Whelan and Tyner for State Assembly

One Laptop Per Student...WHELAN/TYNER’S GOAL: A LAPTOP FOR EVERY STUDENT SO OUR KIDS
HAVE THE NECESSARY TOOLS TO COMPETE IN A NEW GLOBAL ECONOMY
Dems Say Classrooms in Atlantic County Should Have One Laptop For Each Student

(Egg Harbor Township) – Second District Assembly candidates Jim Whelan and Damon Tyner said Atlantic County students need greater access to laptops to compete in today’s highly-competitive computer literate world.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has developed a laptop that sells for $100 apiece retail -- the goal being to supply laptops to children in third world countries which lack the ability to spend money on technology. Whelan and Tyner said a similar program should be established for children in America to combat outsourcing to countries like China and India, and that New Jersey should lead the way to protect America’s position in the global economy.

Whelan and Tyner said if elected November 8 they would be committed to bringing additional state aid to Atlantic County municipalities like Egg Harbor, Galloway and Hammonton townships, where state educational funding is failing to keep pace with costs related to swelling school enrollments, so students can have greater access to laptops to compete in a new global economy. They said they would reach out to MIT and the private sector to make the technology available for children in Atlantic County.

“An education is the best gift you can give a child,� said Whelan, a public school teacher in Atlantic County for more than 20 years. “Every student in Atlantic County should have access to a laptop when in school. One laptop per student is ideal. Our children have to be computer literate to survive and excel in today’s world.�

Whelan and Tyner said it is imperative that Atlantic County receive its fair share of state funding for education so our children can recognize the enormous potential they possess. They said laptops are a surefire way to put them on the road to success.

“Computer literacy is vital in today’s world,� said Tyner, a former school board solicitor in Pleasantville, Atlantic County’s only Abbott-designated district. “We need to create an educational environment that guarantees success for every Atlantic County child. Our children need all the tools necessary to succeed in life, and a laptop goes a very long way toward getting them there.�

Whelan and Tyner said if elected to the Assembly they would fight for an increase in state funding for Atlantic County school districts by working with the Governor and Commissioner of Education so students can have greater access to laptops.

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