Best Buy Canada Awards $250,000 in Technology Grants to 15 Schools Through
Its Best in Class Fund

Tripled Submission Rate Plus Outstanding Level of Proposal Quality and Enthusiasm Inspires Best Buy to Award Five Additional Schools in 2010

Announcement Highlights:

• Best Buy Canada awards $250,000 in technology grants to 15 Canadian schools.
• An additional five Canadian schools will receive $10,000 each in technology grants this year.
• Geek Squad will offer technology support to each of the winning schools.
• Since 2008, Best Buy has awarded $750,000 in technology grants through Best in Class.

BURNABY, BC, Dec. 16 /CNW/ - Christmas has come early for a number of Canadian students as they were officially announced winners of the Best in Class Fund, the annual technology grant program awarded by Best Buy, Canada's fastest growing retailer and e-tailer of consumer electronics. In total, 15 schools were presented with a collective $250,000 in technology grants in recognition of their winning proposals submitted at the start of school year.

"Every year, we at Best Buy are so inspired by the innovative ways of incorporating technology into the classroom proposed in the Best in Class Fund submissions," said Danielle Jang, Communications Manager at Best Buy Canada. "We initially set out to award ten $20,000 grants, but we were so impressed by the innovation and quality of proposals received, that we decided to award an additional five schools with honorable mentions each worth $10,000."

In addition to the coveted technology grant, which will help fund schools with new consumer electronics that support the education-focused projects outlined in their proposals, Best Buy will also provide the top ten schools with ongoing Geek Squad support. This will ensure the students and teachers understand how to get as much as possible out of this new technology and maximize the learning experience.

Conceived as an education-focused program that inspires teachers and students to develop compelling educational projects that will advance learning through the integration of technology in the classroom, The Best in Class Fund has become an increasingly popular contest among Canadian schools and has been backed by a number of Canada's top technology and education experts.

This year's program was championed by a national technology advisory board who selected the ultimate winners of the technology grants.  This year's advisory board included: Dr. David Vogt, Director of Digital Learning Projects for the University of British Columbia's Faculty of Education; Dr. Michele Jacobsen, Chair of Educational Studies in Language, Culture & Technology at the University of Calgary's Faculty of Education; as well as the respected technology experts and journalists, Marc Saltzman and Francois Charron.

"In all of the winning proposals, students and teachers clearly outlined breakthrough ways to incorporate new technology into their classroom or school and showcased how this investment would add substantially to their learning environment," said Dr. Michele Jacobsen, who was part of a research effort earlier this year that explored the correlation between teachers' willingness to integrate technology in classrooms and student performance. "In order for Canadian schools to remain competitive and best facilitate student education, Canada needs programs like The Best in Class Fund to help us engage and teach today's tech-savvy youth."

The ten schools to receive a technology grant worth $20,000 and complimentary Geek Squad services are:

1. Clayburn Middle School - Abbotsford, BC
2. Langley Fine Arts School - Fort Langley, BC
3. Elizabeth School - Cold Lake, AB
4. Bethlehem Catholic High School - Saskatoon, SK
5. École W.S. Hawrylak School- Regina, SK
6. Daniel McIntyre Collegiate Institute - Winnipeg, MB
7. Crosby Heights Public School - Richmond Hill, ON
8. St. Rita Catholic School - Woodstock, ON
9. École Secondaire Sieur-de-Coulonge - Mansfield-et-Pontefract, QC  
10. Millwood High School - Lower Sackville, NS

The 5 additional schools to receive an honorary grant of $10,000 are:

1. St. Mary's High School - Calgary, AB
2. Shaftesbury High School - Winnipeg, MB
3. Sunny View Junior and Senior Public School - Toronto, ON
4. École Jean-Jacques-Bertrand - Farnham, QC
5. École Joseph-Hermas-Leclerc - Granby, QC

About The Best in Class Fund

The Best in Class Fund Program began in 2008 and to-date Best Buy has donated $750,000 (including $250,000 this year) in technology grants to schools in Canada. The program is open to teachers and students in BC, AB, SK, MB, ON, QC, and NS.

Each Fall, students and teachers are asked to develop their proposals, which must include a video and a written proposal that outline how they would like to integrate various consumer electronic technologies in the classroom and how it will provide an educational benefit, and submit online at www.BestBuy.ca/BestinClass in time for the year's set deadline. One submission is allowed per school and it can come from a single class, or from a cross section of students and teachers from the same school, such as Student Council or other student clubs.

For more Best in Class information and submission guidelines, please visit www.BestBuy.ca/BestinClass.

About Best Buy Canada

Best Buy stores in Canada are a division of Burnaby, BC-based Best Buy Canada Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY). Best Buy is Canada's fastest-growing retailer and e-tailer (www.BestBuy.ca) of consumer electronics, computers and entertainment products and also operates the Geek Squad (www.GeekSquad.ca), a technology service provider specializing in computer support, home theatre installation and car electronic installation. There are more than 70 stores in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia.

Best Buy offers consumers a unique shopping experience with the latest technology and entertainment products, at the right price, with a no-pressure (non-commissioned) sales environment. The company is committed to kids and its local communities and has a comprehensive community relations program described at www.BestBuy.ca/community.

For more information about Best Buy, including store locations, visit www.BestBuy.ca.

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