PRESS RELEASE

Youth in Amateur Radio Program

Friday, June 20, 2003 - The HamTestOnline website announced today its new Youth in Amateur Radio program, which gives eligible school, scouting and youth amateur radio clubs a 50% discount on website subscriptions for students 18 and under.

“We are offering this discount to support projects bringing kids into amateur radio, like ARRL's "The Big Project," announced John "J.C." Cunningham, W1AI, the website founder. "We want to help make ham radio an affordable hobby!"

"In keeping with the Year of the Youth theme of Hamvention 2003, we want to encourage more young people to enter the world of amateur radio," added Harold "Pi" Pugh, K1RV, the HamTestOnline website course master. "Today's kids are internet-savvy. They are much more comfortable studying with an interactive learning program than reading a book," Pi continued. "We've been very successful with kids as young as 11 years old!"

Pi and J.C. have been working for years to bring youth into amateur radio. They are two of the leading forces behind the K1USN Radio Club's scouting program, which introduces about 5,000 scouts to amateur radio each year as part of their Overnight Adventure on board the USS Salem museum ship docked in Quincy, Massachusetts.

The HamTestOnline website provides computer-based training for the U.S. amateur radio written exams. Unlike practice exams, it starts with simple concepts and progresses to more complex ones, and provides additional information not in the question pools. The website tracks each student's progress through the course and uses "intelligent repetition" to ensure each concept is mastered.  Students learn the material rather than memorizing the answers.

The website offers a "free trial" with access to 20% of the questions. A regular subscription costs $29.95 for full access to all three question pools. The Youth in Amateur Radio subscription provides the same full access and is offered at $14.95 to students 18 and under who subscribe through an eligible youth organization.

For more information on the HamTestOnline website's Youth in Amateur Radio program, visit www.hamtestonline.com or send an email to K1RV@hamtestonline.com.