St. Rose’s Technology Learning Center Debuts

St. Rose of Lima Academy in Short Hills has transformed an old computer room into an advanced Technology Learning Center capable of bringing technology-enriched programs into the daily academic curriculum for all students.

The project, completed over the summer, was the result of a $100,000 fundraising effort by the school. St. Rose was able to pay for the new center after the Parent Advisory Board resurrected the school’s annual fund for the first time in several years.

The Advisory Board’s Development Committee set the $100,000 goal, with an impressive 57 percent of Academy families participating, along with several parish families and school alumni. The parish also made a contribution to pay for new wireless capability for the Academy building, and the parish Knights of Columbus chapter also contributed funds it had raised. 

The project vastly improves the school’s network capabilities and makes the pre-K through eighth-grade school building completely wireless.

“The entire project reflects the Academy’s goal of being a leader in technology-based learning,” said Steve Athaide of Maplewood, a member of St. Rose of Lima Academy’s Advisory Board and chair of its technology committee.

To make sure students can make full use of the new technology center, St. Rose is teaming up with Seton Hall University in a reciprocal partnership agreement. Seton Hall will help the school integrate technology into its core programs and curriculum through a number of innovative, technology-driven initiatives that are under development and will be announced shortly. 

“The Seton Hall partnership is a very exciting initiative, as we see the opportunity to significantly broaden and enrich our programs and content. We see it giving the Academy a significant competitive edge over its peers, and providing our Academy students unique and unmatched learning opportunities, better positioning them for high school, college and beyond,” said Joseph Ferraro of Livingston, president of the St. Rose of Lima Academy’s Advisory Board. 

The Technology Learning Center, fully funded by student’s parents, parish families and parish contributions, includes 26 new student computers with 22-inch multi-touch flat screen monitors. The multi-touch aspect provides touch screen interactivity using multiple fingers at the same time.

“At a time when most public schools are cutting programs, it’s a testament to the St. Rose of Lima community that we can make an investment of this size,” said Martin Daly, a St. Rose Academy advisory board member from Maplewood who chairs the board’s development committee.