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Victory published in OPEN Doors Challenge, OPEN Doors Movement

DSS joins to open doors and level the playing field.

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We feel that partnering with Technology for the Future and getting involved in the Open Door Movement will eventually allow us to do something we could not easily accomplish on our own…providing cutting edge technology (laptops) to each and every foster child that we serve! If we are able to accomplish this through our partnership, we will be taking steps to level the playing field for the children that we serve and giving them the opportunity to make their mark in a world increasingly centered around technology!!

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Victory published in In the News, OPEN Doors Movement, Stories and Inspiration

Using technology to bridge gaps

BY CINDE INGRAM
ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER
https://hpenews.com/news/812/using-technology-to-bridge-gaps/

HIGH POINT — Equal access to technology can help bridge academic gaps for students in Guilford County Schools, connect families and is a goal driving Adrian Martinca forward.

The 27-year-old’s vision for freedom in education drove Martinca to found the nonprofit Technology for the Future after starting a technology company when he was only 13. Now he collaborates with GCS and community partners who share his vision to help make it a reality for thousands of students from low-income families.

“We can get them the resources to give them hope,” Martinca said. “Education isn’t simply about going to school. It’s about your ability to believe in yourself, feel supported and explore your dreams and visions. To do that in today’s society, if you have technology you have freedom.”

His nonprofit is overcoming parents’ fear and doubt by providing laptops with a managed cloud that prevents children from accessing pornographic websites or other dangers on the internet. “So now the children can actually learn freely, the parents can have comfort and the community can create a common ground for learning,” Martinca said.

In collaboration with local community organizations and the school system, his nonprofit provides students with relevant computer programming and constantly improves technology service through its cloud. Working with other agencies, Martinca’s nonprofit can provide a child with a free computer and Technology for the Future’s education program at a cost of $180 each. More community partners will help provide equal access for more children.

“The overarching perspective of what we want with this is freedom in education, freedom to learn,” Martinca said. “It gives parents the ability to not have any fear or doubt in their child’s ability to explore their education freely through our system. We want to empower the system, not to go against or change it.”

The children at High Point LEAP’s Camp Carey were surprised and excited to use 10 new laptops Martinca delivered Thursday to their site at the back of Southside Recreation Center.

“We are so grateful to Technology for the Future for these laptops that will help us bridge the gap for digital access for children and families living in poverty,” said Claire Robinson, founder/CEO of LEAP, Literacy Empowers All People. “Children will be able to access reading and math activities, homework and programs to build their academic skills. Parents will be able to use the laptops to apply for jobs and even to access GED and ESL courses online for those who need this training.”

Before Christmas last year, Martinca and his 23-year-old sister Miriam presented hundreds of laptops to students at High Point Central and T. Wingate Andrews high schools. One computer not only allowed a family’s three children to complete homework they weren’t able to do before but their mother was able to get a job via a video interview over Skype.

“I know for a fact that for many of these kids it was the first time they ever had their own computer,” said Paul Lessard, president of the High Point Community Foundation. “The digital divide is one of the huge hurdles that folks in poverty have to deal with.”

Lessard, who has known the Martincas for about two years, has worked with them toward their mission to get laptops in childrens’ hands to connect them on the internet safely. “If you can’t get on the internet in this day and age, it really stimies a lot of your educational opportunities,” Lessard said.

Having access to the computer hardware and cloud technology will provide LEAP participants with the opportunities for 24/7 access to digital resources, learning and to pilot a literacy portal for learning through the use of Google classroom for both children and parents. “Having this access opens the door for learning and achievements for the children academically but also for skills training as well,” Robinson said.

Lessard said he likes that Martinca has “established boundaries for these kids so that when he gives them a computer to use for academic or educational purposes, that’s all it’s going to be used for.” He’s also impressed by the way Martinca’s nonprofit is addressing the voids people face when living in poverty by providing a bridge to help them reach their full potential.

“Imagine a day when every child from third or fourth grade on has their own laptop and can learn not just in school but at home,” Lessard said. “It’s going to change everything. It could have major ramifications, especially with our Say Yes program. I think he’s a visionary. I think he’s got a big heart and he truly wants to make a difference in this town.”

Although Martinca spoke of his vision for leveling the playing field to help the next generation, he downplayed his role as a visionary. “You don’t need a time machine to see the future, because you see it in your own kids,” he said.

 

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Victory published in In the News

Replacements Ltd. opens doors to the future

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Replacements Ltd. joins the OPEN Doors movement to empower students in their community with the tools necessary to achieve their dreams.

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Victory published in OPEN Doors Challenge, OPEN Doors Movement

Cedar Grove opens doors to technology.

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As a representative for the Open Doors Movement, Cedar Grove Tabernacle of Praise (CGTOP) believes in building families! Whether spiritually, socially, economically, or educationally CGTOP is here to serve our community. Insuring equal access to technology is at the heart of our mission to see students reach their full potential. In conjunction with our Summer Enrichment program and forth-coming After-School program, CGTOP is excited to have the opportunity to help students and their families live out their dreams.

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Victory published in In the News, OPEN Doors Movement, Stories and Inspiration

A Collaboration for Boys and Girls Club

After our visit with HPU’s Social Entrepreneurship class, a student and member of the rowing team opened doors to an opportunity for Technology for the Future, HPU and the Salvation Army Boys and Girls Club (SABG) to collaborate and bring the children a few hours of outdoor learning and entertainment, followed by a great surprise! We are so excited to be able to partake in this event and work side-by-side with organizations that are so community oriented and promote community involvement. 

