<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN">
<html>
<head>
<meta content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1"
http-equiv="Content-Type">
</head>
<body text="#000000" bgcolor="#ffffff">
<b>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:</b>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i>Illinois Tech Team Visits Haiti to
Re-Energize Schools Following Earthquake</i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><img
src="cid:part1.08090603.07060402@green-wifi.org" width="235"
align="left" height="176" hspace="12"><span style="font-size:
11pt;"><i>Chicago, IL – February 17, 2011<span style=""> </span></i>On
January 3<sup>rd</sup>, 2011 four students and one professor
from the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) in Chicago
traveled to the earthquake devastated-nation of Haiti in order
to assess several schools for the potential installation of a
solar PV solution. The village of Lascahobas had lost
grid-provided electricity following the earthquake a year ago,
and there is as-yet no prospect for the grid power to be
restored. This is regrettable given that the local schools had
recently received OLPC XOs with the aim of improving the quality
of education. The schools no longer have a way to charge the XO
laptops. The IIT team’s goal is to design an affordable,
sustainable, and replicable solar charging system for the
schools’ laptops. The first deployment will enable 1,000
students to use their XO laptops once again. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> The team's site
visit document and report can be download here:<a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://iitempoweringhaiti.org/images/stories/ipro335postsiteassessmenttripreport2.pdf">
IIT Haiti OLPC School Site Visit Report</a><br>
</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 35.45pt;"><span
style="font-size: 11pt;">The IIT project: Developing Technology
to Transform Education in Haiti, is being led by Dr. Laura
Hosman and consists of an inter-disciplinary team of ten
students who are all interested in advancing the educational
opportunities of Haitian students. Bruce Baikie, ICT4D solar
expert, accompanied the group and is serving as the team’s solar
powering mentor.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 35.45pt;"><span
style="font-size: 11pt;">Ultimately, over 11,000 XO laptops are
slated to be distributed to Haitian primary-level students
across the country, but the vast majority of schools and homes
have no access to reliable power through which to charge them.
The short-term goal of the IIT project is to (re-)enable
charging of the laptops in the Lascahobas schools, while the
longer-term objective is to design a cost-effective replicable
solar solution that can be used at schools across Haiti. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><img
src="cid:part2.00020100.07050608@green-wifi.org" width="178"
align="left" height="237" hspace="12"><span style="font-size:
11pt;"><span style=""> </span>The project-based
class at IIT began in the fall of 2010 with the goal of
designing an economical solar PV laptop-charging design in
conjunction with the Haitian Ministry of Education. At the end
of the semester, in January, the team carried out a site survey
visit to potential schools in Lascahobas, in order to understand
structural, physical, and social constraints for its
implementation. During their visit, the group collected
technical data needed to design the system for the schools, and
conversed with school officials about the project in order to
gauge the level of interest and commitment. Local school
administrators expressed their enthusiasm at the prospect of
gaining solar power for their schools and the students’ laptops,
and promised active participation in the project.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="">
</span>The IIT students also are partnering with engineering
students from the State University in Haiti (whose own school
was partially destroyed in the earthquake), to develop content
in French and Creole for the primary-level students to use on
their laptops. The team was also able to meet with the Haitian
Ministry of Education’s Director of Primary Education in
Port-au-Prince, who was very positive about the team’s plans,
and acknowledged the great need for this type of partnering and
capacity-building education project in Haiti.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="">
</span>With the data gathered on the trip, the IIT team is
refining their design, which is to be implemented at two primary
schools in Lascahobas in May, 2011. The group is raising money
to fund the project—the implementation at each school is
estimated to cost approximately ten-thousand US dollars and will
directly support 1,000 Haitian students. For more information on
this project and to donate please visit: <a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="http://iitempoweringhaiti.org/">http://iitempoweringhaiti.org/</a></span></p>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;" lang="FR">Contact:</span> <br>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;" lang="FR">Dr. Laura Hosman</span> <br>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:lhosman1@iit.edu"><span style="" lang="FR">lhosman1@iit.edu</span></a></span><span
style="font-size: 11pt;" lang="FR"></span> <br>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;" lang="FR">Illinois Institute of
Technology </span> <br>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;" lang="FR">3301 Dearborn St</span> <br>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;" lang="FR">Chicago IL 60616</span> <br>
<span style="font-size: 11pt;" lang="FR">312-670-4080</span>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt;" lang="FR">###</span></p>
</body>
</html>