News Corp Names DC College Acce Program President Argelia Rodriguez a Murdoch Community Hero

News Corp Names DC College Access Program President Argelia Rodriguez a Murdoch Community Hero

Award Recognizes Leadership and Innovative Programs

Washington, D.C., November 11, 2014 - Today, the DC College Access Program (DC-CAP) announced that News Corp has named Argelia Rodriguez, president and CEO of the DC College Access Program (DC-CAP), a Murdoch Community Hero in recognition of her leadership and DC-CAP's innovative programs. Rodriguez, who has served as DC-CAP's president and CEO since the nonprofit was founded in 1999, received the award at a private ceremony at News Corps headquarters in New York on October 30.

This award points to the heart and soul of DC-CAP and our programs - the fact that communities can come together with families to help more kids prepare for, enroll in and graduate from college, said Rodriguez. I am honored to receive this recognition on behalf of DC-CAP's remarkable staff and steadfast supporters.

Our Executive Chairman Rupert Murdoch often speaks of his strong belief in the power of education to open doors of opportunity for young people, and how crucial innovation is to the creation of 21st century jobs, said Robert Thomson, Chief Executive of News Corp. The Murdoch Community Hero Awards are a reflection of those ideals, and we are proud to honor Argelia Rodriguez for her success in leading DC-CAP.

Earlier this year, DC-CAP announced that eight DC-CAP high school seniors were named 2014 Murdoch Scholars and received four-year college scholarships totaling $60,000 each thanks to a $500,000 grant from News Corp. The scholarship recipients are members of DC-CAP's Alpha Leadership Program (ALP), which aims to help African American and Latino young men improve academic achievement and increase the possibility that they will graduate from high school and be socially and academically prepared to enroll in and graduate from college. The remaining $20,000 of the grant is being used to support ongoing ALP programming. The Murdoch Scholars visited News Corp. headquarters over the summer to meet with their mentors from the company.

DC-CAP's ALP initiative relies on community volunteers who serve as mentors to the young men and operates in five DC public and public charter high schools. Those schools are: Capital City Public Charter School, Coolidge Senior High School, Dunbar Senior High School, Roosevelt Senior High School and Wilson Senior High School. Since ALP's launch in 2007, 600 young men have set their sights on college and DC-CAP has seen dramatic changes in high school graduation rates among the young men they are reaching. Among ALP participants, 88 percent - which is almost double the graduation rate among African-American males in DC - have graduated from high school.

To learn more about ALP and DC-CAP's other programs, visit dccap.org. For more information on News Corp's Murdoch Community Hero award, visit newscorp.com/2014-murdoch-community-hero-honorees/.

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About DC-CAP

DC-College Access Program (DC-CAP) is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to helping all DC students prepare for, enroll in, and graduate from college as the cornerstone of a successful future. Since 1999, DC-CAP has worked with parents and educational partners, inspiring, counseling and providing fundamental support to help low income DC students believe that college is possible, find the path to get there and complete their education. By building long-term relationships and connections, DC-CAP is with students every step of the way, helping them to navigate the complex waters of the college application and financial aid process as well as providing integral support while they are in college. DC-CAP has helped more than 21,000 students enroll in college, supports more than 6,500 currently in college through its retention division, has awarded more than $31 million in scholarships, and has celebrated the success of more than 6,000 college graduates who otherwise never would have had the opportunity for higher education. For more information, visit www.dccap.org.

About News Corp

News Corp (NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA; ASX: NWS, NWSLV) is a global, diversified media and information services company focused on creating and distributing authoritative and engaging content to consumers throughout the world. The company comprises businesses across a range of media, including: news and information services, cable network programming in Australia, digital real estate services, book publishing, digital education, and pay-TV distribution in Australia. Headquartered in New York, the activities of News Corp are conducted primarily in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom. More information: www.newscorp.com.

Contact:

Julie Rosenthal for DC-CAP

julie@jrcommunications.com

202-486-3059

Jim Kennedy for News Corp

jkennedy@newscorp.com

212-416-4064

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LINK:	http://newscorp.com/2014/11/11/news-corp-names-dc-college-access-progr...
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