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Oracle received the Corporation of the Year Award at the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) Annual Awards Dinner held in December 2006 at the Oakland Marriott City Center in Oakland, California. During the award ceremonies, Oracle was recognized for its outstanding commitment to the education of today's youth
"Oracle is an excellent example of what it means to be a good corporate citizen," said Jim Mayo, Vice President, Western Region, United Negro College Fund who presented the Frederick D. Patterson Award to Oracle. "Not just this year, but over the past decade, Oracle has afforded and provided millions of dollars in both in-kind and cash to deserving students and our colleges and universities."
A Partnership that Makes a Difference
Oracle has had a unique partnership with the UNCF since 1998. The company's support has made it possible for UNCF member schools to have access to state-of-the-art technology as well as the funds necessary to give students a quality education.
Explained Mayo, "Over ninety percent of the students we serve come with an unmet financial need. Nearly 60 percent have annual family incomes below $30,000 and more than half are the first in their families to attend college. But for Oracle's generosity, these young men and women would never realize their dream of a college education."
In 2002, Oracle was asked to play an integral part in the UNCF Technology Enhancement Capital Campaign, a program to provide historically black colleges and universities access to advanced teaching and learning methods, and cutting edge technology within degree programs.
Oracle answered with a donation of $9 million in database management software and $1 million for training faculty and students in the use of this new software. In addition, Oracle also instituted the Oracle Scholars Program that provided over $446,000 in scholarships for young men and women majoring in accounting, business administration, engineering, finance, human resources, and marketing. These students receive grants to complete their studies during the school year and in the summer have an opportunity to intern at Oracle and receive special mentoring from company employees.
One such student is Aduramigba Sopeju from Benedict College. "During the summer of 2006, I had the opportunity to intern at Oracle," says Sopeju. "My project involved the development of business and human resources applications. At the end of the summer, I was able to build and deploy two applications. I was also able to learn some managerial skills."
Jonathan Acheampong of Clafin University also interned at Oracle last year. "This internship served as an opportunity to implement classroom knowledge in a real working environment with sufficient help from a mentor," he recalls. "This increases my ability to implement my computer skills in any career path I choose."
Last year, Oracle realized the critical need for additional assistance for young people in certain economically distressed areas. A Community Impact Grant of $250,000 was awarded to young people from Bayview-Hunter's Point, Richmond, East Palo Alto, East Oakland, and Marin City. With this grant, they will have an opportunity to receive the college education they deserve and break the cycle of poverty.
"Words cannot fully express the sense of gratitude that those students, and we at the United Negro College Fund have for this generous contribution," said Mayo, who also personally thanked Safra Catz, Oracle President and CFO and Jane Robertson, Diversity Director, for their part in helping make these gifts possible.
Founded in 1944, The United Negro College Fund is the nation's oldest and most successful minority higher education assistance organization. UNCF has raised $2 billion to support its 39 member institutions and has helped more than 300,000 students earn undergraduate degrees.
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