Bastrop ISD partnering with Verizon for Innovative Learning Schools program this fall

Through a partnership with the Verizon Innovative Learning Schools program and nonprofit Digital Promise, two Bastrop ISD middle schools will receive new technology and programming to expand learning and leadership development opportunities for staff and students.

What you need to know

Bastrop Middle School and Cedar Creek Middle School are the first schools in the district involved with the initiative, which will provide 5G-enabled computers to students and staff at those campuses.

The partnership will allow BISD to create more engaging and effective learning experiences for students in the district, and help transform the district's technology integration practices, said Chris Lairscey, BISD's director of digital learning during an April 15 board meeting.

About the program

Verizon Innovative Learning Schools is an education initiative intended to address barriers to digital inclusion by provided students with internet-connected devices and enhance how teachers use them in the classroom, according to Digital Promise. The program currently serves over 663,000 students and 33,000 teachers across the country.

What they're saying

"With many of our curriculum and resources and state assessments moving to online, we've been working hard to build capacity and technology integration, and VILS just offers us a structured and supportive pathway to accelerate this work," said Jennifer Eberly, BISD's chief academic officer.

What's next?

Lairscey said the initiative will launch at those two campuses this fall.