We’re getting close to the end of the school year, so it’s time to close out the DM & DEF “Tools to Success” fundraising effort that aims to put laptop computers in the hands of students from low-income households with plans for college or another post-secondary school.

Decatur Metro has already put up the money for one laptop, which will be handed out to a student, selected by the “Tools to Success” committee, at this year’s DHS scholarship dinner.  To the many DM readers who’ve already donated, “Thank you so much!”.  We now need just $230 to purchase that second laptop.

With so much of the world’s information and communication now online, can you imagine the difference a personal laptop can make to a student in 2011?   Instead of needing to block out hours of time during the day to drive/ride/walk to the library and do research and write email questions to profs on a buggy, communal PC, a laptop with an internet connection has the potential to make the higher education experience just a LITTLE bit easier for a Decatur High grad, giving them those critical extra hours a week for studying, researching and relaxing.

OK, enough from me.  Here’s how you can help out.

To donate to the laptop cause, all you have to do is click on over to the Decatur Education Foundation’s “Donate Page”, fill in the amount you wish to give, select “General Fund” for your gift designation, and then make sure you write “laptops” in the “Additional Comments” field at the very bottom of the page.  If you’d rather mail a check, you’re welcome to send it – made out to the Decatur Education Foundation – to 315 W. Ponce de Leon Avenue Suite 770 Dec 30030.  Obviously indicate “laptops” on your check.)

Thanks to those who have already donated to the Decatur Education Foundation “Tools To Success” campaign to help purchase laptop computers for Decatur High students with plans of post-secondary education, who come from low-income households!  However, we still have a ways to go to achieve our goal of purchasing multiple laptops.

For more info on the campaign, you can find the details HERE.

If you’d like to make a donation to the campaign, you can just jump over to the Decatur Education Foundation’s donation page and designate your gift to the “General Fund”.  Just make sure to write “laptops” in the “Additional Comments” section before you hit “Submit” so we can keep track of how much money has been raised for the cause.

Thanks in advance from DM and the Decatur Education Foundation!

I’m quite excited to announce this morning that Decatur Metro and the Decatur Education Foundation have teamed up in a first-ever “Tools to Success” campaign that looks to provide selected Decatur High School graduates with their own laptop computers to help them achieve their potential at the post-secondary school level.

First a little back-story.

No surprise that this great idea actually came from DM readers and commenters.  Back in early October, a number of commenters here openly expressed a desire to use their recently announced $70 tax credit from the city to somehow help Decatur’s student population.  From that back-and-forth on DM, I initiated a conversation with the Decatur Education Foundation’s Executive Director Gail Rothman, who offered up some excellent suggestions of how we could team up to target a specific unmet need among our city’s student population.

From the start, the DEF’s laptop initiative jumped out at us both as the perfect collaborative opportunity.

The campaign’s goal is to give out as many laptops as can be purchased to DHS graduates coming from low-income households with plans for college or other post-secondary school.  Students will be selected by the “Tools to Success” committee – which will include reps from DEF, CSD and the community – after completing an application that asks how a laptop would help them achieve their goals.  I have agreed to be on-hand to represent the program when the laptops are given out at the annual DHS Scholarship Dinner.

But what fun is a campaign without a challenge, right?  So here it is.  In this inaugural year, we are challenging the Decatur community to purchase 5 laptops.  And DM will get things rolling by purchasing the first laptop in its entirety.

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