Henrico, Va. March 17, 2020 — Vans will be stationed at four Henrico County Public Schools high schools to act as mobile technology hubs during HCPS’ closure for coronavirus. The hubs are designed to support virtual learning in two ways: enable up to 400 students and staff members who don’t have home internet access to get it through distribution of Wi-Fi hot-spot devices; and provide a way for HCPS-issued laptops to be repaired and exchanged.
Starting Wednesday, those who have previously informed the school division of their need for home internet can visit vans at Deep Run, Douglas Freeman, Hermitage and Highland Springs high schools and borrow one of 400 portable Wi-Fi hot-spot devices. The devices, which will be available while supplies last, will connect their laptop to the internet at home using cellular service.
The vans are staffed by employees of the school division’s primary technology vendor, Technology Integration Group. The vans have canopies in case of rain and feature the large “TIG” logo of the laptop-support vendor. The mobile sites will be open to distribute hot-spot devices and conduct laptop repairs weekdays from 8:30-10:30 a.m. and 2-4 p.m.
Most laptop issues can be resolved in less than 10 minutes by moving the hard drive to a replacement computer. Replacement devices will be sanitized before being issued.
HCPS Mobile Technology Hubs
(Laptop repair and exchange now available; hot spot distribution begins Wednesday.)
Hours:
March 18-20 and March 23-27
8:30-10:30 a.m.
and 2-4 p.m.
Sites:
Deep Run High School
4801 Twin Hickory Road, Glen Allen, Va.
Douglas Freeman High School
8701 Three Chopt Road, Henrico, Va.
Hermitage High School
8301 Hungary Spring Road, Henrico, Va.
Highland Springs High School
15 S. Oak Ave., Highland Springs, Va.
The school division’s closure is currently scheduled to last through March 30. Should the closure be extended, the status of the hubs would be reassessed. More information about HCPS’ response to spread of the coronavirus can be found at the school division’s COVID-19 webpage at henricoschools.us/covid19/.
As part of a response to the spread of coronavirus, telecommunications company Comcast recently announced that it was offering two free months of home internet service to low-income families who qualify for the company’s “Internet Essentials” service. The website for the promotion is internetessentials.com/covid19.