Golfers are invited to take a solid swing for the future of Guadalupe youth and education at the Guadalupe Kids Come First Foundation’s first annual golf tournament fundraiser on Sept. 20 at the Monarch Dunes Trilogy Golf Course in Nipomo.
The funds are earmarked for students attending the Guadalupe Union School District. The foundation was started last year as a way to supplement the school district with additional funding, according to District Superintendent Ed Cora. Money raised from the golf tournament will be put toward bringing new technology into the district.
Although the district has two carts of 35 Chromebooks each for the elementary school and four of those carts at the junior high school, Cora said the district wants to become what’s known as a 1-to-1 district: one piece of technology for every student.
“We have so many young teachers who are coming out of school right now that are tech savvy, and they want to get into it, but right now they have to wait [in line],” Cora said. “The goal would be to get a cart in every classroom. … We can’t continue to [have the] teacher stand up and teach, students take notes; it has [have the] to be more than that. We have to incorporate technology.”
Cora estimates that to get a Chromebook—$330 a piece—into the hands of every student would cost roughly $418,770. But he added that Chromebooks are only great for students of certain ages. For instance, iPads may be better suited for kindergarten through second graders and laptops are great for sixth through eighth graders. Of course, what the district can purchase technology-wise depends on how much the foundation can raise money-wise.
The goal is to raise $10,000 through the golf tournament and put it into a technology fund. Registration for the tournament is from 9 to 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 20 at Monarch Dunes, and it starts at 11 a.m. with a shotgun scramble start. The cost is $110 per person, which includes 18 holes, greens fee, a golf cart, a goodie bag, and lunch.
For more information, contact the district at 343-2114 or visit the website, guadusd.org.
This article appears in Sep 11-18, 2014.