HARTFORD, Conn., October 31, 2001 --
Trinity College’s Trinfo.Café has won the prestigious SBC National
Telecommunications Partnership Gold Award for its Smart Neighborhood
Initiative - a program that puts computers and computer training into
the hands of area residents.
Founded three years ago with a grant from
the Kellogg Foundation, Trinfo.Café was created by the college to
increase the computer expertise of the surrounding neighbors. Free
classes are offered in word processing, spread sheet and data base
management, and in Internet navigation and web page creation. Once
residents have passed all the classes, they are then eligible for a
free, refurbished computer.
“We are truly honored to receive this
national award,” said Smart Neighborhood Project Director Benjamin Todd.
“An award like this helps to bring legitimacy to the Smart Neighborhood
Project. We know we are doing good work by creating a community learning
environment in an impoverished neighborhood, but it is empowering to
receive national recognition for our work.”
Trinfo.Café’s purpose is to reach out to
the surrounding community and bridge the digital divide.
Not-for-profits, businesses, schools, and residents within a mile of
Trinity College have been given free or at-cost Internet access.
Residents are taking computer classes and the computer recycling center
provides needed hardware for residents while it provides training for a
group of high school students to become certified computer
technicians.
“Trinity College students win, as well as
the residents of the neighborhood,” said Todd. “The Smart Neighborhoods
Projects gives students exposure to people and cultures they never would
have experienced, while providing economically enhancing activities for
the community.”
The SBC National Telecommunications Award
is presented in conjunction with The National Association of Partners in
Education. During the National Symposium on Partnerships in Education,
Trinfo.Café will receive a $3,000 grant to continue its community work.
The National Symposium will be held November 1, 2001 at the William A.
Egan Center in Anchorage Alaska.
###
