January 26, 1998

Businesses give rural schools a tech boost

Michelle Vanstory

Chatham County Schools Superintendent Larry Mabe wants to make sure the information superhighway doesn't skirt his largely rural community.

With the Internet emerging as an important educational tool, Mabe feared
that Chatham County students would be at a disadvantage compared
with urban students with greater access.

"We have always been interested in the Internet and its implications for us
as educators," he said. "The Internet train is on the track, and you either
get on the train or you get left behind."

Mabe said school administrators knew that they needed Internet access,
but had no idea how to "get wired." The county's lack of the digital
infrastructure needed to make Internet access affordable and feasible put
the school system in a bind, until a local Internet service provider (ISP)
stepped up to help out.

Lyle Estill, president of EMJ America, an Internet design, programming
and marketing company in Chatham County, understood Mabe's
dilemma and was eager to help offer the latest technology to Chatham
County students.

"We have always felt that Internet access is a critical leveler," Estill said.
"If kids have access in Cary and not in Goldston, who is going to get
ahead?"

Helping students get ahead

Helping Chatham County students "get ahead" meant overcoming the
geographic factors that had kept the area isolated from the latest
technology.

Because Chatham County is largely rural, a call to an ISP was often long
distance, making use of the Internet unaffordable. And Integrated
Services Digital Network (ISDN) lines that allow residents in urban areas
to connect quickly with the Internet often are not available in rural areas.

Estill had to search for non-traditional ways to make access to every
school in the county possible and affordable. The mission was
accomplished by setting up "points of presence (POPs)" that allow
remote users -- who normally had to place a long distance call for access
-- to call a local number to connect to the Internet.

In some cases, providing access has meant using an antenna that
broadcasts an FM radio signal to eliminate the need for telephone lines
and reduce costs. Estill also has explored such options as using satellite
technology to link the schools with the Internet.

Mabe's goal is to have access in every Chatham County classroom by
the end of 1998.

"Boxes and wires aren't going to solve all of our problems," he said. "But
they're the new tools of the trade."

More current than most textbooks and offering faster, easier access to
information than any traditional library, the Internet has become a popular
tool for many educators. But access, even when available, can be
expensive, causing some to fear that the Internet could further separate
the "haves" and "have nots."

A boost from the community

A number of Triangle companies have made it a priority to make Internet
access available in communities where PCs in the home are the
exception, not the rule.

Students and parents in Durham have received a technological boost
from several companies. IBM recently chose Durham Public Schools for
a $875,000 grant that will be used to create an online system to allow
middle school parents and teachers to communicate regarding
assignments, student progress and school activities.

To ensure that parents without home PCs can benefit from the system,
Duke University has provided computers with Internet access at several
Durham community centers.

IBM's grant is part of its "Reinventing Education" program," which
spokesperson Bob Page said uses technology to help schools restructure
their communications systems to improve student performance and
parental involvement.

EasyWeb, an Internet marketing firm, and GTE have also teamed to
provide Internet access, equipment and training to residents in several
Durham housing communities.

Students can use the Internet to complete homework assignments, while
their parents can log on to a web site called I3 (Inclusive, Interactive
Information). The site allows them to keep up with their children's work
and communicate with their teachers.

"Internet access has been a real blessing to the people in these
communities, and they've run with it," GTE spokesman Steve Toler said.
"It's another window on the world for them."

EasyWeb President and CEO Eroll Reese said that the benefits of
Internet access are widespread.

"Since we've provided access in these communities, the people there
have used the Internet to gain knowledge, improve their skills and look
for jobs," Reese said. "Those were our goals and I think we've
accomplished them."

At the J.J. Henderson Housing Center, a community for older adults,
Internet access provided by GTE and EasyWeb has allowed residents to
keep up with current events and learn more about issues such as
Medicare.

"They're aware of the Internet and they're interested," Reese said.
"Providing access for them tells them that they haven't been forgotten."

Benefit to companies

While benefits to the community are numerous, the payback for the
companies who foot the bill are longer term and often less concrete.

GTE's Toler said that extending access to technology helps build a better
educated, more employable population, and it can enrich people's lives.

In the long term, he said that introducing communities to computers and
the Internet could benefit businesses by increasing the customer base of
those interested in technology, leading to future sales of computers and
Internet subscriptions.

"It really comes down to having a heart," he said. "For the people who
are doing this, it's not about business, it's about people's lives."

Bottom line benefits played no role in the decision by Easy Web to
become involved, Reese said.

"Sure, EasyWeb has become a household name in places where they
might never have heard of us otherwise," he said. "But for me, the joy is
in expanding knowledge of the opportunities available through the
Internet to areas that have been overlooked."

Chatham County's Mabe believes strongly in the long-term benefits to
society of exposing children to technology and ensuring that access is
widely available, especially the skills students learn that allow them to use
technology to solve everyday problems.

"Technology is everywhere you turn, and the skills that these kids are
learning today will take them anywhere they want to go," he said. "We
have the opportunity now to open up the 21st Century for our children."

© 1998, Triangle Business Journal