Vandiver Steel helped to forge a fire for learning at Vincent High School with its recent donation of 20 Kindle Fires, which students will use to help achieve technology fluency and meet the state’s new Common Core standards that have increased rigor in the area of research and supporting evidence.

Operating Manager Brent Garrett, a Vincent High School alumnus, and Document Controller Maranda Strange presented Principal Joel Dixon and Jennifer Supri’s AP English class with a check for $3,908.52 on behalf of Vandiver Steel.

“I take pride in our school and community because this is where I grew up. [Vandiver Steel] wanted to provide this opportunity to the school because education is important, and we want to give back to the school that gave many of us so much,” Garrett said.

Garrett spoke to Mrs. Supri’s class about the opportunities his education at VMHS has since afforded him and encouraged the students to strive to be whatever they want and take pride in the small community from which they come.

He then presented the class, as representative of the student body, with the check to purchase tools that will aide in furthering the school’s technology efforts to produce twenty-first century learners who are college and career ready. This initiative began last year when the school fundraised to purchase a wireless system which makes the entire school Internet accessible for student and teacher devices.

In fact, it was this same technology initiative that guided Garrett and Vandiver Steel to the donation in the first place.

“A relative of mine had a device checked out from the school to read and do school work on, and I thought that if the need was there for a few, it was probably there for many more students,” Garrett said.

Vincent High School is one of very few schools that allows students to check out devices from the school’s media center on a take-home basis.

“We began piloting the program last year where students could check out Nooks that the school owns to read and complete assignments. In the more than a year that this program has been in effect, we’ve never had a device lost or damaged,” Media Specialist Kelley Deason said.

The 20 Kindle Fires purchased by Vandiver Steel will join 20 more Kindles purchased by the school’s English department through another grant from A+ College Ready and 30 iPads funded by the Shelby County Board of Education to provide three mobile carts for teachers to check out for classroom use.

If you would like more information on how your business or organization can make a tax deductible donation to Vincent High School’s technology initiative, contact Principal Joel Dixon or Technology Coordinator Jennifer Supri.