FIVE thousand brand new high-end laptops purchased by the Public School System arrived on Saipan last week and are ready to be distributed to all public middle and high school students on Saipan, Tinian and Rota.
The laptops are part of PSS’s ongoing investment in technology that is funded by the federal government through the Education Stabilization Fund and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, Commissioner of Education Dr. Alfred B. Ada told Variety in an interview.
The brand new Lenovo laptops arrived on Feb. 20 in several huge crates and are now in the PSS Procurement and Supply main warehouse in Lower Base for tagging and itemization.
“The federal government is supporting our classroom learning initiatives to help minimize learning losses due to the pandemic,” Ada said. “We are going to make sure that every student gets one laptop and Wi-Fi connectivity and access so they can continue doing their work remotely.”
PSS will also continue to invest in MiFis for easy internet access and connectivity to all of the nearly 10,000 public elementary, middle and high school students, Ada said.
As for the 5,000 Lenovo laptops, he said they will be distributed to students attending the six middle schools and five high schools on Saipan, Tinian and Rota.
Laptops are needed for the students’ “research-to-learn” work/curriculum, Ada said.
“We are now waiting for the arrival of the second batch of laptops and they will be for our pre-kindergarten and elementary students,” he added.
Ada, along with PSS Federal Programs Officer Tim Thornburgh and Senior Director for Student Support Services Dr. Yvonne Pangelinan, inspected the newly arrived laptops last week in Lower Base.
“I would like to express our continued appreciation to the federal government for continuously supporting our students here in the CNMI,” Ada said.
PSS was the first school district in the U.S.-affiliated Pacific region to invest in technology through its One-Laptop Initiative that began in 2010.
Commissioner of Education Dr. Alfred B. Ada, center, PSS Federal Programs Officer Tim Thornburgh, right, and PSS Student Support Services Senior Director Dr. Yvonne Pangelinan show the newly arrived brand new laptops.
Commissioner of Education Dr. Alfred B. Ada, center, opens one of the huge crates containing newly arrived laptops while PSS-Federal Programs Officer Tim Thornburgh, right, and PSS Student Support Services Senior Director Dr. Yvonne Pangelinan look on.
PSS Federal Programs Officer Tim Thornburgh and Student Support Services Senior Director Dr. Yvonne Pangelinan unbox one of the newly arrived laptops.
