News Laptops will put students on top of the world Starting next year, freshmen will be given laptop computers for use during their undergraduate careers, enabling them to type papers, send e-mail to professors, research the Internet and build presentations from anywhere on campus and in the world. It will also make the curriculum more engaging for students who are already computer literate as they enter college. The second phase involves ensuring that students have laptops and standard software for use in and out of the classroom. Initially, the laptops will be paid for through technology funds from the college's general budget. The college is currently negotiating with several vendors to work out various arrangements for the initiative.
Discussions are also underway to explore making laptops available to upperclassmen as well.
While many students come to college with their own computers, the laptop initiative ensures that all students have compatible hardware and software to be used in and out of the classroom, and that training and 24-hour support will be available. Numerous top universities around the country, such as Wake Forest University, University of North Carolina and Dartmouth College, either provide laptops to students or have a computer requirement for incoming students.