COMMUNITY
15 – 16 million
US students — nearly onethird of public school students in the country — are without sufficient technology to learn remotely .
SOURCE : COMMON SENSE MEDIA
even sliding backward — from where they were academically before the pandemic hit .
HP ’ s Turn to Learn program . Since the onset of the pandemic , school districts , nonprofits , and other service organizations in the United States , Canada , and Haiti have ordered more than 220,000 booklets . HP has also donated more than 100 refreshed notebook PCs and printers to PEIE .
$ 10 million
in products and grants have been donated by HP to communities impacted by COVID-19 .
SOURCE : HP
2,000
computers have been collected , updated using HP Refresh software , and distributed through Idaho Business for Education .
SOURCE : HP
Activating device donations in local communities The
HP Refresh program , a global effort first rolled out in the rural community of
Kuna , Idaho , as the pandemic took hold , creates an easy way to give older computers new life for students in need .
“ It ’ s about catching the kids who are falling through the cracks until schools and governments around the world can get these students equipped with the computers they should have ,” says Bill Avey , Global Head and GM of Education at HP .
The initiative helps communities organize their own donation drives with a free
Community Activation Playbook , which gives guidance on how to safely collect , clean , and refurbish computers for distribution , as well as software to securely wipe data and reformat each device for students .
HP Refresh software and resources are free and open-source , and so far they ’ ve been put to use by churches , civic and business groups , and youth scouting organizations in the United States and Canada , as well as South Africa and Cambodia . In Idaho alone , 2,000 computers have been collected and distributed through
Idaho Business for Education .
“ A family with assets can go down to the store and get a $ 200 computer ,” says Avey , “ but the tragedy is the kid whose parents can ’ t do that — this is a way to help .”
Printed materials help expand access For students without digital access , printed materials can be critical resources for learning away from school . According to the
National Survey on Public Education ’ s Response to COVID-19 , nearly half of high-poverty and rural school districts distributed paper packets to students in grades K – 5 as part of their distance-learning strategy .
In a gymnasium turned makeshift warehouse in the Scarborough area of Toronto , the nonprofit
Parents Engaged in Education ( PEIE ) assembles
Learn at Home Kits , which include colorful activity books and curriculum materials for kids and teens facing the so-called homework gap — the inability to keep up with schoolwork because of a lack of technology or internet access at home . This
“ We realized early on that even if you send out a computer to every child living in poverty , they don ’ t necessarily have the skills to use it ,” says Theresa Pastore , PEIE ’ s executive director .
She notes that printed materials not only help kids learn without technology , they also spark curiosity and offer ideas for online exploration when technology is accessible : “ We ’ re trying to bridge the gap between pencil and paper , and online .”
PHOTOGRAPHS BY GETTY ; SPOT ILLUSTRATIONS THIS PAGE AND THROUGHOUT FEATURES BY ROBERT SAMUEL HANSON
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