Sanders Distributes Free Webcams to Schools in His District

State Senator James Sanders Jr. (D-Rochdale Village) pledged to donate over 2,000 webcams to schools in his senate district in December 2015. He gave away a portion of the technology at that time to School District 29. He has since upped the donation to 3,000 cameras and began distributing the remainder of them to School Districts 27, 28 and 29, beginning today with a visit to PS/MS 138 in Rosedale.

"You are only limited by your imagination," Sanders said. "I'm going to move heaven and earth to bring resources to whoever is committed to preparing our children for innovative learning."

While at the school, Sanders spoke to students about the importance of using the cameras to improve communication  Students could get their homework assignments from a teacher when they are absent from class, and teachers could show parents when their children are behaving poorly. 

Sanders added that the webcams are only the beginning. 

"In the days to come I am getting in touch with NASA," Sanders said. "We need to bring NASA to this district. We need to start preparing the next generation to walk on Mars. Somebody is going to do it, why not you, but you need training. You need science. You need math. Why not think big in this district?"

Sanders also talked about working with JFK Airport to bring flight simulators into the classroom. 

The idea for the camera giveaway came out of a discussion at the Partnership Dinner, an annual public forum that takes place in December and provides an opportunity for District 29 principals, School Leadership Teams, superintendent, parents and students to meet with their elected officials and discuss any educational needs the schools may have.

James McEnaney, the principal of PS/MS 138, said: "We are excited about the Senator's donation because it continues to build on the 21st Century work we are doing with technology here. I think the students will enjoy it, because it's what's current for them. This is how they communicate and it will be a nice addition to what we already have."

Lenon Murray, the District 29 elementary and middle school superintendent, said of Senator Sanders: "Men like him are rare. Other politicians make promises, but they don't deliver. This man always delivers."

The webcam donation is another building block in a mission that Sanders started while he was a City Council Member. During that time, he allocated $50,000 in technology funding for each school in his district every year for 10 years.