590 Computers Given to Valley Schools

Nearly 600 computers--donated by businesses and government agencies and refurbished by inmates--will be placed in San Fernando Valley public schools, it was announced this week at a ceremony at Tulsa Street Elementary School.

The Pentium 300-megahertz computers, with Windows 95 software, will be delivered next month to 50 schools in the central and northeast San Fernando Valley. Each school will get three to 15 computers, except for six that will receive 30 computers each.

Chatsworth High School has already received 90 computers to replace those lost in a fire in March.

The donation was made possible by a partnership between San Diego-based nonprofit Technology Training Foundation of America and the California Department of Corrections’ Computer Refurbishing Program, which involves 600 to 800 inmates statewide. Hewlett-Packard Co. and the U.S. Department of Defense contributed 300 computers, and the other 290 came from various state agencies, said Jeanette Roache, president of Technology Training Foundation of America.

The partnership benefits many along the way, by providing a tax write-off for businesses, giving schools much-needed computers and allowing prisoners to learn technology skills they can use to get jobs after their release.

School officials said the technology is necessary to prepare students for the future.

“The world they will be entering is so technologically advanced. We need to give them every edge,” said Debbie Leidner, superintendent of the LAUSD’s District A, which serves the central and northeast Valley.

And students are eager to have access to more computers.

“Many students don’t have a computer at home, and when they get to school everyone wants to share,” fourth-grade student Cynthia Rodriguez told the audience.

Following the program, principals were given a tour of Tulsa Street Elementary’s computer lab, which has 30 of the donated machines.

Lockhurst Drive Elementary School Principal Roger Wilcox said he has yet to hear how many computers his campus will receive. He hopes for enough to open a computer lab.

“It would bring a whole new dimension to what goes on in the classroom,” Wilcox said.