Safe, Secure and Connected. It is what every parent wishes for their child. It is also the title of a recent successful fundraising effort at Marymount of Santa Barbara, and has resulted in improving the school’s ability to teach using the latest technology.
Faster Internet, Skyping in classrooms, a 1-to-1 iPad/mobile device program in the middle school and an increased range of activities in the computer lab await Marymount students when they step back on Marymount’s picturesque, 10-acre Riviera campus in a few short weeks. The Mosher Foundation, an organization devoted to supporting innovation and forward thinking in education, was the largest supporter behind Safe, Secure and Connected.
Marymount of Santa Barbara has a strong reputation for giving its students a strong educational foundation while also developing the character and values necessary to make the best use of a great education.
“Safe, Secure and Connected is about going a step further to help students be successful in the future, helping students to become completely technologically fluent and developing the tools necessary for them to be discerning in a fast-changing world is something that Marymount thinks is extremely important,” Head of School Andrew Wooden said. “Yes, the students need good test scores. Yes, they need to be able to read and write well. Yes, they need to develop emotional intelligence, love learning and to be able to do math and understand scientific method. Yes, they need to have cross-cultural understanding and find their life’s passion, but they need to be savvy about technology in order to navigate any and all of it. It is Marymount’s mandate to equip students with the skills and strengths they will need in the 21st century.”
The Mosher Foundation grant helped Marymount make forward progress in being able to improve infrastructure and technology capabilities.
“Thanks to the foundation and the Marymount community’s generous support of this effort, our technology team of teachers, administrators and technology experts has been hard at work this summer,” Wooden said. “Not all the fruits of our work will be realized immediately. We are starting with an iPad pilot program in the eighth grade and have to make the improvements in steps. Improvements aren’t improvements unless the improvements are measured and managed well. The progress that will be felt over time and by every member of our community is immense.
“Marymount is becoming an even stronger school, and Marymount students are definitely more Safe, Secure and Connected than ever before.”
Marymount is an independent coeducational school, junior kindergarten through eighth grade, on a picturesque 10-acre campus nestled on the Santa Barbara Riviera. For nearly 75 years, Marymount has prepared young people for the academic challenges of high school and college, while laying the foundation for lifelong character, achievement and love of learning.
If you are interested in learning more about Marymount or scheduling a tour, contact the Admission Office at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or 805.569.1811 x131. Select spaces and scholarships are still available.
— Molly Seguel is director of admissions for Marymount of Santa Barbara.
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