadelphia: $15,000; and
• WLVT-TV PBS 39, Bethlehem: $10,000.

"Our children are growing up in a digital world where they communicate, learn and share ideas," said Gale Y. Given, president of Verizon Pennsylvania. "Online technology has a tremendous impact on our society, and its role will continue to grow with further advances. Verizon's business is centered on technology, so we believe it is our responsibility to proactively help people understand how to use the Internet safely and effectively."