Oscar de la Hoya Foundation receives $1 million grant from Microsoft

To improve technology access to families and youths throughout East Los Angeles, Microsoft Corp. today announced a grant worth more than $1 million in software to the Oscar de la Hoya & Microsoft Learning Center. Through this grant, the foundation will receive a makeover to include new personal computers equipped with the Windows Vista™ operating system.

“We are grateful to Microsoft for this extremely generous donation,” said Oscar de la Hoya. “Windows Vista will make a huge impact on everything from after-school homework assistance throughout the community to giving parents an opportunity to gain new skills for today’s burgeoning digital work force.”

The Oscar de la Hoya Foundation is a nonprofit organization committed to the development of children, families and communities in Los Angeles. The Oscar de la Hoya & Microsoft Learning Center provides thousands of children with a safe and positive educational and training environment, emphasizing self-esteem and success through hard work, dedication, good citizenship and school achievement.
“At Microsoft, we feel a strong sense of responsibility toward our local community,” said Chris Weber, vice president of Enterprise for the Western Region at Microsoft. “Microsoft has long believed that inside each and every person there is great potential. When you partner that potential with great technology, extraordinary things can happen.”

According to Weber, this grant builds on more than $85 million in cash and software that Microsoft has donated to community organizations, educational institutions and human service agencies in California since 2003. “I believe these are some of the most important investments Microsoft makes,” he said. “The work the Oscar de la Hoya Foundation does is critical to closing the gap in technology education and access, and Microsoft is delighted to support such an important effort.”

The grant will help create the first Windows Vista-equipped youth and community learning center in the country and will offer youths and families in East Los Angeles access to computers with the most updated software applications available. Currently, less than 7 percent of households in East Los Angeles have access to computers and computer software. Community members will have access to the learning center to use, explore and learn new software.

“The Oscar de la Hoya & Microsoft Learning Center is a tremendous asset to the entire Los Angeles community,” said Antonio Villaraigosa, mayor of Los Angeles. “Microsoft’s donation will give youths and families in the region access to technology that can further education, enhance communication and improve their overall quality of life.”

The technology center will be enhanced with new computers loaded with the Windows Vista Ultimate operating system, which includes a feature that allows users to easily switch the user interface language between English and Spanish — depending on the user’s preference — within the same computer. On Jan. 22 at 10 a.m. PST, Microsoft will host a ceremony and computer lab tour at the Oscar de la Hoya & Microsoft Learning Center to present the foundation with the grant. For those interested in attending, the center is located at 1114 South Lorena St. in East Los Angeles, on the site of the former Resurrection Gym, which de la Hoya purchased in 1996 and completely renovated.