TCC computer club lets students help peers

VIRGINIA BEACH

Kedra Pates is a single mom with three children who is working toward a degree at Tidewater Community College. Money is tight, and the Norfolk resident couldn't afford her own computer. This has made life difficult, given her major - information technology.

The on-campus computer lab doesn't allow her to bring 4-year-old Xyan with her when her other children are in school. Using the computer at the local library is a hassle.

She doesn't have to deal with either anymore, thanks to the TCC computer club, which gave her a desktop computer of her own late last month.

Pates listened with awe as TCC student William Powell outlined the specifics of her new system. Microsoft XP is installed, he told her, as is free antivirus protection. Problems? Questions? Just stop by the computer club and ask for help.

"This is tremendous, indeed," Pates said. "Awesome is all I can say."

Happy endings like that one are among the reasons Great Bridge High School graduate John Ellis became involved with the club. Since it started in 2009, more than 300 computers have been refurbished and given to students who need them.

Students on the Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Suffolk and Portsmouth campuses can take advantage. One-third of the computers go to students who attend classes on the Norfolk campus, which houses the Open Door Project, a federally funded student assistance program.

"It's really rewarding knowing you're helping people that, in many cases, have never had a computer before in their entire lives," said Ellis, the club president. "Most people leave saying, 'God bless you! Thank you so much! Glory hallelujah!' "

Hands-on learning also attracted Ellis, who regularly joins 20 or so other TCC students Wednesday and Friday afternoons in the Advanced Technology Center of the Virginia Beach campus for several hours of computer repair.

The mood is casual - professor Gary Noah provides pizza - while club members pull apart the computers much like mechanics looking under the hood of a car.

Folks stop by for pickup during those hours, too, and Noah updates the board with the latest number of giveaways: "317 and counting" it reads on this day.

Sentara Healthcare has been a major contributor to the club; it has donated more than 300 personal computers and 150 monitors.

Every donated computer has its hard drive wiped clean before it is refurbished. Although the club accepts personal donations, corporate donations are ideal, given that many of those computers share the same issues, allowing students to repair them quickly.

"There are so many benefits to donating computers," said Fred Fowler, IT technical manager at Sentara. "It's better for the environment to keep these items out of landfills, and it saves disposal fees and serves as a tax deduction."

Precedence is determined by a process that rates students for urgency and need. Ratings are determined by a panel of four club members and secured in a database. Given her circumstances, Pates was rated at a 39 on a 40-point scale, which moved her name to the top of the list.

"We're looking at people who actually need it for more than playing games," Powell said. "She really needed a computer. She was a single mom taking online classes and an IT major."

Noah has seen folks become teary-eyed when they receive their computers, unable to fathom being given something so valuable free of charge. That was exactly what he had in mind when he started the club.

Noah has had employers show a higher interest in his students who are part of the club, as that speaks to their passion for the job, he said. He also offers students paid internships that also carry college credit.

"We have people who really need some hands-on. They're coming in and they're trying to get into the field, and they can't afford to have a computer at home so they can work on it," Noah said. "This gives them their hands-on."

Deep Creek High graduate Lomar Berry is among the students who love nothing more than spending hours repairing a computer left for dead.

"Usually there are missing parts, incompatible memory, simple stuff," he said.

Virginia Beach student Brian Rose said he feels good when his work benefits another.

"Usually you're giving it to somebody who is so appreciative. It's a good feeling knowing that something you put together and made work again is going to be put to good use."

Vicki L. Friedman, (757) 222-5218, vicki.friedman@pilotonline.com