Minnesota started NetDay with one event at just one school in the fall of 1996. The success of Poplar Bridge Elementary led to the creation of a non-profit organization, a foundation, and an interactive television show. The activities focused first on wiring schools and have since shifted to raising awareness about education technology.

A Program for Change

America's Kids Connect Education Foundation
Chris Bates
President/CEO
America's Kids Connect Education Foundation
www.amkids.org

Ian Griffen, a parent and Sun Microsystems employee, learned about NetDay and decided to organize an effort for his child's school, Poplar Bridge Elementary in Bloomington. He sent an email to parents, inviting them to help wire the school and they completed the network on a single day with 20 volunteers. Using Poplar Bridge as a model, Ian partnered with businesses involved with education technology and the Minnesota High Technology Association to launch NetDay Minnesota. They hired Chris Bates in 1997 to lead the organization.

My first year in Minnesota, I hit 81 of the 87 counties and put 30,000 miles on my car. I went into every newspaper and radio station. The message I like to give folks? If we made a difference in one kid's life, all the efforts have been worth it. We are giving them opportunity.
-- Chris Bates

Bates persuaded more than 600 public schools to join NetDay and wire their schools with volunteers. By 1998, 94% of Minnesota public and private schools had Internet connections to their facilities. They next turned to professional development for teachers in collaboration with USWest, Global Schoolhouse, Star Tribune, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, and the Minnesota Service Cooperatives.

In 2000, NetDay Minnesota became America's Kids Connect Education Foundation to continue the legacy of NetDay in supporting education technology, and to continue to promote the interactive television show launched in 1997. The annual show engages students, teachers, and community in education and classroom solutions through demonstrations, interviews, and a game show contest giveaway of more than $1.4 million in hardware and software for schools and professional development for teachers.

Linking Students to the World

Poplar Bridge Elementary, Bloomington, Minnesota
Gail Swor
Principal, Poplar Bridge Elementary
www.bloomington.k12.mn.us

The school district had hired a private firm to provide an estimate on wiring the classrooms of Poplar Bridge Elementary, but the cost of just one network connection per classroom was beyond their budget. When a parent, Ian Griffen, sent an email asking for volunteers to support a NetDay project, about 20 people came forward to support the school. Technology leaders trained parent volunteers to drill, pull wire, and punch down network connections, completing 5 network connections per classroom in just a couple of weekends.

With NetDay, we built a more complete network, more quickly, and for less money.
-- Gail Swor

Now that the technology is in place, the school has developed a system to support teachers in developing lesson plans and using the Internet for research. Each school in the district has a Curriculum Technologist (CT) who meets with classroom teachers to give them ideas for how to integrate technology into their curriculum plans. Principal Gail Swor sees her job as cheerleader, encourager, and facilitator. When eachers want web sites, her job is to encourage them by providing resources and support.

The Internet really brings learning alive for the students, providing great sites that are appropriate for lots of educational topics. -- Gail Swor

Swor tells the story of a teacher at her school that received an unusual lizard as a donation for her classroom. The students checked encyclopedias searching for information about how to care for and feed the animal, but could not find anything. Without proper care, they were worried that the animal might die. The teacher encouraged them to broaden their search, using the Internet, and the students found the information they needed. The teacher used the experience to explain to them about different research sources.