Round Lake freshmen receive new laptops

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ROUND LAKE – Christmas came in February for the freshmen students at Round Lake High School
Each ninth-grader was presented with a mini computer between Feb. 4 and 5, compliments of a five-year federal grant secured by Round Lake Area School District 116, said Jim Tenbusch, chief education officer for the district.

The grant, valued at approximately $300,000 a year, will give every freshman for the next five years a netbook to carry and use both inside and outside of school.

“They’re the digital upperclassmen,” Tenbusch said of this year’s freshman class. “They’re the trailblazers; they’re going to help us make this work.”

Students knew about the grant in the fall, but many doubted the fruits of the grant would actually come through.

“I didn’t think we’d actually get them,” said freshman Jasmine Guerrero as she carried her new computer back to her seat. “[I’m] shocked.”

Freshman Krystal Rodriguez agreed.

“I was really surprised – I didn’t think we could afford it either,” Rodriguez said. “I feel good because we’re going to get a lot newer things and we won’t have to carry around as many books – just the laptop.”

Students received Lenovo IdeaPads with a Windows 7 operating system and eight-hour battery life, at a cost of $300 a unit.

The computers also came with a LoJack GPS tracking device and several control features for teachers and administrators to use when necessary, dean Aaron Butler said as the units were being distributed.
NetControl 2, for example, is a software that allows teachers to monitor all laptops being used.

If students are misusing their computers in the classroom, they can be “bricked” by teachers – or locked out of their own computer for the remainder of the class period, Butler explained.

The freshmen took part in a three-and-a-half-hour boot camp, learning how to operate the new computers.

Freshman parents had to attend a 90-minute boot camp at the school earlier in the week and sign a waiver for their child to receive a laptop.

As of Feb. 5, 519 computers had been distributed to freshmen students.

The excitement over the new computers was apparent and had been building for the past several days, Principal Kurt Sinclair said Feb. 5.

“The whole week, there’s just been a buzz in the air,” Sinclair said. “They’re enthused – it’s almost like Christmas.”

“Half the kids have only had them half a day,” assistant principal Brett Bending said. “We’ve already seen kids using them, working on some pretty cool stuff.”

Freshman Alex Vandergriff couldn’t wait to get his hands on his laptop. His family shares one computer at home, which can be frustrating, he said. His new Lenovo will give him a sense of empowerment.

“It makes me feel like I can do my own stuff,” he said. “I won’t have to wait to use the computer [at home].”

Tenbusch said it is the district’s goal to continue offering computers to its students even after the five-year grant is up.

“We’re hoping this will be a very strong incentive to stay in school and get good grades,” Tenbush said, noting the administration was discussing the possiblity of allowing students to keep the computers over the summer.

Administrators also are seriously considering giving the laptops to students as a graduation present, he said.

School district 116 also is looking into a $900,000 grant that would bring in 1,700 netbooks to the two area middle schools so that every sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grader would have his or her own laptop, Tenbush said.

Those netbooks would stay at the middle schools.