Verizon Wireless Launches State’s First ‘UHopeLine’ Program at City University of New York

Verizon Wireless Launches State’s First ‘UHopeLine’ Program at City University
of New York
– Wireless phone recycling program places permanent collection points on eight
CUNY campuses in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx. Staten Island to
join next year.

QUEENS, N.Y., Oct. 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — City University of New York
(CUNY) and Verizon Wireless officials joined the NYC Mayor’s Office to Combat
Domestic Violence at Queens College in Flushing today to mark the close of
Domestic Violence Awareness Month and announce the introduction of UHopeLine,
an extension of the company’s exclusive HopeLine® wireless phone recycling
program, that will create permanent collection points on eight CUNY college
campuses.

Recognizing the silent epidemic of dating abuse, UHopeLine is designed to
increase awareness of dating violence, provide aid to domestic violence
survivors and encourage college students to help the environment by recycling
their no-longer-used wireless devices.

Championed by the Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence, CUNY is the
first university in New York State and only the second in the country, to host
the UHopeLine program. In addition to Queens College, the program will place
permanent cell phone recycling collection bins at Bronx Community and Lehman
colleges in the Bronx; Medgar Evers and Kingsborough Community colleges in
Brooklyn; and at Baruch and Borough of Manhattan Community and John Jay
colleges in Manhattan. A permanent UHopeLine collection site will be
established at the College of Staten Island by early next year.

“Through its unique Women and Work program, Queens College has been a leader
in providing life-changing opportunities to survivors of domestic violence,”
says Joseph Bertolino, vice president of student affairs. “In fact, Verizon
Wireless supported Women and Work at its inception with a technology grant.
We’re delighted to be partnering with Verizon Wireless once again. UHopeLine
will bring greater awareness of dating and domestic violence and give our
students a tangible way to help.”

According to a Department of Health and Mental Hygiene study released last
year on intimate partner violence in New York City, women in their 20’s
experience the highest rate of intimate partner homicides, hospitalizations
and emergency room visits when compared to other age groups.

“Through this initiative CUNY and Verizon Wireless are demonstrating their
commitment to breaking the cycle of violence and helping victims obtain easier
access to the services they need,” said Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic
Violence Commissioner Yolanda B. Jimenez. “This initiative is a great example
of how the private and public sectors can work together to increase awareness
about this serious issue and have a positive impact on victims of violence and
their children.”

UhopeLine accepts wireless devices and accessories in any condition, from any
wireless service provider, and then refurbishes or recycles them in an
environmentally-sound way. Proceeds of the UHopeLine program benefit local
domestic violence survivors in the form of wireless phones with service and
cash grants to domestic violence advocacy groups working to end domestic
violence.

In recognition of each college’s commitment to women’s issues, Verizon
Wireless will make a $1,000 donation to women’s education and safety programs
on each campus.

“The generosity of New Yorkers and consumers nationwide has enabled Verizon
Wireless to collect more than 6.5 million no longer used phones and donate
nearly $7 million in grants and over 80,000 wireless phones with service to
domestic violence survivors,” said Pat Devlin, president of the company’s New
York Metro Region. “UHopeLine is a natural extension of the HopeLine program,
and helps raise awareness among young women at a time in their lives when they
are especially vulnerable to controlling relationships. We thank CUNY and the
Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence for leading the State in this
important effort.”

The UHopeLine program in New York has collection bins at the following CUNY
locations:

— Queens College Student Union, 65-30 Kissena Blvd., Flushing, Queens
— Bronx Community College Meister Hall Patio, 2155 University Ave.,
Bronx
— Lehman College Student Life Building, 250 Bedford Park Blvd W, Bronx
— Medgar Evers College School of Business, Student Services Bldg., 1637
Bedford Ave., Brooklyn
— Kingsborough Community College Bookstore, 2001 Oriental Blvd, Brooklyn
— Baruch College Office of Student Life, 55 Lexington at 24th St.,
Manhattan
— Borough of Manhattan Community College, 99 Chambers St., Manhattan

— John Jay College, Women’s Center, North Hall, 899 Tenth Ave.,
Manhattan

In a related announcement, Verizon Wireless and Rutgers University today
announced the expansion of UHopeLine to its Newark, Camden, Cook and
Livingston campuses in New Jersey. Rutgers became the first university in the
nation to host the program last October when Verizon Wireless established
UHopeLine collection points at student centers in the New Brunswick area. More
than 500 used phones were collected during the first year of the program. See
release at http://news.vzw.com/news/2009/10/pr2009-10-26d.html.

As part of the company’s ongoing HopeLine phone recycling program, wireless
devices and accessories also are accepted at all Verizon Wireless
Communications Stores in New York and across the nation. For store locations
and to learn how to donate a phone downloading a postage-paid mailing label,
visit http://www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.

Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved