RRHS Receives Prestigious HP Innovations in Education Grant
$260,000+ Grant Aims To Improve Student Interest and Achievement in Math and Science
Rio Rancho Public Schools has been selected as one of 25 school districts in the United States to receive a highly competitive 2009 HP Innovations in Education grant. Targeted at school systems serving students in grades 6 through 12, the grant program is designed to help educators address the need for raising student achievement in math and science and increase student awareness in high-tech college and career opportunities.
Through this award, Rio Rancho High School will receive an HP Innovations in Education award package of HP technology, cash, and professional services valued at more than $260,000. Technologies such as wireless HP tablet PCs, wide-format HP DesignJet printers, high-power mobile workstations, mini-notebook PCs, and HP graphing calculators, will be used in innovative ways to fundamentally redesign the student learning experience. The program at RRHS will be spearheaded by Engineering and Design Academy teacher Bill Ryan, whose background prior to teaching includes managing research and development for an international power tool manufacturing company.
The grant will greatly assist the district in upgrading and modernizing the technology infrastructure at Rio Rancho High School, which opened about 12 years ago. The grant also will enable students, guided by a team of teachers, to create science and math curricula relating to generation of energy through wind turbines. As part of the project, students will develop a prototype wind turbine for use as a personal source for renewable energy in the home or small business. The program also has an international language and culture component, as students will work with students in Spain and France to develop a bilingual web site and exchange information about the project.
“We are very excited about the many opportunities this grant will make possible for students at Rio Rancho High,” says LaJuana Coleman, Executive Director of Secondary Curriculum and Instruction. “HP and its new Rio Rancho operation will be an important part of our community, and we hope this is the first of many opportunities for collaboration between HP and Rio Rancho Public Schools.”
Rio Rancho Public Schools is among the most highly respected school districts in the state for academic performance, and is especially well-known for its science and engineering programs. Students at all grade levels participate in independent research projects through the Research EXPO program and many have competed at the international level. Rio Rancho is a nationally certified school in the Project Lead the Way engineering curriculum and is known for its robotics programs at the middle and high school level. RRHS teams placed second and third in the most recent RoboRave state competition.
Worldwide, Hewlett-Packard is investing more than $17 million in mobile technology, cash and professional development as part of the global 2009 HP Innovations in Education grant initiative. This initiative follows HP’s five-year, $60M investment in HP Technology for Teaching grants to more than 1,000 schools and universities in 41 countries. During the past 20 years, HP has contributed more than $1 billion in cash and equipment to schools, universities, community organizations and other nonprofit organizations around the world.
“Innovation is key to expanding education opportunity – and HP is privileged to collaborate with educators around the world who are committed to exploring the exciting possibilities that exist at the intersection of teaching, learning, and technology,” said Jim Vanides, Worldwide Program Manager for HP Global Social Investments. “Emerging evidence from the last five years is very positive – excellent instruction combined with the right technologies is measurably improving student academic success.”
More information about the 2009 HP Innovations in Education initiative and other global social investments is available at www.hp.com/go/grants.