University of Southern Maine

News Releases

USM to Host iTeam Conference May 25 on Gorham Campus

May 23, 2006

What is an "iTeam"?

They are the middle schoolers who help keep the laptops and the associated networks going all over the state of Maine. These young people have turned out to be very important to the program's success. This is the third annual conference for the students, their teachers and technology coordinators in the school districts.

Some 230 students and 55 educators, primarily from southern Maine and the mid-coast area, will meet to learn more about the laptops and the program. The conference is presented by the Maine Learning Technology Initiative and USM's School of Applied Science, Engineering, and Technology. Thirty-three presenters include representatives from Apple Computers, the Maine Historical Society, and the Portland Museum of Art.

Where: the John Mitchell Center (JMC) on USM's Gorham Campus.

When: Thursday, May 25.

Schedule:
• Registration 8:00 - 9:00 (Brooks Dining Center)
• Opening Comments 9 - 9:20 (Brooks Dining Center)
• Session 1: 9:30 - 10:20 (JMC)
• Session 2: 10:30 - 11:20 (JMC)
• Lunch 11:30-12:30 (Brooks Dining Center)
• Session 3: 12:30 - 1:20 (JMC)
• Session 4: 1:30 - 2:20 (JMC)

Details are available at http://www.mainelearns.org/studentconference.

Note:
Connected to this event is the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) initiative a.k.a. the $100 laptop, spearheaded by the MIT Media Lab. They are having a meeting this week in Cambridge, Mass., and some of those participants are coming to USM's conference to see the students and the difference that laptops are making in Maine. A contingent including Angus King, Sue Gendron, and high-level education officials from Nigeria, Argentina and Thailand will be joining the group for lunch in Brooks and then having a meeting of their own afterwards in the conference room of the JMC. 

For more information, or to arrange to cover this event, please contact Prof. Julie Ellis at 207-653-4263, jellis@usm.maine.edu. Or call USM Public Affairs at 207-780-4200.

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