Wilmington’s Southbridge Students Get Computer and Internet Access, Family Technology Center is Complete

WILMINGTON, DE – Every school-aged child in Southbridge will now have access to a computer and to the Internet with the completion of a yearlong effort to bridge the digital divide. U.S. Senator Tom Carper and Congressman Mike Castle will join the community Monday to help launch the Family Technology Center at the Neighborhood House in South Wilmington. One of Delaware’s most economically depressed areas, Southbridge has a dropout rate of 60%. Of the 41 students entering the freshman class only 14 will remain as sophomores and only 7 will enter the 12th grade, according to statistics gathered by BoardRoom Presentations. With grassroots support from both private and community partners and leaders, investments into the areas’ children will now be realized. The new state-of-the-art Family Technology Center has thirty-three computers, donated by corporate sponsors and refurbished by inmates at Gander Hill. Ten Southbridge area adult students have already completed software and Internet training and are committed to helping others in the neighborhood to cross the digital divide. Senators Biden, Carper and Congressman Castle worked together to secure the $191,000 federal grant that enabled The Neighborhood House to establish the Family Technology Center. WHO: Children from Wilmington’s Southbridge Neighborhood, Senator Tom Carper and Congressman Mike Castle WHAT: Launch the new state-of-the-art Family Technology Center at the Neighborhood House in Southbridge WHERE: Neighborhood House 1218 B St., Wilmington WHEN: Monday, June 17th, 11 a.m.