Untitled Document

ITD donations support learning and access in rural schools

Students at Prairie Junior-Senior High School in Cottonwood recently received 25 computers courtesy of the Lewiston office (District 2) of ITD. The computers no longer served the district's needs, but can still be used by others.

“These machines will be put to good use for years to come," said Ryan Hasselstrom, the technology coordinator for the school. "School districts in Idaho are always pressed with the shortage of funding. When it comes to replacing technology, this is no different,” he added. “To be able to receive reliable, updated computers from local and state agencies has helped our rural schools in the Cottonwood School District tremendously.”

The Lewiston office used to ship computers to Boise to be distributed, but that changed a few years ago. Once or twice a year, the Lewiston office finds new homes for a combination of computers, keyboards, mice and monitors that can no longer be used by its employees.

“We asked ourselves, ‘Why not pass these computers onto our rural, local schools?’”said Kati Young, the district's IT specialist who partners with schools in the area.

Since then, the program has typically donated to schools that serve 200 students or less, such as the junior-senior high schools in Troy and Kendrick, or the Whitepine Joint School District serving Bovil and Deary.

“Many schools don’t have a budget for computers,” said Kathy Staab, who helps Young manage donations for District 2. “They may be able to buy a few at a time, but definitely not 25.”

Prairie Junior-Senior High School is the fourth school to receive donations since the program moved to D2, bringing the total donations to approximately 100 computers.

The Highland School District will be the next beneficiary, bringing the total to 110 computers when they receive them from ITD later this month.

“It is important that all schools, whether they are in large cities or rural towns, be able to provide equipment to teach children to prosper in our technology-driven world,” Young said. “We are happy we have the opportunity to help schools with this challenge in a meaningful way.”

Any interested schools may contact Young to be added to the list.