ITASCA, Ill. -- OfficeMax (R) recently awarded scholarships to three of its minority- and women-owned catalog suppliers for the Minority Business Executive Program at Dartmouth College's Tuck School of Business. Morris Liao, vice president of marketing for Pointe Writing Company in Schaumburg, Ill.; Lewis Scott, president of Simon Marketing, Inc. in Elgin, Ill.; and Delilah Stevens, president of Hess Advanced Technology, Inc. in Dayton, Ohio, were selected as OfficeMax's 2004 scholarship recipients.

The scholarship serves as one tool in OfficeMax's ongoing business development initiative for its diverse supplier base. This is the third year that the company has provided this scholarship opportunity.

"Most small and minority-owned businesses don't have extra money in the budget to allocate for outside educational programs," said Stevens. "But this scholarship allows companies like mine to participate that otherwise wouldn't have been able to afford it."

The Minority Business Executive Program covers topics to help minority businesses survive and prosper, including strategic planning, organization, resources and systems and processes.

"The program used those four cornerstones to help me think about my future strategy, how to organize more efficiently and how to excel in each area," said Liao. "The Tuck School really has a strong focus on minority businesses, and they brought forth top-notch professors and curriculum."

OfficeMax is committed to the development of businesses owned and operated by minorities, women, service-disabled veterans and those companies employing people who are developmentally or physically challenged. In 2003, OfficeMax's sales by minority- and women-owned suppliers increased by 22 percent. The company is a founding member of the Women's Business Development Center.

"By investing in the talents of our minority businesses, we are helping them to better serve our customers, which is our immediate goal," said Chris Milliken, division president and CEO, OfficeMax. "By helping to develop better business talent among smaller businesses, we are also ultimately helping to build better business communities."

"It's good to know that Boise has enough confidence in our organization and other minority businesses to invest in our development by providing this scholarship," added Scott.

About OfficeMax

OfficeMax is a leader in both business-to-business office product solutions and retail office products. OfficeMax delivers an unparalleled customer experience -- in service, in product, in time savings, and in value - through a relentless focus on its customers. The company provides office supplies and paper, technology products and solutions, and furniture to large, medium and small businesses and consumers. OfficeMax customers are served by more than 40,000 associates through direct sales, catalogs, Internet and nearly 1,000 superstores. Having joined with Boise Office Solutions, the company had pro forma revenues of $8.3 billion in 2003. OfficeMax is a division of Boise Cascade Corporation.

About Boise Cascade Corporation

Boise , headquartered in Boise, Idaho, provides solutions to help customers work more efficiently, build more effectively, and create new ways to meet business challenges. We own or control more than 2 million acres of timberland, primarily in the United States, to support our manufacturing operations. Boise's annualized first half 2004 sales were $13.9 billion. Visit the Boise Web site at http://www.bc.com .

OfficeMax Contact  Bill Bonner 630 438 8584

Media Contact Cari Trayner, Bader Rutter & Associates  262 784 7200