Sandoval Elementary awarded Relativity Wired to Learn grant to continue their commitment to technology-led learning

The public, bilingual elementary school plans to use the grant to bring new technology and technology-driven learning initiatives to their classrooms

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Relativity

Aug 28, 2019, 09:00 ET

CHICAGO, Aug. 28, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Sandoval Elementary, a Chicago Public School, has been awarded a Wired to Learn grant for technology education from Chicago-based Relativity, the global legal technology company.

Wired to Learn grants are awarded to schools that demonstrate a need for technology and present a vision for how it will be integrated into academic programming. Schools receive $250,000 over three years to invest into new technologies, school labs, and teacher professional development necessary to properly prepare the next generation of Chicago's tech-forward workforce. Past recipients have reported better attendance, higher test scores, and increased student engagement.

As a school committed to promoting bilingualism and advanced biliteracy, Sandoval will use portions of the grant to provide student-facing devices that will support their new bilingual education model. This includes equipping teachers with new, tech-forward learning tools that prepares their students to become effective members of an increasingly global society while also lowering their student to device ratio. The grant will also be used to provide teachers the professional development necessary to support this technology integration into their current curriculum.

"More technology will be really helpful, especially because jobs in the future will use much more technology," said Fatima, a 5th grade student at Sandoval.

"This grant will help students very much. It will help students improve academically, and they will also learn more about technology," said Lorena Fuentes, a parent who was part of a Technology and Journalism class offered to parents at Sandoval. "We live in a world full of computers. This grant will help prepare our students for the future."

"This grant will give us the opportunity to provide equitable access to technology, as well as to motivate students, teachers, staff and parents to develop and enhance their digital literacy skills," said Principal Wilma M. David. "We are excited to provide a learning environment conducive to accelerating, individualizing and personalizing student learning while providing an opportunity for creation and creativity in a global society."

Every Sandoval student is engaged in an innovative well-rounded instructional program that promotes high academic achievement in both English and Spanish. Sandoval plans to use this grant to invest in new technology to enhance student engagement within these programs and assist with the school's mission to embrace cultural diversity and prepare students to be college and career ready.

Relativity Gives, Relativity's community outreach program, helps Chicago youth — especially those with limited resources — gain access to the technology, equipment and training they need to be successful in today's world. To date, the company has given over $2 million in grants to technology and education organizations that share that mission.

"We know the talent, enthusiasm and commitment that lives within schools throughout the Chicagoland area and we're excited to partner with CPS to further their mission of ensuring all students have the opportunity to obtain the technological skills they need to succeed," said Dorie Blesoff, chief people officer at Relativity. "Sandoval Elementary is already doing amazing things for their students and we are excited to help further their mission by providing increased access to new technology within the classroom."

To learn more about how Sandoval Elementary serves students and the community and to view this release in Spanish, please click here.

About Socorro Sandoval Elementary
Socorro Sandoval Elementary school is a PK-5th grade neighborhood CPS school in Chicago's Gage Park neighborhood. Sandoval has a Level 1 + rating - the highest rating afforded a CPS school. Sandoval serves approximately 900 students. The student body is comprised of approximately 95% Latino students, with 56.7% of students having Limited English. Sandoval recently became a Dual-Language school. The school will begin the Dual-Language program in Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten during the 2019-2020 school year, with full implementation scheduled for the 2025-2026 school year. Sandoval provides a variety of after-school tutoring and enrichment programs including dance, art, coding and robotics, music, and much more. At Sandoval School, academic and social-emotional learning are fundamental to ensure our students receive a high-quality, well-rounded education that puts "students first."

About Relativity
At Relativity, we make software to help users organize data, discover the truth, and act on it. Our technology is used by thousands of organizations around the world to manage large volumes of data and quickly identify key issues during litigation, internal investigations, and compliance projects. Relativity has over 180,000 users in 40+ countries from organizations including the U.S. Department of Justice, more than 75 of the Fortune 100, and 198 of the Am Law 200. RelativityOne offers all the functionality of Relativity in a secure and comprehensive SaaS product. Relativity has been named one of Chicago's Top Workplaces by the Chicago Tribune for eight consecutive years. Please contact Relativity at [email protected] or visit http://www.relativity.com for more information.

SOURCE Relativity