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Grants for High-Tech Gear Pay Off for Kids at Three Schools: Best Buy Wants More Applications for 'Free Money'

Posted on: Wednesday, 15 February 2006, 09:00 CST

By Anna Webb, The Idaho Statesman, Boise

Feb. 15--Best Buy General Manager Patrick Gilliam calls his company's annual te@ch program "free money" for schools, and wants to spread the word so more schools can reap the benefits.

This year, three area schools, Eagle Academy in Eagle, the Dehryl A. Dennis Professional-Technical Education Center on Victory Road and the Kenneth J. Carberry Intermediate School in Emmett, each won a grant of $2,500 from Best Buy to buy new equipment such as digital cameras and computer monitors.

Eagle Academy teachers regularly look for grant money from outside sources to help enhance the academic experience at the school, said Geoff Stands, Eagle Academy principal.

"You get turned down a lot," Stands said, "but when you don't, the money is very helpful. Equipment is so expensive you end up spending a lot of the money you have on its upkeep."

The Dennis center's grant will go toward a cool project that most students don't know about yet -- Internet video conferencing equipment. With the new equipment, the center will be able to connect to classrooms all over the world, said Tom Rosen, a teacher at the Dennis center's Black Eagle Information Technology Center.

"The grants are intended for schools that make technology fun," Rosen said. "We thought setting up video conferencing was a good way to do that."

Rosen gives lots of credit for the grant to Boise State University's Nancy Ness, who works with students to help them get college credit for classwork they do in high school. Ness found out about the Best Buy grant and did the application footwork, Rosen said.

Students at the Dennis center also will use the new equipment to video conference with information technology leaders.

"It's difficult to get CEOs from tech companies to come to Boise, Idaho, to talk to classrooms," Rosen said. "It's a lot more possible when they don't have to leave their offices."

Students benefit greatly from hearing the success stories of people in tech fields, Rosen said.

"These are not people who were set up," he said, "These are people with real stories and challenges to be overcome."

Nationally, te@ch awarded more than $3.5 million to schools. Any accredited K-12 school -- private, parochial, charter or otherwise -- located within 50 miles of a Best Buy store is eligible to apply.

But this year, out of the nearly 90 public schools in Boise and Meridian alone, only nine sent in applications for the Best Buy te@ch grants.

In many cases, parents have been the driving force behind getting school officials to apply for the grants.

The application is simple, Gilliam said. Best Buy will receive applications between July and September. Winners of next year's money will find out the good news next January.

Gilliam said essays from winning schools will be available soon so new applicants can see examples.

Last year, 1,200 U.S. schools each received a $2,500 te@ch gift card to spend at Best Buy. Of those 1,200 schools, 36 earned special recognition and an additional $15,000 award, Gilliam said.

Best Buy launched its te@ch program in 2003.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Idaho Statesman, Boise

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Source: The Idaho Statesman, Boise

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