The NEA Foundation presented its inaugural Award for Philanthropy in Public Education to Verizon at its annual Salute to Excellence in Education awards gala held on February 6 at the National Museum Building in Washington, D.C. Verizon Chairman and CEO Ivan Seidenberg accepted the award on behalf of the Verizon Foundation.

The Award for Philanthropy in Public Education was presented to Verizon for its long history of supporting education and literacy programs and for Verizon Foundation's Thinkfinity.org web site, which provides a wealth of educational and literacy resources, all free, for teachers, students, parents and after-school programs.

"The power of the private sector to strengthen public education is critical and clearly recognized by Verizon. When organizations decide to use their resources to support educators, students win," said Lauri J. Fitz-Pegado, Chair of the NEA Foundation's Board of Directors.

Known as the Academy Awards of public education, the NEA Foundation's gala attracted more than 900 leaders from public education, business, philanthropy and government. During the evening, awards were also presented to the nation's top public educators, including NEA's Member Benefits Award for Teaching Excellence, and Sesame Workshop received the NEA Foundation's 2009 Award for Outstanding Service to Public Education.