A $300,000 Verizon Foundation grant to the Gloucester Institute
for its Emerging Leaders Program will help Virginia's future
business, civic and political leaders acquire and refine the skills
they'll need to meet tomorrow's challenges.
At a news conference Wednesday (March 10) at the Virginia
General Assembly Building to announce the grant, Verizon and
Institute officials were joined by General Assembly members,
representatives of Virginia's Historically Black Colleges and
Universities, former U.S. Rep. J.C. Watts and several members of
the Emerging Leaders Program.
The Institute's Emerging Leaders Program partners with
Virginia's five Historically Black Colleges and Universities -
Virginia State University, Virginia Union University, Norfolk State
University, Hampton University and St. Paul's College - to prepare
campus leaders, recent graduates and young professionals for future
success in the marketplace and the business community.
The Institute will use the Verizon Foundation grant to fund
research and development and 10 Verizon Leadership Summits,
involving approximately 300 emerging leaders over the next three
years.
"Verizon's grant empowers us to impact more of our future
leaders," said Kay Coles James, president of the Gloucester
Institute. "The Emerging Leaders Program was created to
identify, train, mentor and launch the next generation of leaders
our country needs today, and in the tumultuous and exciting days
ahead."
Robert Woltz Jr., president of Verizon Virginia, said: "The
Emerging Leaders of the Gloucester Institute already have many of
the tools they need to be successful. The Institute, through
the Emerging Leaders Program, is training the next generation of
leaders to use these leadership tools to produce solutions for
tomorrow's challenges.
"We at Verizon clearly recognize the value of our investment in
the Emerging Leaders Program and the future leaders it will train,
cultivate and inspire."
About the Gloucester Institute
The Gloucester Institute's mission is to develop and cultivate a
society of future leaders and problem solvers, in addition to
providing a place for decision makers to discuss and debate today's
issues. The Emerging Leaders Program of The Gloucester
Institute partners with Virginia's five Historically Black College
and Universities - Virginia State University, Virginia Union
University, Norfolk State University, Hampton University and St.
Paul's College - to prepare their campus leaders for future success
in the market place and the business community. Due to the
success of the program, it has expanded to also serve recent
college graduates and young professionals. For more
information on the Institute, visit www.gloucesterinstitute.org.
About the Verizon Foundation
The Verizon Foundation supports the advancement of
literacy and K-12 education through its free educational Web site,
Thinkfinity.org, and fosters
awareness and prevention of domestic violence. In 2009, the
Verizon Foundation awarded more than $67.5 million in grants to
nonprofit agencies in the U.S. and abroad. It also matched
the charitable donations of Verizon employees and retirees,
resulting in an additional $26.1 million in combined contributions
to nonprofits. Through Verizon Volunteers, one of the
nation's largest employee volunteer programs, Verizon employees and
retirees have volunteered more than 5 million hours of community
service since 2000. More than 1,000 nonprofit groups in
Virginia received more than $4 million from the Verizon Foundation
in 2009. For more information on the foundation, visit www.verizonfoundation.org.