The Abel Maldonado Community Youth Center won the lottery on Sept. 27, so to speak, when the GTECH Corporation, a gaming technology company, decided to make the center the recipient of its 146th After School Advantage computer lab upgrade.
Since 1999, GTECH Corporation has been providing nonprofit agencies with state-of-the art, Internet-ready computer centers. According to the GTECH website, for each After School Advantage program, the company donates an average of $15,000 in computers, online technology, software, and volunteer hours. This time around, GTECH teamed up with the California Lottery to help fund the project.
Three big-time figures came out in support of the project: Lt. Governor Abel Maldonado, California Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell, and California Lottery Director Joan Borucki. The trio celebrated with Mayor Larry Lavagnino and teens from the Santa Maria Key Club at an official ribbon-cutting ceremony.
“This lab will have a positive effect on junior high and high school students, and hopefully other industries will step up like GTECH has,” O’Connell said.
And though the students will have access to a plethora of information, O’Connell said he believes the students will have to learn how to filter it with critical thinking.
Thanks to the GTECH donation, the lab now boasts four Hewlett-Packard computers, which have touch screen monitors; three HP laptops; laser printers; a scanner; a profusion of educational software; six desks; and a laptop locker. All computers also have Internet connections and word processors.
“GTECH is committed to enhancing the learning experiences of these children so that they are better prepared for the future,” Anthony Saragnese, vice president of GTECH’s western region, said at a conference before the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
During the conference, the speakers all alluded to the origin of the Abel Maldonado Community Youth Center. When Maldonado reminisced on why he felt it was necessary to establish a free youth center, he soberly summed up an alternative activity for local youth: “It’s free to join a gang.”
Ceremony attendee City Council member Mike Cordero agreed: “We need to address the total demographic,” he said. “[The upgraded computer lab] is a strong effort in addressing the needs of kids.”
This article appears in Sep 30 – Oct 7, 2010.