Cisco donation gives students home Internet access

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Cisco is donating wireless routers and adapters to students at a charter high school in Oakland's Fruitvale District Monday.

The company is giving away 220 wireless routers and 220 adapters to students at ARISE High School for use in their homes. Mayor Jean Quan planned to attend a ceremony at the school this morning to mark the occasion.

The school focuses on helping students from low-income households be the first in their families to go to college.

The new charter school is the result of a partnership between the Mills College School of Education, Mills College programs for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, Oakland Community Organizations and the Coalition of Essential Schools.

The school serves 220 students in grades 9 through 12. Its first graduating class last spring had a 100 percent four-year college admission rate for the school's first graduating class, according to the school.

Officials at San Jose-based Cisco say the routers and adapters use a system that is simple to set up and will allow kids to connect to the Internet in a way that can be managed by their parents.

In addition to Cisco's donation, the Oakland Tech Exchange West is offering training and free home computers to ARISE students who don't have them.

Those scheduled to speak at this morning's event included Oakland schools Superintendent Tony Smith, Oakland school board member Noel Gallo, Simon Fleming-Wood, vice president of marketing for Cisco consumer products, and student Dawanna Butler.

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