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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Vice President

For Immediate Release April 4, 1997

                VICE PRESIDENT GORE ANNOUNCES NEW EFFORT 
        TO CONNECT D.C. SCHOOLS TO THE INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY

             Private Industry and Federal Agencies Announce
                 Contributions to Make NetDay a Success

Vice President Gore visited Turner Elementary School in Washington, D.C., today (4/4) and announced three steps that information industry companies, federal agencies, and volunteers are taking to connect D.C. schools to the Internet.

"Today's unprecedented commitment, forged by a partnership between government and business, will build here in Washington the schools of the future," said Vice President Gore. "By working together, we can make sure that all children in the nation's capital have the tools to make the most of their lives."

The Vice President announced that a group of companies, including Cisco Systems, AMP, Sprint, Netcom, AT&T, and others are supplying NetDay wiring kits to provide classroom connections for every D.C. school that is not yet wired for computers. He also announced that the Education Technology Company and Microsoft-authorized training centers, such as FEI and Knowlogy, will provide free technology training to D.C. school teachers.

In addition, the Vice President said that the federal government is donating more than 1,000 Internet-capable surplus computers to D.C. schools. This would allow each of D.C.'s approximately 150 schools to have at least one computer lab. America Online and AT&T are also donating computers.

"All told, these efforts -- new connections, new training, and new computers -- represent a million dollar investment in the future of D.C.'s children," Vice President Gore said.

Other companies are providing hardware for D.C. schools. Philips is providing WebTV units, Bay Networks is providing equipment to allow multiple Internet connections, NetCom is providing books on the Internet, and Bell Atlantic is providing laptops for each school principal.

NetDay is a national volunteer effort to connect schools to the information superhighway. NetDay '97 is April 19 and the Vice President has set a goal of connecting every D.C. school and bringing model technology to the D.C.'s classrooms. The Communication Workers of America have pledged volunteer workers to wire schools and the Vice President challenged federal workers and the entire D.C. community to come together and volunteer to make D.C.'s NetDay successful.

The first NetDay occurred in California on March 9, 1996. President Clinton and Vice President Gore joined 20,000 volunteers, parents, and teachers in wiring thousands of California schools with 6 million feet of cable.