For Immediate Release
July 09, 2010
Contact Information

Sprint
Lisa Ketteler
816-305-5822
lisa.b.ketteler@sprint.com

(BPRW) Sprint Kicks Diversity Efforts in to High Gear with Sponsorship of the 101st Annual NAACP Convention

Convention kicks off Saturday and runs July 10-15

(BLACK PR WIRE) OVERLAND PARK, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--On the heels of being named a Top Company for Diversity by Black Enterprise magazine, Sprint (NYSE:S) is proud to sponsor the 101st Annual NAACP National Convention in Kansas City, Mo., which kicks off tomorrow and runs through July 15.

Sprint has a strong, long-standing commitment to diversity and the Kansas City community. “Our goal is to provide the best experience for a diverse base of 48 million customers. An inclusive workforce is the only way to deliver that, and we take great pride in our team of talented employees who are as diverse as the customers we serve,” says Ralph Reid, vice president – Corporate Social Responsibility. “We have a long history of supporting the NAACP and are thrilled to be sponsoring this year’s convention in our own backyard.”

Close to 20,000 people from all over the country are expected to attend this year’s convention, which Sprint will co-lead sponsor with Wells Fargo. Within the convention, Sprint will have a significant presence throughout the six-day event, including several receptions, exhibition in the Commerce and Industry Show, job fair and support in the renowned NAACP National ACT-SO Competition. ACT-SO (Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics) is a forum for African American youth to demonstrate academic, artistic and scientific prowess and expertise. Past medalists and participants include film director John Singleton, actress Jada Pinkett Smith, entertainer Kanye West and several other Grammy, Oscar and Emmy-winning and nominated musicians and artists.

Experience Sprint 4G, sustainability programs and community initiatives live

The Convention’s Commerce and Industry Show will be held July 10-13. Convention attendees can experience the latest products and services from Sprint in a state-of-the-art, interactive booth, including 4G demos of the HTC EVO™ and the Overdrive™ Mobile Hotspot by Sierra Wireless. In addition, Sprint will have three lounges open to showcase its eco-friendly devices and services, multiple prepaid offerings and community efforts such as Internet safety for kids and safe texting. Attendees can also take advantage of Sprint-sponsored charging stations, workstations and will be given a Sprint 1GB Flash drive. Sprint will also present contest winners with tickets to the 2011 Daytona 500 race or the 2011 NAACP Image Awards.


Sprint’s commitment to diversity
In this month’s issue of Black Enterprise magazine, Sprint was named one of the 40 Best Companies for Diversity. Sprint has been recognized by many other organizations for the company’s commitment to inclusion and diversity, including receiving a 100% perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index for the fifth year in a row and being named to Hispanic Business Magazines’ Diversity Elite 60. Click here to view a list of the recognition that Sprint has received for citizenship, diversity and workplace excellence.

Inclusion and diversity are core values for Sprint, as evidenced by the company’s Office of Inclusion & Diversity and Executive Inclusion Council, which is chaired by CEO Dan Hesse and comprised of other senior executive members. The Inclusion Council meets quarterly to review inclusion and diversity efforts and strategies.

Additionally, nearly 4,000 Sprint employees belong to a Sprint Employee Resource Group (ERG). ERGs are formed around employees who share common interests. The groups have formal mentoring programs and offer professional development curriculum. And ERG members are extremely active in their communities and host cultural events for all Sprint employees. The six ERGs are open to all employees and include: Diamond Network (African American focus), Enlace (Hispanic focus), OASIS (Asian/Pacific American focus), Pride (GLBT focus), VETS (veteran focus) and WISE (women focus).

For more information about Sprint’s commitment to diversity, visit www.sprint.com/diversity.

About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 48 million customers at the end of the first quarter of 2010 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, and is the first and only wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, Common Cents Mobile and Assurance Wireless and instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. With its customer-focused strategy, you can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.