Gail Woods Waller, OED
410-396-9928

Sandra Arnette, Verizon
410-393-7109

BALTIMORE (August 3, 2000) - Mayor Martin O’Malley was joined today by Bill Roberts, the new president of Verizon Communications (formerly Bell Atlantic – Maryland) to announce the telecommunication giant’s support for Baltimore’s YouthWorks 2000 summer jobs campaign. The Mayor accepted the $35,000 check on behalf of over 4,100 young people participating in the YouthWorks Program.

"The City is grateful to Verizon and our other corporate and community partners who stepped forward to make the YouthWorks campaign a smashing success. Summer jobs are often the first experience young people have with the world of employment. I know it made a lasting impression on me," said Mayor O’Malley. "In addition to giving young people the opportunity to earn money, they are also gaining valuable training and establishing work ethics that can be used in the future."

To offset an expected youth funding shortfall from traditional federal sources, the Mayor rallied city agencies, business associations, the faith community and foundations to raise an additional $1.5 million for summer employment projects and to identify hundreds of jobs for youth. As a result, the YouthWorks 2000 campaign has been successful in placing thousands of young people in jobs such as recreation aides, administrative assistants, maintenance workers and health/community aides. Verizon’s $35,000 donation is sponsoring 40 young people in community-based jobs across Baltimore.

The YouthWorks Summer Jobs Program is coordinated by the Baltimore City Workforce Investment Board/Youth Council and the City’s Office of Employment Development. In partnership, both organizations support and create workforce development strategies that raise the skill level of Baltimore workers and provide employers the human resources they need to grow and prosper. Annually, these coordinated workforce strategies connect over 4,000 citizens with career-related employment, and provide recruitment services for more than 400 employers in the Metropolitan Baltimore Area.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ), formed by the merger of Bell Atlantic and GTE, is one of the world’s leading providers of communication services. Verizon companies are the the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States, with 95 million access lines and 25 million wireless customers. A Fortune 10 company with more than 280,000 employees and approximately $60 billion in 1999 revenues, Verizon’s global presence extends to 40 countries in the Americas, Europe Asia and the Pacific.

For more information about Verizon Communications, please visit www.verizon.com or contact Sandra Arnette on (410) 393-7109. For more information about the YouthWorks Program or workforce development activities in Baltimore City, please visit www.oedworks.com or call Gail Woods Waller on (410) 396-9928.