Over the next week, 165 HISD students from two different schools will take home a free, refurbished computer thanks to two local computer recycling programs.
The computers will be given to students at Sugar Grove Academy and Berry Elementary School. They are being provided by Comp-U-Dopt and TechnoCycle.
[slideshow]More than 200 area third- through eighth-grade students, teachers, and parents attended a computer programming symposium on Saturday, Nov. 17, at Young Women’s College Preparatory Academy.
The Inaugural Schlumberger Log-in Symposium provided participants with free access to computer programming and robotics software, equipment, training, and other resources. There also were student robotics and computer exhibitions from Young Men’s College Preparatory Academy on display.
Volunteers from Schlumberger, Rice University, University of Houston and Texas Southern University served as mentors and instructors for the students. They also held informational seminars for parents interested in learning about education opportunities in the computer programming and technology fields.
The first grade students at Berry Elementary School recently received a generous donation, free computers for each student. The TechnoCycle 2012 Outreach program with the support of TECHNIP provided more than a hundred refurbished internet-ready computers to each first grade student. TechnoCycle says it wants to help students bridge the digital divide, and it chose Berry Elementary because the school is dedicated to educating its students about how they can have a tremendous impact in our environment.
Teacher Erin Chavez said they are excited, humbled, and gracious to be a part of providing this opportunity to the students.
TechnoCycle believes the donation will allow the students to be connected to the school and their teachers in ways that was previously inexistent due to the constraints on the children’s families. The company is also going to service the computers for an entire year for free.
The Houston Independent School District and Microsoft are partnering to launch new Parent Super Centers across the district in an effort to promote parent engagement on campus. The district will be unveiling one of the five new Parent Super Centers on Friday, May 25 at 10 a.m. at Sam Houston MSTC High School (9400 Irvington).
“Research shows that increased parent engagement on campus leads to increased academic performance of students,” said HISD Superintendent Terry Grier. “HISD is committed to providing resources on campus to help parents become more involved in their children’s education.”
Each new HISD Parent Super Center will have 12 desktop computers fully loaded with the latest version of Microsoft Office, internet access, laser printers and other software.
“In today’s digital world it’s essential for parents, students and members of the community to have access to technology, which is why we are delighted to partner with HISD,” said Lori Aulds, Microsoft’s education sales director. “Microsoft has been and will always be committed to providing people with the training, education and tools needed to improve their digital literacy skills and grow in today’s economy.”
In addition, parents will receive computer training through Parent Engagement and curriculum provided by Microsoft to help them be computer savvy and master basic computer skills.
These centers will be available for parents to use before and after school, during summer school and on Saturdays during tutorials.
In addition to Sam Houston, HISD Parent Super Centers will be located in the following schools: