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December 22, 2000/Kislev 25, 5761, Vol. 53, No.13
Nonprofit helps bridge digital divide
VICKI CABOT
Contributing Editor
Marcia Hopp-Newman, left, delights in the accomplishments of, from left, Camber Dugger, 8, staffer Dora Patchen, and Tiffany Dugger, 16.
Photo by Vicki Cabot |
Eight computer monitors line the walls of a tiny room adjacent to the coin-operated laundry at Paradise Shadows Apartments in northwest Phoenix.
A lively group of would-be users vies for prize seats at the workstations, cheerfully elbowing out competitors.
One lucky youngster logs on to check e-mails; another sits engrossed in a video game; a third carefully puts together a colorful graphic.
Dora Patchen calmly directs the tiny dynamos, stopping for a hug as naturally as she helps a child access a keyboard function.
A veritable Pied Piper, Patchen is committed to leading her young charges across the digital divide.
The neighborhood center Patchen directs is one of seven in Arizona - five in the Valley, two in Tucson - one part of a network of educational programs provided by the Downtown Neighborhood Learning Center.
Started 10 years ago by founding director Marcia Hopp-Newman, DNLC provides educational resources to the homeless and working poor to help them improve their lives. The satellite computer centers, located in federally subsidized Housing and Urban Development projects, are the latest addition to DNLC's roster of programs and services.
"We are bringing the technology to the have-nots," says Cathy Wolf, who oversees the satellite centers and helps develop new projects.
Patchen, the energetic Paradise Shadows staffer, says the center opens up the world to both children and adults,who also take advantage of its resources.
"(They're learning) that there is more out there," she says, of those who previously did not have computer access.She hopes the exposure will heighten aspirations and encourage her students to excel.
"I want to instill in them that education is important, that it is the fundamental basis for success in life," she says, capsulizing DNLC's mission.
DNLC was conceived nearly 12 years ago by Hopp-Newman when she visited Central Arizona Shelter Services to drop off used clothing and found children with nothing to do.
"I couldn't stand it," she says.
The former high school English teacher approached United Way for a $25,000 grant to start what became the first education program for homeless children in the state. Housed in a spare room at CASS, the project gradually garnered public and private support. It was the forerunner of the Thomas J. Pappas School, which now serves some 600 homeless children at its two downtown locations.
But it was not just the kids who concerned Hopp-Newman, it was their parents. Many had not graduated from high school; others were in need of essential English language skills. All could benefit from improving their job skills.
Hopp-Newman cobbled together a patchwork of public and private funding to found DNLC and open its first adult learning center at 10th Avenue and Jefferson Street. The project has grown, with additional sites now in El Mirage and at the Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center in downtown Phoenix. All three locations offer GED certification; El Mirage offers ESL, and the downtown location now has a computer lab.
Hopp-Newman says that computer proficiency has now become a "basic job skill," not only making job applicants more marketable, but enhancing self-esteem and developing concentration skills, often diminished in the homeless.
Further, computer proficiency opens up the world of the Internet, with its vast informational resources, to an under-served population.
Hopp-Newman tells of senior citizens at the B'nai B'rith Covenant House in Tucson, one neighborhood center site, whose access to e-mail keeps them in touch with far-flung family members. She mentions others who have furthered their education with on-line university courses and used the Internet to find important health and medical information.
And she is especially proud of those who have used the Internet to find employment, canvassing want ads on-line and transmitting resumes electronically.
"We are giving them the ability to improve their lots," she says.
In addition, the computer labs have become popular gathering places in the apartment complexes, helping to develop a sense of community. With a place to meet and a staff member to facilitate discussion, residents now talk about issues, then seek solutions.
At the Paradise Shadows Apartments, a residents' committee has been formed and plans are in the works for a Block Watch program to enhance safety and security.
"It's their idea," emphasizes Wolf, noting the potential for empowerment the centers offer.
The centers also provide youngsters a welcome "shelter from the storm," with attractive activities and warm teachers.
"It's good because it gives kids something to do and someone to talk to," says Tiffany Dugger, 16, a Paradise Shadows regular.
Last year DNLC delivered services to 3,800 children and adults on an operating budget of approximately $400,000. Wolf notes that each satellite center has one paid staff person.
"They do it all," she says.
This year Hopp-Newman projects that only 35 percent of total DNLC funding, which covers its adult learning centers, neighborhood learning centers, voice mailboxes for the homeless and other innovative projects, will come from public sources.
"That's a drop from 60 percent (last year's funding from federal, state and local sources)," she says. The remainder must come from private sources, including corporate and foundation funding and individual donors.
Social Ventures Partners of Arizona, a consortium of local individuals who invest in social projects, has made a $30,000 grant to the Paradise Shadows center. Sandy Hoffman, a member of Social Ventures, terms it a worthwhile investment.
"It's an opportunity for children to be educated in computer skills and have a safe area to do it," says the retired physician.
Hoffman says one attraction of the project was its funding through a combination of public and private sources.
Biltmore Properties, Inc., manager of the housing project, also supports the computer center, and Qwest has created a program to train volunteers.
Hopp-Newman notes that DNLC is one of the approved agencies that qualifies for the $200 charitable tax credit for nonprofits in Arizona, for contributions made before Dec. 31 this year.
Wolf, who has a background in Jewish communal work and worked briefly as a small-business owner, says her responsibilities at DNLC draw on all her skills.
"We're a small nonprofit struggling for money," she says. "but we are helping to repair the world."
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