Didn’t get your homework done because you don’t have access to the internet? That excuse won’t work any longer for the Fresno Unified students who are getting a free mobile hot spot.
Project Connect and Sprint’s 1Million Project Foundation are providing hot spots to 1,000 Fresno Unified high schoolers this year, and more next year.

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The foundation’s goal is to provide free internet to 1 million high school students who don’t have reliable internet access.
Fresno Unified spokeswoman Vanessa Ramirez said the high schools did a survey to determine which students needed reliable internet access at home. Parents had to sign permission slips.

Free Wi-Fi on All Campuses

Through the free service, students can get up to 10 gigabytes of high-speed internet each month, Ramirez said. If they use more, they’ll still have internet service but at slower speeds, she said.
And students will be able to keep the devices once they graduate, although Sprint will turn off the service after they collect their diploma. But students can contact any provider to arrange for service for their device — which they’ll have to pay for.
Superintendent Bob Nelson said that with the free wi-fi on all campuses, free hot spots, and free tablets provided to students, the district continues to “enhance the resources they have to be academically and online prepared.”

Fresno Compact Names Business-Education Award Winners

Businesses, individuals, and organizations that have invested their time and resources with students in Fresno County schools will be recognized March 4 at the 24th annual Fresno Compact Business-Education Partnership Awards luncheon.
The Fresno Compact is a partnership of leaders from business, education, government, and the community who support education, workforce development, and improving the county’s economy by improving the educational experience for all students, preschool through college.
This year’s Business-Education Partnership Award Winners are Betts Company, Fresno Philharmonic, Kings River Packing, Jay Mahfood, Sunrise Medical, William Boos and Co., GAR Bennett, Life Flower LLC, Nalchajian Orthodontics, and Sunbelt Rentals.
The Dr. Harold Haak Award for Educational Excellence for Business/Education Partnerships will go to Deborah Adishian-Astone, Fresno State’s vice president for administration and chief financial officer. Haak was president of Fresno State from 1980 to 1991.
The awards luncheon will be 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Tornino’s Banquet Hall in Fresno. To purchase tickets, call (559) 265-3010, ext. 3210.

Kerman Students Tour Community Regional

They might only be high school students today, but someday some of these Kerman kids could be pushing down your tongue with a flat wooden stick and asking you to say “aaaaah.”
Twenty-four Kerman High students took a tour through Community Regional Medical Center to learn about careers in medical fields such as rehab, pediatric specialty services, dialysis, and diabetes.
Community Medical Centers recently donated funds and equipment to the Kerman High ROP Medical Pathways program for a lab that functions like a hospital room.
The goal is to spark interest in medical careers among students in the Valley, where there is an ongoing shortage of doctors, nurses, physical therapists, and other medical professionals.