MANASSAS, VA – For many students, the introduction to new technologies is a sought after experience, and often times, can be considered a segue to future success and preparation for the global market. Today, many are given the opportunity to use modern technologies.

Teachers and students across Sunnyside Unified School District in Tucson are quickly discovering the excitement of integrating computing technologies to the curriculum. Throughout the district, seven schools have EarthWalk High-Efficiency (HE) computer labs with over 2700 Lenovo laptops deployed in total, and more labs to be launched in the near future. These laptops are stored and powered by EarthWalk’s MiniMax series mobile computer lab and maximize student user hours when paired with the SideKick PowerPack. Many of these students, whom never experienced personal ownership of a laptop before, show excitement and enthusiasm.

“I’ve seen the eyes of these students go wide open as their faces light up with excitement as they picked up the laptops. You notice that some of these students possess a genuine interest and a natural gift for technology.” explained Javier Baca, Chief Technology Officer of the district. “In one classroom, one of the students is already emerging as the local classroom technician and going around helping his peers.”

Along with students, teachers also appreciate the features of the mobile computer lab system largely due to its organization, 1:1 accessibility, security, power, green-natured efficiency, and the A/C brick that allows kids to take the laptops home. “The teachers appreciate the carts in that they act as their charging stations” said Assistant Director of Technology Mary Veres. “They appreciate not having a mess of cables all over the place. Also, there is the security and safety factor.”

Students at Sunnyside Unified School are provided with the one-to-one computing program; allowing students to take their laptop home with constant access to a wide array of applications and content. This program encourages students to broaden their learning experience and aids the development of vital computing skills. The requirements to obtain a computer and participate in the program are as followed: parents and students must both must undergo the process of earning digital license, where the participant will learn to use a computer and be rated on three levels of competency (Basic, Internet, and Software), along with essential knowledge of internet safety and basic care.  This program follows the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines for fair technology use.

Javier and Mary hope that these programs will further facilitate interest in technology for the students of the school district. The overall objective is that the deployment of these labs will ensure accessibility to computers not otherwise possible, pique interest in the field of information technology, and lead to higher student involvement and an increase in student retention within the Sunnyside District. By providing these students with the tools and power to innovate, the future is bright for the tech-savvy students at Sunnyside Unified School District.

“You can understand that for a lot of these students who have never had a computer, it’s an exciting thing”.

About the Sunnyside Unified School District’s “The Digital Advantage”

The 5th-Grade Digital Advantage program will extend 1-to-1 computing by assigning a personal laptop computer to every fifth-grader in the district’s elementary schools. The Sunnyside District has gained state and national attention for Project Graduation’s impact on attendance, freshman promotion rates and especially high school graduation numbers. In 2009, a record high of 715 students graduated. A total of 821 students graduated in 2010, up from 715 in 2009 and 598 in 2008.

For more information on the Sunnyside Unified School District, visit http://www.sunnysideud.k12.az.us.

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