In our visit with representatives from both organizations earlier this week, we came to learn about SABG’s programs already in place for the integration of technology use and safety into the children’s lives. We were thrilled to hear that the laptops given will enable greater opportunities for their summer programs and that they will also be able to integrate them into their already-existing computer safety class. The HPU students attending the event have shown both their excitement to engage the children and create community for them that shows they care.

When communities come together like this, the children we are able to impact see collaboration not just as something you do for a school project, but as a life experience that allows for creating a brighter future for all.

Excited to see what the future brings!

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Victory published in In the News, OPEN Doors Movement, Stories and Inspiration

Bridging the Gap

Being able to support the children in our communities is one of the most important foundations for our future as a humanity. When we come together to ensure that “the future” has the resources for growth and innovation, we OPEN Doors to creating a better place for tomorrow. Technology enables us to bridge the gap of opportunity for our children, while broadening the perspectives necessary to set foundations for their future.

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Victory published in OPEN Doors Movement, Stories and Inspiration

Do you want to Change the World?

“New Year, new you”–the phrase rings through the crowds as each resolution is made, promising new motivation and resolve. But in the midst of the crowds are those seeking to dedicate 2018 to the creation of a better future for others. Among them stand the members of the Technology for the Future team, who vow to bring a greater change, not just to their own communities, but to those nation- and world-wide. 

1’000’000–the minimum number of lives we will change, and it all starts with you and me. A movement needs its members: dedicated, strong-willed, and ready to stand up for our children.

While we promise to you, that we are here for you and with you throughout the change, we also ask: Are you with us?

 

#OPENDoorsMovement #bewithus #ChangetheWorld

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Victory published in OPEN Doors Movement

Technology as Safety and Stability

When it comes to having access, teachers and parents everywhere stand united in their main concern: safety. Throughout their process of creating the program and the scholarship itself, Technology for the Future has catered to this concern, embodying it as one of utmost importance.

As Technology for the Future’s founder, Adrian Martinca, reaches out to community leaders, they often voice the same concern while simultaneously expressing the need to get the students connected. In the case of Greensboro Police Department’s Chief, Wayne Scott, however, the concern is that the lack of access limits the Department’s ability to communicate safety concerns: ” To connect on all levels is so important to keep people safer because, you know, we push out things from the police department, safety tips; we push out crime alerts and all those things.” It is for reasons like this one, where education and awareness directly affect the students’ safety in the outside world, that we need to act now and together.

“When you have someone in our community that is not able to connect, it’s a vulnerability for them.”–Chief Scott states in the interview. Technology for the Future stands by that as well, agreeing that in being able to connect their opportunities for creating a stable future for themselves, become vast. It is through our access to technology that many of us are able to find comfort and support, or even understanding, for our life’s goals and dreams.

The comfort that we have with using technology often stems from the trust in our own abilities to judge safe use. In a world whose social functions are becoming more and more dependent on technology, the lack of access needs to be addressed, especially with those that are destined to be our future leaders. Together, we can create a system of support that maximizes the safe and reliable devices for reaching their full potential. After all, “Education is the key to getting that good job, that stable future.”

 

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Victory published in OPEN Doors Movement

Technology for the Future: Our First Giving of December

The gifts that make your heart glow, the shiny baubles on trees reflecting that first kiss under the mistletoe, the smell of food drifting into the room as the hearth warms your feet—for many, the holidays are a time of light-hearted joy and reminiscing with family members; for some, the holidays are filled with the stress of traveling through packed airports, the worry of being able to take time away from work, the fear that they don’t have anything to give.

Technology for the Future’s messages are filled with pleas for help as countless moms seek relief for their students’ struggle to succeed and their ability to provide. With the #OPENDoorsMovement already underway, Adrian Martinca commits his own funds to providing 100 families with a device in time for Christmas. Believing that the communities will come together to support the cause, he dives in selflessly, giving everything he has.

The smiles that lit the faces of our first family that we were able to impact, with Pastor Deon Clark in partnership, stay in our minds as we move forward. It may be the giving season, but the Technology for the Future team knows that Equal Access and having faith in someone is a gift for giving year round. Through showing the great impact that the combination can have, they strive to inspire others to join them in the #OPENDoorsMovement and create that impact in their own communities.

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Victory published in OPEN Doors Movement

Raffle at Equation Church

Thank you for your support!

Thanks to our community partners program we were able to create a direct impact in the community of our partner, Equation Church. We must work together to ensure that equal access to technology is possible for all people.

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Victory published in OPEN Doors Movement, Stories and Inspiration

Technology for the Future: To Dayton and Back Again

Helping Schools in Need
A part of our 2017 movement.

 

 

The beacons for aid were lit and so the team rode on to Dayton, OH.

Without proper equipment and a lack of funds, interim Superintendent Amy Smith’s predicament grew worse as online state exams approached. When Amy came in touch with Technology for the Future, we knew what had to be done.

Taking 50 computer systems and the tools for setting up a network, the Technology for the Future team along with our founder Adrian Martinca set out to bridge the gap between education and technology within Watkins Academy.

Although we were able to help this school, the divide between those who have access to opportunities through technology and those who do not still persists. As we push towards our goal to lessen that divide, we ask that you keep it in mind and show your support for the cause.

 

 

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