Princeton School District Offers Free Internet Access, Laptops to Students

The Princeton Public School District is helping to “effectively close the digital divide” by providing all eligible students in the district with free home Internet access and laptop computers, the school district announced Tuesday morning.

In the initial launch of the Mobile Access Program (MAP), 20 students in the district received laptops and a Wifi hotspot through the Sprint network. This includes three gigabytes of Internet data each month at no cost.

The goal is to provide close to 200 eligible students across the district with free home Internet access and laptop computers.

The goal of MAP is to ensure that all students in the district, regardless of economic means, have sufficient access to online educational resources to build their academic skills, facilitate their communication between home and school, and increase their knowledge about our community, nation and the world. MAP aims to expand students’ learning environment beyond the classroom walls, allowing every student to complete computer-based assignments and conduct academic research at home.

Eligibility in the program is determined by a student’s enrollment in the federal free and reduced meals program or the family’s demonstration of other financial needs. The program is designed so that siblings in the same family may individually receive laptop and Internet access and data.

“This program is an extraordinary step forward in ensuring both equity and excellence in the Princeton Public Schools,” Princeton Superintendent of Schools Stephen Cochrane said. “By providing electronic access for all, we are not only closing the achievement gap but accelerating our ability to move forward in the use of educational technology for every student.”

The initial launch was accompanied by a training session at John Witherspoon Middle School for the first group of participating families, with more sessions to be scheduled as the program expands.

Funding for this initiative was provided by the Princeton Education Foundation (PEF).

The attached image was provided by the Princeton Public School District: Participants in the district’s new Mobile Access Program (MAP) get tips from teacher Daniel Scibienski at a training session held at John Witherspoon Middle School in October.