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Digital Divide students in Marks, Mississippi

Arecent article in a college newspaper detailed the difficulties that developing nations must overcome before they can take advantage of computer network technology that exists in the United States. Third World countries like Nigeria face the steepest challenges, with Vietnam, Honduras and Ecuador facing not much less. And yet, as I recently realized, there are parts of the United States that confront nearly the same odds.

For several Dartmouth students, the short break after sophomore summer offered both an opportunity to see this technological asymmetry and a chance to do something about it. The Mississippi Computer Project, as it came to be called, was an example of what young people can do when careful planning and academic knowledge come together. For me, having spent four consecutive terms on campus, the project provided benefits difficult to fully describe or qualify.

The premises of the Tucker Foundation-sponsored Mississippi trip were simple. As part of the Foundation’s Sophomore Summer of Service, a team of eight students would be sent down to an under-resourced elementary school in rural Mississippi to install 30 computers donated by the College’s graduating Class of 2001. The plan was to network the computers together to give elementary-age children the ability to print papers or pictures — the most basic technological capabilities, of which they had almost none. We would have three days to complete the operation.

The initial idea for the trip grew out of conversations between Tucker Foundation Dean Stuart Lord and Justin Wallace, a Teach for America teacher at Quitman Country Elementary School in Marks, Mississippi. With a number of computers left over from an earlier summer program, the time seemed right to put them where people would benefit most from such technology. Wallace became the contact person for the trip and plans developed on both ends.

Adam Tanney ’01 and Jeff Guenette ’03 initiated planning the project, and Mia Yocco ’03 joined the fledgling group as trip leader. When applications circulated around campus, I applied thinking this was a chance to become a little more worldly, and was lucky enough to be selected. Six other students — Rachel Yemini ’03, Kobby Essien ’02, Paola Peacock Villada ’03 and Tim Johnson ’03 were selected as trip members along with staff participant Rita Hall. Dean Lord served as the project’s faculty advisor.

We spent the weeks prior to the trip packing the donated computers in boxes to be shipped, fine-tuning the itinerary, and making sure the network would work properly in the school setting. There would be little room for mistakes as we would arrive in Mississippi Tuesday night and have only until Friday afternoon to complete the necessary unpacking and networking, install the software and instruct the teachers and kids how to use the computers before the weekend. Using copious amounts of old newspaper, we packaged the machines for pickup and eventual delivery to the school.

Through collaboration between Justin and the team members, the exact plan for unpacking the computers and distributing them to the correct classrooms — a hefty task — was finalized. Once the computers arrived safely (a huge relief), it was time to start the more substantive work. The first day was spent unpacking the machines and placing them in the appropriate classrooms. We then began loading educational software bought to enhance the kids’ basic math, reading, and problem solving skills. While some students networked the machines together, the rest of the team debugged the operation — a jumble of wires, sockets, and power strips. For the Dartmouth students studying computer science, this presented the possibility of utilizing academic skills in a nonacademic setting. For the whole team, it meant finding a way to collaborate effectively.

Elementary school and Dartmouth students bonding over the new computers.

The wiring would prove a high hurdle to clear. As we soon discovered, turning on too many computers at once blew the fuse providing power to the sockets. And as team members spoke with school officials, the problem expanded. There was only one fuse supplying power to several classrooms. We were able to systematize activity between classrooms to ensure a constant flow of electricity ­ a workable strategy, but one that decreased the amount of time we had left. In the end, the team’s determination shone through. Counting down the hours on Friday afternoon, we coordinated individual efforts to ensure that every computer worked and had the appropriate software installed. Children, many of whom did not have access to such technology before, crowded eagerly around us as we demonstrated how to use it. This is what we had come to do, I realized. It was a good feeling to know that our efforts would impact the lives of even just a few children. Having access to this technology will not guarantee that these kids will go to college, but it will open up the opportunities available to them. Of equal importance is the fact that we had planted the seeds for further volunteer activity, both at the school and in ourselves.

During the process of setting up the networks the Dartmouth team saw for themselves the effects of the school’s scant resources. Several students ended up teaching classes while teachers were out of the room, a monumental task considering the large number of students. Paola Peacock-Villada ‘03 taught Spanish to over 30 children in one classroom. Reflecting on the experience, she recalled their enthusiasm and energy. “Interacting with them was one of the most rewarding and satisfying things I’ve ever experienced,” she said. Rachel Yemini ‘03 described teaching the kids how to use the new computers:“Having five second graders crowded around me, staring wide-eyed at the monitor, getting so excited simply to use a mouse to navigate through the programs was an amazing experience.”

Tim Johnson ‘03 felt particularly affected by his learning experience on the trip. The night after we left Mississippi, he told the team that he was considering the options of participating in Teach for America after graduation. He had considered doing something similar before the trip, but noted that the experience had convinced him that the rewards of doing so were as great as he had conceived. As Johnson explained,“The project made me seriously consider what a life devoted to helping others would be like, that is to say, not always easy or fun, but rewarding.”

Returning to Hanover and our own homes, we may well have been in another country. Perhaps it was the opportunity to do what few students do over college break or maybe it was the challenge of working together in unfamiliar territory, but we knew we had affected change at some small level. More importantly, though, I realize that the trip had given us something we won’t forget when we sell back our textbooks or lose our lecture notes ­ something that can’t be conferred from a podium. In John Dewey’s words,“Education is not preparation for life. Education is life itself.” I think I’ve come closer to understanding what he meant.