Quinn, CMS replace computers at Chicago school hit by burglary

Responding to a Chicago public school's loss of classroom computers in a weekend burglary, Lt. Governor Pat Quinn and Paul Campbell, the director of the state's Central Management Services (CMS), donated 18 replacement units to Hendricks Community Academy on Monday, Nov. 27.

"The computers stolen by the vandals who ransacked Hendricks Community Academy were more than pieces of electronic equipment," Quinn said. "Those computers represented a bright and successful future for these young students, who will need top-level skills to compete in the workplace of the 21st century. No child should be left on the wrong side of the digital divide."

Officials say burglars broke into Hendricks school in the early morning hours of Sunday, Nov. 19, stealing 14 new computers along with science lab kits and other electronic devices.  The burglars also ransacked the building, causing damage that school principal Mary J. Smith estimated at nearly $100,000.

"It's unfortunate that vandals and crooks tried to impede learning in this school, but this donation of surplus computers will make sure that dozens of children will have quick and ready access to the technology that is necessary to keep their education moving forward," Campbell said.  "Governor Blagojevich has instructed us to leverage and donate the state's surplus property in meaningful ways, and so we have provided eyeglasses, coats, computers and food to countless people that have been in need."

Although some of the school's stolen equipment was insured and will eventually be replaced, teachers at Hendricks school said the computers were an integral part of the school's emphasis on math and science. By immediately providing replacement computers, Quinn and CMS made sure that the students did not lose valuable instruction time in the intervening weeks.

"The children at Hendricks Academy shouldn't have to wait for the bureaucratic wheels to turn to return to building their important computer skills," Quinn said.  "I'm delighted that we can donate these surplus state computers, so these students can get right back to work."

Quinn requested the donation of the refurbished computers from the State Surplus Property warehouse operated by CMS.  The computers have been equipped with new software under Microsoft's Fresh Start for Donated Computers program, set up to provide schools with valid operating systems for donated equipment.  The company also installed Microsoft Student 2006, a suite of educational programs, on each desktop computer.

Regular, uninterrupted access to school computers is critically important for children whose families cannot afford to provide computers for the children's use at home.  Under Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich's administration, Quinn and CMS have been instrumental in increasing on-line access for children and adults across Illinois. These initiatives are aimed at bridging the "digital divide," the widening gap between the computer skills of those who have convenient, affordable access to state-of-the-art computer equipment and those who do not.

Quinn, who was appointed by Governor Blagojevich to chair the Broadband Deployment Council, is a longtime advocate for bringing informational technology to Illinois classrooms.  As part of his "everybody in, nobody out" vision of technology education, Quinn worked with the Governor to secure $5 million in funding to launch Illinois' Technology Immersion Pilot Project, which supplies students and teachers with free laptops and software.

For more information about the project and other initiatives by the Lt. Governor to increase access to technology throughout Illinois, please visit: www.IllinoisConnect.org. 

            In October, Gov. Blagojevich announced significant improvements to the State's communications backbone - the Illinois Century Network - which resulted in more bandwidth, higher speeds and lower costs to nearly 8,000 schools, universities, libraries, law enforcement agencies and other institutions across the state.  More than 2 million Illinoisans, including educators, healthcare professionals and law enforcement officials, use the network, making it an important component in the State's efforts to bridge the digital divide.