News Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date:Monday, September 28, 1998
Contact:City Councilwoman Redella S. Pepper, (703) 751-0770; City Council Member, Lois L. Walker, (703) 549-6068; Mark McLindon, Chairman Alexandria Technology Achievement Award Committee, (703) 469-1501; Arthur Gitajn, Director Financial and Information Technology Services, (703) 838-6420

Nominations Open for 1999 Alexandria Technology Achievement Award; City To Showcase Best of High Tech businesses; During March 8-12 Alexandria Technology Achievement Week
Alexandria Mayor Kerry J. Donley has announced that the City will again join with the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce and the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership, Inc. to sponsor the 1999 Alexandria Technology Achievement Award. Nominations for the 1999 Award are due by 5:00 PM on Friday, October 30.

Alexandria's expanding technology sector will be in the spotlight March 8-12, 1999, during Alexandria Technology Achievement Week, which will showcase local businesses that have developed new technology or innovative uses for existing technology. The Alexandria Technology Achievement Award will be presented as part of the week's events.

Alexandria-based companies may nominate themselves for the 1999 Technology Achievement Award, or nominations may be submitted by clients, customers, or others on behalf of the technology firm. Nominations should include a description of the new technology developed by the company or a description of the company's innovative application of existing technology. The nomination should include the following information:

Letter nominations should be sent by Friday, October 30, to: Arthur Gitajn, Director, F&ITS,

Alexandria City Hall, 301 King Street, Suite 3300, Alexandria, VA 22314, or they may be sent via e-mail it to: arthur.gitajn@ci.alexandria.va.us. A nomination form can be downloaded from the City's Internet web site. Additional information and nomination forms are also available by calling (703) 838-6420.

A blue ribbon panel of technology industry experts will review the nominations and select the finalists, which will be announced on Monday, March 8. The winner of the 1999 Alexandria Technology Achievement Award will be announced at an awards luncheon on Friday, March 12. Mayor Donley and Alexandria Chamber of Commerce Chairman Paul S. Vander Myde will present the Technology Achievement Award to the winning company.

Alexandria Technology Achievement Week and the Alexandria Technology Achievement Award are sponsored by the City of Alexandria, the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce, and the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership, Inc. The award originated in 1997 with the Ad Hoc Task Force on Information and Communication Technologies, which was co-chaired by Councilwoman Redella S. Pepper and Council Member Lois L. Walker.

The winner of the 1998 Technology Achievement Award was UUcom, Inc., a woman-owned business with 30 employees and annual sales of $3 million. As an Internet pioneer, UUcom has designed and engineered Internet backbones for clients ranging from small start-up Internet Service Providers to entire countries. The other finalists for the 1998 Award were: the Advanced Television Technology Center, Advanced Solutions International, Inc., The Motley Fool, Inc., and Redmon Group, Inc. The Alexandria Campus of the Northern Virginia Community College was also honored with a Special Recognition Award for developing and implementing a plan for enhancing technology applications and training for its students, faculty and staff.

Technology Achievement Week and the 1999 Award are part of the City's efforts to promote Alexandria, which is home to 170 technology firms employing more than 10,000 workers, as a location for technology companies. Earlier this year the City's Office of Employment Training, the Virginia Employment Commission, the private computer training firm CCS&T, Kenda Systems International and CA Consulting joined forces to launch the Alexandria Technology Workforce Development Center (WDC). This initiative is aimed at identifying training and placement needs for Alexandria workers in Northern Virginia's booming high technology industry. The WDC will focus on information technology training and expects to train 700 students during the first year.