Newfield schools receive technology donation

Newfield Central School District recently received state-of-the-art computer monitors from the Ithaca Public Education Initiative (IPEI).

This summer, IPEI received 1,000 computer monitors from Antares Capital, according to a recent press release. The IPEI distributed monitors to schools in Newfield, Dryden, Groton and Trumansburg according to how many each district requested.

Steve Manley, executive director of the IPEI, spoke to Newfield’s Board of Education at the start of its regular meeting Sept. 15. He reported that one of his donors and her sister-in-law asked about whether the schools could use technology since their workplace was transitioning to a work-from-home model and did not want to throw out all its computer monitors.

“They said ‘a couple of monitors,’” Manley said. “And I said, ‘A couple of monitors is nice,’ and they said, ‘We mean 1,000 brand-new monitors.’”

Manley reached out to the superintendents of Newfield, Dryden, Groton and Trumansburg’s school districts to arrange for them to take the monitors since he did not have enough space in his one-person office to store all the equipment. He worked with Eric Hartz and Sunshine Miller, Newfield Central School District’s superintendent and director of technology, respectively, to coordinate the delivery of the monitors to Newfield.

“I just want to say thank you to Eric, and thank you to Sunshine, for helping me keep monitors out of the landfills and get into the hands and the desks and the workstations of your students,” Manley said.

Newfield received about 300 monitors, which are worth about $225 apiece, making the whole donation worth about $67,000. Antares Capital bought $19,000 worth of monitor stands for Newfield, including stands for single- and double-monitor setups, provided wires and ensured the monitors would work.

“We can’t be more grateful to them,” Manley said. “This is a $200,000-plus donation that changed just day-to-day regular student and teacher experience, staff experience, in four districts in Tompkins County in one day.”

In IPEI’s press release, Josh Hunkele, Trumansburg’s data protection officer and director of innovation and educational technology, expressed gratitude for the donation and underscored how important the gift of technology is.

“These monitors replace 10-year-old monitors everywhere in our district all at once, replacing what would have been a three-to-five-years funding plan to upgrade our equipment slowly,” Hunkele said. “It is an incredibly generous donation and will immediately impact student experiences.”

Manley thanked Antares Capital for their donation, as well as Hartz and Miller for working for them, and expressed the hope that Newfield would make good use of the monitors, enabling them to save money that can be used elsewhere.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for my organization to make available resources wherever they’re needed and help a company do good and do well for this community that they don’t have direct ties to, but it’s an example of how relationships build and how they open opportunities,” Manley said.

In the IPEI press release, Margery Brodhead, IPEI’s board president, described the donation as an excellent opportunity to further her organization’s mission.

“This is a perfect example of what IPEI’s relationships in Ithaca and throughout the county can do to improve student education,” Brodhead said. “We’re honored to be connected to this worthy project and deeply grateful to Antares Capital for improving student experiences throughout Tompkins County.”

Newfield Notes appears every Wednesday in Tompkins Weekly. Send story ideas to editorial@VizellaMedia.com.

In brief:

Newfield holds ribbon cutting for park

Newfield held a ribbon cutting ceremony to open the Newfield Recreation Park on 80 Vankirk Rd. at 9 a.m. Sept. 17. The event had been postponed for more than two years due to the pandemic.

According to Town Supervisor Michael Allinger, in 2006, the town purchased the property from the Vankirk family by voter referendum, intending to use it as a park. In June 2016, Jeff Hart, then supervisor of Newfield, reported he had received a request from the town’s Recreation Department to possibly build ball fields on the property. Norm Aidun, resident of Newfield, and the Ad-Hoc Rec Committee worked to raise funds by collecting donations, as well as securing a grant in 2017.

Ground was broken in spring 2018 through in-kind work of Highway Superintendent Kevin Berggren, brother Eddie Berggren, Matt Watros and the Highway Department. The work on the park was completed in spring 2020, but the pandemic and social distancing requirements prevented the park from being opened until spring 2022.

Town Board holds work session

The Newfield Town Board will hold a work session from 7 to 9 p.m. Sept. 22. For more information, including the agenda and Zoom link, go to the town’s website at newfieldny.org.

Newfield Public Library holds family storytime

The Newfield Public Library will hold its weekly Family Storytime on Sept. 27 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. For more information, visit the library’s website, newfieldpubliclibrary.org.

Dance At Covered Bridge

On Sept. 24 at 8 p.m., Newfield will celebrate 100 years of Old Home Days with a contra dance at the Covered Bridge, 20 Bridge St. The event is free, will include refreshments and will feature Uncle Joe and the Ramblers. Visit tinyurl.com/2erb8zdj for more information.