As part of a pilot program for the NMU Teaching, Learning, and Communication initiative, they are among 30 students to have received complimentary use of a laptop computer this semester. The pilot program is a precursor to the fall of 2000, when each full-time undergraduate student will be issued a laptop.
Optional participation begins a year earlier.
Potts, a Han Athabaskan from Alaska, and Cohen, a Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe, were chosen from a field of more than 700 to test out the computers. The program is a preliminary step in the TLC initiative, giving NMU officials insight into the possible problems associated with the laptops. The feedback we're looking for is how the students are able to use the computers for their homework and in classroom situations. Also, we will monitor what kind of support and training issues surface during the semester. Potts and Cohen were issued their laptops in January, and have had positive experiences with the computers.