In an effort to bring technology to poorer communities, Microsoft and the Boys ‘ Girls Club of America officially launched a joint program yesterday to educate inner-city youths in the use of computers.
Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) was on hand at a conference yesterday at the Salesian Boys ‘ Girls Club in East Boston to announce the expansion of the program, known as Club Tech.
According to Kerry, the expansion of the program will help narrow the “digital divide” in America. Although the overwhelming majority of today’s jobs require technical training, only about half of all single-parent households have a computer, Kerry said.
“This is the most important work in America,” Kerry said. “For some of the deficits of our society, these are the places that make it up.”
More than 16 Club Techs are scheduled to open throughout the greater Boston area, and more than 600 Club Tech sites are expected to open nationwide in the next six to eight months.
“We’re looking for ways to help people reach their full potential,” said Microsoft Community Affairs Director Bruce Brooks.
Originally announced in December 2000, Club Tech is a five-year, $100 million program. Kerry said the program will provide software and training to 3.3 million inner-city kids nationwide.
Fr. Richard Crager, executive director of the Salesian Boys ‘ Girls Club, said the club has received more than $15,000 in software from Microsoft through its participation in the program.
“We want to expand the Boys ‘ Girls Club from just being gym and swim,” said Microsoft Community Affairs spokeswoman Cathy MacCaul. “We want to transform it into a program that offers life and career skills.”
The club has become more tech-savvy in recent years under Crager’s guidance, said Salesian Boys ‘ Girls Club Program Director Gerald Carino. Earlier this year, Crager vastly upgraded the club’s resources, purchasing 10 new Gateway and iMac computers and equipping 25 of the machines in the lab with high-speed DSL Internet connections.
Club members ages 8-18 use the new computers and software recently provided by Microsoft for school work, entertainment and other projects.
Umana-Barnes Middle School student Carlos Mena, 14, designed his personal webpage using the club’s new equipment.
The Boys ‘ Girls Club offers after-school programs that focus on integrating technology into children’s daily lives. The programs emphasize technology as a learning tool, said Club Technology Director Saji Johnson.
Founded in 1948 as the Salesian Oratory, the Salesian Boys ‘ Girls Club has been a community center and safe haven in East Boston for more than 53 years. The club now boasts over 1,600 registered members, according to a club press release.
Carino, himself a veteran of the Boys ‘ Girls Club’s programs, said the majority of children who grow up involved in the club come back to volunteer and counsel the community’s younger generations.
“We’ve got kids coming back all the time to run the programs and to do community service through their schools,” Carino said. “Especially in the summer, a lot of the older kids come back.”
East Boston High School student Steve Baldassari, 15, praised the program and said he has been coming to the Boys ‘ Girls Club for nine years.
“I’m here every day,” Baldassari said.
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