NEW YORK The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Viacom will join other corporations and nonprofit organizations at the Paramount Pictures lot in Hollywood on Sept. 8 to formally launch the "Get Schooled" initiative, aimed at reforming the nation's public schools.

The afternoon conference will feature presentations by Bill Gates, Viacom president and CEO Philippe Dauman, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Education Tony Miller, filmmaker Davis Guggenheim, author and political columnist Arianna Huffington, New York City Department of Education Chancellor Joel Klein and Los Angeles-area high school athletic director Stephen Minix.

Stephen Colbert, host of the popular television show The Colbert Report on Comedy Central, will serve as the master of ceremonies for the conference.

"Get Schooled: You Have the Right," a new 30-minute documentary, will screen.

At the event, the Gates Foundation and Viacom will welcome corporate partners AT&T, Capital One Financial Corporation and NYSE Euronext, which have each signed on to the "Get Schooled" initiative in order to promote education reform efforts and develop innovative ways of engaging communities and supporting students.

"'Get Schooled' brings together the immense creativity and ingenuity of leaders in business and the entertainment industries to inspire students to pursue an education that has real value in the global marketplace. We hope this conversation will inspire communities to fix our nation's public education system," said Bill Gates, co-chair of the Gates Foundation.


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