Kmart and CyberStudy 101™ Join Forces to Bridge the Digital Divide In Minneapolis/St. Paul, Kick-Off to Take Place, Dec. 19
Kmart and CyberStudy 101™ provide computers to 4,000 local residents just in time for the holidays
Kmart Corporation (NYSE: KM) today announced it will work with CyberStudy 101™ to provide 4,000 Kmart exclusive BlueLight Personal Computer packages to participants in CyberStudy 101™, an on-line educational study tool.
The computers will be distributed to Minnesota low-income residents pre- selected by CyberStudy 101™ just in time for the holiday season. Each computer comes equipped with BlueLight.com Internet Service, allowing recipients to access the Internet and CyberStudy 101™.
To kick-off distribution of the computers, a special event will be held at the Big Kmart store located at 10 West Lake Street in downtown Minneapolis at 10 a.m. on Dec. 19. Pre-selected local families will be on hand to pick up their computers, and local officials will be there in support of the program.
Selected participants will be directed to pick up the computer systems at the following Kmart stores from Dec. 19 - Dec. 31 (with the exceptions of Dec. 24 and Dec. 25):
* 10 West Lake Street, Minneapolis * 1940 Adams Street, Mankato * 1450 University Avenue West, St. Paul
"Kmart recognizes the Internet as a powerful learning tool that should be available to everyone," said Lyman Locket, Kmart director of diversity. "Kmart provides free Internet service to our customers through BlueLight.com , and we're proud to equip the participants of CyberStudy 101™ with the tools they need to join the on-line community."
CyberStudy 101™ was incorporated in 2000 under the laws of the state of Minnesota. Dr. Carolyn Louper-Morris started CyberStudy 101™ as a computer educational program in 1996, and an Internet education learning environment in 1998. It assists low-income residents who qualify for the "Take Credit for Learning" tax credit to obtain a computer and access the on-line educational study tool.
"I am happy to help serve the residents of the state of Minnesota with their education needs," said Dr. Morris. "The legislature wanted this, the taxpayers wanted this and now the business community is able to help."
Kmart Corporation serves America with 2,106 Kmart, Big Kmart and Super Kmart retail outlets. In addition to serving all 50 states, Kmart operations extend to Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. More information about Kmart is available on the World Wide Web at http://www.bluelight.com/ under the "About Kmart" section.
SOURCE: Kmart Corporation
Contact: Julie Fracker of Kmart Corporation, 248-463-1021; or Will
Morris of CyberStudy 101™, 612-587-9577, ext. 103
Website: http://www.bluelight.com/