FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 15, 2008

CONTACT: Jose Guzman Phone: 202-263-2938

Ground Breaking Programs Honored With Prestigious Technology Award

Washington, D.C. – The Alliance for Public Technology (APT) today presented The Children's Partnership and ConnectKentucky with this year's prestigious Susan G. Hadden Pioneer Award for their efforts in pioneering telecommunications access. 

The Children's Partnership was founded in 1993 by Wendy Lazarus and Laurie Lipper to ensure that digital opportunities are extended to all young people, particularly those in underserved families and communities.  The organization uses original research, community-based pilot programs, training for parents and low-income community leaders, and policy advocacy to ensure that all American children have a chance to participate in today's economy and society.

"Wendy Lazarus and Laurie Lipper were among the first to recognize the enormous impact that information technology would have on America's children," said Kenneth Peres, president of APT.  "From nearly the birth of the information revolution, The Children's Partnership has provided a dynamic and respected voice for children that has been turned to by parents, community leaders, policy-makers, industry, and foundations."

ConnectKentucky, a technology-based economic development organization, has garnered national, industry-wide recognition as a best-practice model for broadband expansion.  The model includes extensive broadband mapping, a public-private partnership and local eCommunity Leadership Teams.

"ConnectKentucky provides an incredibly successful model for stimulating broadband build out and demand that should be adopted nationally", said Peres.  "ConnectKentucky's comprehensive strategy of assessing broadband availability, identifying and aggregating demand through grassroots county planning teams, and bringing providers and users together through a private public partnership has resulted in an expansion of broadband availability that is both significant and measurable."

The Susan G. Hadden Award was named after the late Chair of APT's Public Policy Committee and professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas in Austin.  She was passionately committed to ensuring that all people have the opportunity to gain access to evolving technology.  The Hadden Awards are given annually to those whose efforts in pioneering telecommunications access embody the words and the spirit of. Dr. Hadden who dedicated her career to the principle of "connecting each to all," defining not only APT, but a national vision for technology access.

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About APT
The Alliance for Public Technology is a nonprofit membership organization based in Washington, D.C., which was founded in 1989 to foster public policies that ensure access to advanced telecommunications technologies for all Americans.