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Operation Access Part 2

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WEB EXCLUSIVE After much debate, the Wake County Public School System (WCPSS) has decided to delay students’ return to campuses and begin the school year through online instruction.

Back in April, when Wake County Public Schools initially closed and switched to remote learning, education officials were made aware that many students did not have access to the internet or proper technology necessary to continue their classes. In order to provide for those students, WCPSS partnered with Activate Good, a nonprofit organization that mobilizes volunteers to improve the community, to help configure over 10,000 hotspots for families without internet access.

Now, WCPSS has called on Activate Good again to help distribute over 40,000 laptops and 10,000 more hotspots for the upcoming school year. They are committed to getting the necessary technology to students as quickly as possible in order to make the start of the new school year as seamless as possible. Marlo Gaddis, Chief Technology Officer for WCPSS, says that their partnership with Activate Good has been critical during this time.

“The need for volunteer support in our community has increased overall during the pandemic,” says Amber Smith, executive director of Activate Good. “We especially hope the community will rally around kids and families as they return to school this month. Volunteers can really make a huge difference here to make sure thousands of kids will have access to the same learning opportunities as their peers this year.”

Activate Good hopes to recruit hundreds of volunteers to support this effort in safety distributing laptops to an estimated 40,000 families over the next couple weeks. Volunteers will help guide families when they arrive to pick up their devices at one of five school pick-up locations across Wake County. Social distancing, mask requirements, regular cleaning and other safety measures will be taken to ensure volunteers feel safe. Shifts begin Monday, August 17.

To sign up as a volunteer, visit activategood.org/operationaccesspart2.

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