CHICAGO, Sept. 12, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- "Where do we stand?" That's what schools across the nation want to know after the first few days of voting in U.S. Cellular's (NYSE:USM) Calling All Communities campaign. Over the next four weeks, U.S. Cellular will update communities on how local schools are progressing on their quest to win a share of $1 million in the company's third annual campaign to support education. U.S. Cellular's commitment to enhancing the learning experience for students across the country is one of the reasons it has the happiest customers in wireless.
The top 18 vote-receiving schools will win a share of $1 million to spend any way they see fit. The school that garners the most votes will receive $150,000, and the next 17 schools will each receive $50,000. The voting period ends Oct. 6.
As of 8 a.m. Sept. 12, the top 100 schools lead a total of 507 schools throughout the country that have received community votes. So far, nearly 16,000 votes have been cast. But it's still early and, with 25 voting days left, there's plenty of time for communities to pull together to help their local schools make it to the top.
Anyone 18 years or older* can visit any U.S. Cellular store and ask an associate for a code to vote for their favorite school at uscellular.com and learn about the carrier's cutting-edge products and services. Each voting code gives people the opportunity to vote online once daily until the campaign ends. The voting cards feature a peel-off sticker that gives thousands of lucky supporters a chance to cast two votes per day or be one of 18 people to win one year of free U.S. Cellular wireless service. In addition, 2,000 randomly-selected voters will be awarded a $25 U.S. Cellular debit card simply for supporting their schools.
Public and private schools, kindergarten through high school, are eligible to win. No purchase is necessary and you don't have to be a U.S. Cellular customer to vote. The winning schools will be announced in October and November. To see the Top 100 leading schools, visit uscellular.com/callingallcommunities. For more information about U.S. Cellular, its cutting-edge phone lineup and high-speed nationwide network, visit uscellular.com or U.S. Cellular's Facebook page.
* Must be 19 years or older in Nebraska and Alabama
About Calling All Communities
Since Calling All Communities began in 2008, U.S. Cellular has awarded $2 million to 20 schools throughout the nation. Voter participation in the 2010 Calling All Communities campaign reached 430,000 votes cast for 6,800-plus schools. Last year's champions included six public and four private schools from small rural and large urban communities in Iowa, Illinois, Oregon, Washington, Missouri, Tennessee and North Carolina. Past Calling All Communities champions have used their winnings in a variety of ways from outfitting their classrooms with new computers, Promethean boards or other technological advancements to renovating gymnasiums, school kitchens and science labs. Others have used the donation to make building infrastructure improvements, such as replacing outdated electrical systems. A few even paid portions of their proceeds forward, giving college scholarships to graduating students and donating to nonprofits around the world.
LaTrina Shepherd, U.S. Cellular, latrina.shepherd@uscellular.com, 773-355-3364
About U.S. Cellular
U.S. Cellular rewards its customers with unmatched benefits and industry-leading innovations designed to elevate the customer experience. The Chicago-based carrier has a strong line-up of cutting-edge devices that are all backed by its high-speed nationwide network that has the highest call quality of any national carrier. U.S. Cellular was named a J.D. Power and Associates 2011 Customer Service Champion and received PC Magazine's 2011 Readers' Choice Award. To learn more about U.S. Cellular, visit one of its retail stores or uscellular.com. To get the latest news, promos and videos, connect with U.S. Cellular on Facebook.com/uscellular, Twitter.com/uscellular and YouTube.com/uscellularcorp.
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