Mentor Schools receives $12 million dollar grant from the Ohio Department of Education

By Mimi Vanderhaven

Mentor Schools have earned a reputation for adopting the fastest track to technology for each student. And this year they’ve fulfilled an ambitious initiative—1:1 technology—one electronic device for each student in the system.

“Our students today do not remember a life without Google, so it’s important that we teach at their level,” says Kristen Kirby, director of community relations for the school system.

“Our philosophy is to always be looking ahead to best prepare students for the future. The modes of learning that used to take place from books, are now more efficiently taking place on electronic devices.”

Kindergartners start with mini iPads, then through elementary and middle school they use Chromebooks and iPads. In high school, each student receives a MacBook to work with.

In the younger grades especially, having devices for each student helps teachers individualize instruction.

“There is no better practice in education than a teacher working directly with students,” says Kristen, “but with creative, meaningful content on a device, students can work with each other in small groups, which frees up the teacher to teach to very small groups.”

Beyond the traditional classroom, at Mentor High School, within The Hub’s Makerspace, students are encouraged to explore the world of coding, and bringing images to life with a 3-D printer and green screen.

“Our students have used this technology for themselves and community projects,” says Kristen.

“For example, at a charity event called Mentor Rocks, at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame downtown, they created etched, laser-cut wooden guitars as centerpieces.”

The 1:1 initiative was made possible because of the roughly $12 million Mentor Schools received as part of the Ohio Department of Education’s Straight A Fund Program.

“Technology is simply a tool for our teachers to use to help students reach their full potential,” she says.

“If you walk into one of our classrooms, you will still see students using paper and pencil, learning cursive and reading books. The balance between technology and more traditional teaching methods is important to us.”

The Mentor School system educates 7,660 students from pre-K to grade 12 in eight elementary schools, three middle schools, one high school and one school for students with autism. For updates, visit MentorSchools.net.