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Verizon labs take students around the world (Videos, Photos)

The Wade Park School Verizon Innovative Learning Lab

CMSD NEWS BUREAU

5/20/2022

Augmented reality, virtual reality and 3D printers will be incorporated into the curriculum with the grand openings of Verizon Innovative Learning Labs at Almira PreK-8 Academy and Wade Park School.

Almira Principal Jim Greene said the state-of-the-art technology will let students enjoy adventurous learning without leaving the classroom.

“If they have a lesson on planets and the solar system, they can read about it and go to outer space through the virtual reality equipment we now have,” he said.

CMSD now has three Verizon Innovative Learning Labs. The first lab opened at Miles Park School last November.

The labs are a part of Verizon’s  Citizen Verizon initiative. By 2030, the telecommunications company plans to provide 10 million children across the country with digital skills training. Verizon has invested $1.2 million in the labs in the District. 

“We want to provide them with the technology they need to explore and develop skills necessary to pursue careers in STEM,” said Jessica Cohen, Verizon's director of community engagement and state government affairs.

These labs complement the CMSD Vision of Learning. The vision is designed to engage students more deeply and give them greater control of their learning.

“The Verizon program will help our students develop the transferable skills necessary to get jobs in the STEM field,” CMSD CEO Eric Gordon said during the grand opening ceremony at Wade Park. 

Students at Almira and Wade Park were excited to test out the new equipment.

                                                                                       

 

Arieanna was mesmerized when the virtual reality program took her to Paris, London and deep into the ocean in a matter of seconds.

“I am diving with sharks and different people, but I am completely dry,” she said. “I honestly think it is really, really cool you can go to places without leaving Cleveland.”

Starting next school year, Mark Ryan will be the technology teacher at Wade Park and provide curriculum for all students in preschool through eighth grade. 

“We will be doing coding, robotics. We will work in virtual reality and use the 3D printers,” said Ryan. “The possibilities are endless with what we can do in this lab.”

Additional Verizon Innovative Learning Labs are scheduled to open this summer at Patrick Henry PreK-8 School and Whitney M. Young PreK-8 School.

 

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The Almira PreK-8 School Verizon Innovative Learning Lab