During President Obama’s 2014 State of the Union back in January, he announced Apple was among a handful of tech companies to take part in a new program aimed at bringing high-speed broadband to schools.
According to the Washington Post, Apple started sending letters out earlier this month to school districts to apply for the ConnectED program, a White House initiative aimed at providing 95 per cent of American students with broadband internet by 2019. Apple’s portion of the program will aim to provide iPads, MacBooks, software and training to schools that particularly have a high number of students in lunch assistance programs, an investment of $100 million.
Letters were sent out personally be Apple CEO Tim Cook, according to the Post, which got its hands on a copy:
Ron Carruth, superintendent for the Whittier County School District in Whittier, Calif., shared a copy of a letter he received from Cook last week with The Post. The letter informed him that schools in his district were invited to apply to the program, because they had at least 96 percent of students on free or reduced lunch programs.
“We are looking to partner with schools that share our vision of using technology to transform education,” the letter said. “If a school is selected, we will provide it with Apple products, education content and wireless infrastructure, and we will work closely with teachers to further their professional development.” Those applications are due by Friday, June 20.
The Post reports Apple has the highest number of products in use in U.S. schools and this new program will ensure the company continues to play a major role in eduction.
