
Prior
to
the
school
closures,
Prince
William
County
Public
Schools
(PWCS)
had
already
developed
a
digital
equity
plan
to
provide
students
equal
access
and
opportunity
to
digital
tools,
resources,
and
services.
Information
Technology
Services
(ITS)
was
set
to
roll
out
the
plan
by
providing
new
devices
to
students
starting
with
middle
schools.
However,
the
plan
changed
when
learning
moved
online.
"We
needed
to
shift
our
priorities
to
ensure
all
seniors
had
devices
so
they
could
complete
their
courses
for
graduation,"
said
AJ
Phillips,
director
of
information
technology
services.
That
meant
using
devices
already
on-hand
at
schools.
Howard
Pond,
supervisor
of
workstation
support
services
in
ITS,
said
that
prior
planning
allowed
them
to
respond
quickly
to
changes
caused
by
the
pandemic.
"This
was
just
a
deployment
acceleration
of
the
original
plan,"
Pond
said.
"We
worked
with
our
schools
to
prepare
23,712
devices
to
make
available
for
immediate
distribution."
Once
ITS
was
able
to
meet
immediate
needs,
the
focus
shifted
to
the
upcoming
school
year.
"We
purchased
enough
devices
for
all
upcoming
juniors
and
seniors
so
we
could
ensure
the
students
have
devices
in
the
fall
in
case
of
continued
closure
of
all
schools,"
Philips
said.
Working
closely
with
the
vendor
that
provides
full-service
setup
of
each
new
PWCS
device,
Pond
and
his
colleagues
in
ITS
are
diligently
preparing
for
another
round
of
laptop
distribution,
to
support
learning
this
fall.
"These
are
the
new
laptops
that
will
go
to
high
school
juniors
and
seniors,"
Pond
stated.
"All
high
schools
have
been
provided
the
total
number
of
devices
allocated
for
them
in
the
new
year.
Every
high
school
will
get
an
allotment
of
extra
units
as
well,"
he
added.
The
advanced
planning
to
bridge
the
digital
divide
has
allowed
Pond
and
others
in
his
department
to
communicate
digital
plans
to
each
high
school.
With
a
steady
flow
of
laptops
being
imaged
and
delivered
to
high
schools
throughout
the
next
few
months,
more
PWCS
students
will
have
technology
at
their
fingertips.
"Our
goal
is
for
every
student
in
grades
nine-12
to
have
their
own
device
by
November
2020,"
shared
Phillips.
PWCS
has
a
four-year
digital
equity
initiative
to
continue
to
address
the
technology
needs
of
PWCS
students.
"The
digital
equity
initiative
goal
is
to
move
toward
one-to-one
devices
in
grades
three-12,
and
one
device
to
three
students
in
grades
K-two,"
Phillips
stated.
"This
initiative
would
not
only
positively
impact
our
economically
disadvantaged
students
but
will
help
bridge
the
digital
inequities
across
the
Division,"
she
added.
Phillips
noted
that
digital
equity
transforms
the
teaching
and
learning
experience
and
provides
benefits
to
both
students
and
teachers.
"Implementing
equitable
digital
access
to
technology
would
also
empower
teachers
to
design
authentic
learning
experiences
that
best
serve
all
students,
especially
students
with
disabilities
and
students
with
limited
English
proficiency."