Comcast Awards $66,000 in Scholarships to Virginia High School Seniors

RICHMOND, Va., May 14 /PRNewswire/ -- The Comcast Foundation, founded in 1999 to provide charitable support to its local communities and to empower and enrich lives, is awarding $1,000 scholarships to 56 Virginia high school seniors through its annual Leaders and Achievers® Scholarship Program.  The program, one of the Comcast Foundation's signature community investment programs, recognizes students' leadership skills, academic achievement and commitment to community service.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100514/PH05154 )

Fred Graffam, regional senior vice president for Comcast, was joined by Virginia Secretary of Education Gerard Robinson in recognizing the students at a special event held at the Executive Mansion in Richmond on Thursday.  First Lady of Virginia Maureen McDonnell also attended to welcome the students and their families.  

Comcast also awarded Kassandra Hoffmeister of William Monroe High School in Stanardsville and Sigourney Bailey of Open High School in Richmond additional $5,000 Comcast Founder's Scholarships, instituted in honor of Ralph J. Roberts, Founder and Chairman Emeritus of Comcast Corporation.  After a prize drawing, 10 students were also given a Netbook computer.  

"I am proud to help Comcast honor these bright young students for their academic and civic leadership," said First Lady McDonnell.  "Through this scholarship program, Comcast is making a sound investment in the state of Virginia and its future leaders."

"The Commonwealth of Virginia is committed to ensuring students of all backgrounds are provided quality educational options and opportunities to reach their full potential," said Secretary Robinson.  "We applaud Comcast for its commitment to education and for supporting students across our state as they embark upon the next phase of their academic journeys."

"Comcast is dedicated to promoting youth leadership development in our local communities," said Graffam.  "We are proud to recognize these students for their outstanding achievements and we wish them all the best for the future."

The Comcast Leaders and Achievers Scholarship Program provides one-time, $1,000 scholarships to students who strive to achieve their potential, who are catalysts for positive change in their communities, who are involved in their schools, and who serve as models for their fellow students.  The philosophy behind the program is to give young people every opportunity to be prepared for the future, to engage youth in their communities, and to demonstrate the importance of civic involvement and its value to the business community.

Each year, Comcast works with high school principals, guidance counselors and school administrators to select the scholarship recipients. Since the program's inception, there have been more than 13,300 scholarship winners totaling more than $13.4 million.

About the Comcast Foundation

The Comcast Foundation was founded by Comcast Corporation in June 1999 to provide charitable support to qualified non-profit organizations. The Foundation primarily invests in programs intended to have a positive, sustainable impact on their communities.  The Foundation's focus areas are expanding digital literacy, building tomorrow's leaders and promoting community service.  Since its inception, the Comcast Foundation has donated more than $77 million to organizations in the communities nationwide that Comcast serves. More information about the Foundation and its programs is available at www.comcast.com/inthecommunity.

About Comcast  

Comcast Corporation (www.comcast.com) is one of the nation's leading providers of entertainment, information and communication products and services. With 23.5 million cable customers, 16.3 million high-speed Internet customers, and 7.9 million Comcast Digital Voice customers, Comcast is principally involved in the development, management and operation of cable systems and in the delivery of programming content.

Comcast's Eastern Division serves approximately 5.7 million residential and business customers across Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington, D.C. The Eastern Division is based in Oaks, Pennsylvania and employs more than 20,000 people.

SOURCE Comcast