Local Assemblyman Secures $125K For Laptops For Students In Need

BRENTWOOD, NY — Gov. Andrew Cuomo recently announced that all schools in the state will be closed for the rest of the academic year. This means that for the rest of their time in school, students will be taught remotely by their teachers, requiring them to have certain technology. However this requires students to have certain technology available in order to be able to attend classes via video chat and submit assignments online.

Some students might not have the resources immediately available. In response to a lack of distance learning (e-learning) technology available to students in this time of pandemic, New York State Assemblyman Deputy Majority Leader Philip Ramos secured $125,000 for each of the two districts for the immediate purchase of tablets/laptops.

In response to the inequities in his district, Ramos sought $250,000 from the State government for the Brentwood and Central Islip School districts to provide this essential equipment to their students. In total, Brentwood and Central Islip serve 28,000 students.

"As a result of this crisis, thousands of our children in Brentwood and Central Islip are left with difficulty trying to do their schoolwork," Ramos said in a press conference.

According to Ramos, schools are trying to help those students who cannot afford the technology by sending them hard copies in the mail, but he wanted to find a better way to help.

Check out the full video from the press conference below: