For Immediate Release
September 19, 2023
MSD Technology Grant made new Chromebooks possible for students
The Marysville School District Technology Department received a $2.18M grant to replace expired warranty Chromebooks for middle and high school students district-wide.
Msvl. WA - Last school year, the Marysville School District’s Instructional Technology Department applied for and received a $2.18M federal grant via the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Emergency Connectivity Fund (ECF) to replace out-of-warranty Chromebooks for our middle and high school students. With this grant, they purchased enough new Chromebooks for the new school year. This grant is especially helpful to continue to support students’ instructional technology needs, as the District’s last capital levy expired, and no additional revenue will be received. These grant funds are one-time dollars that can only be used to purchase the devices.
Chromebooks with an expired warranty force the District to pay out of pocket to repair any damages that may occur. The newer Chromebooks purchased with these grant dollars will help mitigate repair costs and provide better support for both in class and remote learning if needed. The grant supports these devices for this purpose as the older models no longer had the capability to do so.
After collecting the expired warranty devices at the end of last school year, the Department kept enough old devices for replacements should a student’s new device be damaged, lost, or stolen. Each student is responsible for the care of their Chromebook, keeping it safe, secure, and in good working order. To keep our students safe online, each Chromebook is loaded with security software that blocks unsafe website content. The Chromebooks are also preloaded with apps for classroom instruction and assignments, and student learning tools are accessible on the district’s website at https://www.msd25.org/page/student-tools.
Students and their parents or guardians are required to sign a “Responsible Use, Safety & Damage Agreement” when checking out a Chromebook and pay a $30.00 technology use fee for device damage funds, should they occur. This fee is reduced or waived for families who qualify.
The Marysville School District is thankful for the grant that provided the new devices for student use, especially during these times of financial difficulty.
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Contact:
Jodi Runyon, Director of Communications,
Engagement and Outreach
jodi_runyon@msd25.org
(360) 965-0005