CompTIA Partnership
Pays Off
A longtime partnership between CompTIA and the Oklahoma
Department of CareerTech Education pays off in the classroom.
Benefactors of
this partnership are business and information technology education (BITE)
and trade and industrial education students and instructors at high
schools,
technology centers and Skills Centers across Oklahoma. These programs receive
donations of equipment, CompTIA certification of instructors, and price
reductions for students on testing and training for instructors at
schools with limited
resources.
For 22 years, the Computing
Technology Industry Association (CompTIA),
has been dedicated to advancing the growth of the information technology
(IT) industry and those working within it. With more than 19,000 members
in 89 countries, CompTIA is the leading global IT trade association
with influence in all areas of the IT industry worldwide.
Last year for the first time
the state agency applied as a member of CompTIA for a grant that allows
non-profits to take advantage of
free equipment
from the National Cristina Foundation, according to Linnie Berkenbile,
BITE program
specialist at the state CareerTech agency.
The National Cristina Foundation
is a not-for-profit organization that provides computer technology
and solutions to give people with disabilities,
students
at risk and economically disadvantaged persons the opportunity, through
training, to lead more independent and productive lives.
“ The Foundation notifies
us when donated equipment becomes available,” she
said. “Last year Anheuser-Busch distributors from Elk City,
Woodward, Guthrie, Durant, Clinton and Ponca City donated six servers
for CareerTech
high school
programs across the state.”
The CareerTech system follows
up these donations by training instructors to use the donated materials
and equipment, Berkenbile said. For
example, instructors
were given three days of training on how to load Linux, set up
a
server for the classroom and administer the Linux program. As part
of the
training, Linux books
for reference material were also provided.
Instructors were also
trained on how to set up the server to link into Windows using Samba.
Schools were given the equipment to be
used in
the classroom
and asked to submit plans for the use of the servers. The plans
include storage of their students’ files using Web servers
and trainers to help students load Linux and set up a server in
a networking environment.
“This year we have received
more than 800 pieces of equipment from the Honeywell
Corporation that will go to the Skills Centers for their programs,” Berkenbile
said. “CareerTech Skills Centers provide technical and
life skills training programs for soon-to-be-released inmates
in Oklahoma.”
The equipment includes printers,
monitors, CPU units, laptops and docking stations that are used to
set
up networked labs.
These
labs allow student
access to
computers where computer availability is limited and outdated
computers become part of computer repair classrooms.
“We hope to continue
this valuable partnership with CompTIA in the future as the opportunities
it brings into our schools and classrooms for students is
priceless.”
-posted
3/15/04
