Sponsor of Computer Learning Month and the Technology for Education Program each October.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Coral Antony and Kathy Hill from Shell Elementary School Lead Students to Win Grand Prize in International Our Town Merit Competition

(Hawthorne, FL), September 10, 1998 - - Dr. Gladys Wright, Principal of Shell Elementary School, announced that the Hawthorne, Florida Web site has been selected as the Grand Prize Winner in the Computer Learning Foundation's 1997-1998 Our Town Merit Competition. Students led by Coral Antony and Kathy Hill from the school participated in the development of the winning town site. Our Town is an initiative of the Computer Learning Foundation, an international nonprofit educational foundation dedicated to improving the quality of children's learning and preparation of youth for the workplace through the use of technology.

In Our Town, students work with others in their community to learn about their town and to develop a web site that communicates about their town to others on the Internet. Easily integrated into the curriculum, Our Town provides students of all ages with a motivating and educational project that benefits their community and provides information to people all over the world. Accessible through the Computer Learning Foundation's web site, over 100 town sites are currently registered in the Our Town Initiative.

"Every town has its own unique history and characteristics, and students participating in Our Town are displaying amazing creativity as they help their local community communicate about their town on the Internet," says Sally Bowman Alden, Executive Director of the Computer Learning Foundation. "We applaud all of the students for their hard work on the winning sites."

The Our Town Merit competition was announced during Computer Learning Month last October, and students and others worked on their web sites throughout the school year. Sites were judged on the basis of creativity, organization, scope and quality of content, presentation, value to others and the number of students and organizations involved. As the Grand Prize winner, Shell Elementary School will soon receive a new Apple Macintosh computer, a Cisco Micro Webserver and Microsoft software.

"We are extremely proud of Coral's and Kathy's leadership and the Hawthorne web site development team," said Dr. Wright. "Our teachers are committed to ensuring our children gain the benefits of technology to their learning in our classrooms and Our Town has provided us with a unique opportunity to enhance student learning while providing a resource of value to our community. We congratulate the Our Town team for receiving this national honor."

The Computer Learning Foundation, based in Palo Alto, California, is an international nonprofit educational foundation dedicated to bringing businesses, schools and communities together to improve the quality of education and preparation of youth for the workplace through the use of technology. Founded in 1987, the Foundation serves as a clearinghouse of information for parents and educators on using technology effectively with children. In addition, the Computer Learning Foundation hosts Computer Learning Month each October, a major national grass roots educational effort, and motivates and recognizes innovative uses of technology through annual competitions for children, educators, community groups and schools. The Foundation's newest initiative, Our Town, provides schools with an innovative way to involve students in learning about the Internet, their community and other academic studies by working with others in their community to develop a web site for their town. The Computer Learning Foundation is funded by corporate and individual donations and is endorsed by and collaborates with 56 U.S. State Departments of Education and Canadian Ministries of Education and 26 national nonprofit organizations.

More information on Computer Learning Foundation projects can be found at the Foundation's web site or in Computer Learning, the Foundation's free annual publication (write to: Computer Learning Foundation, Dept. 0TW98