7.07.2006 - 08:14am ET

(CSRwire) PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 7, 2006-- HP (NYSE:HPQ)(Nasdaq:HPQ) today awarded 25 schools in the United States and Canada a total of more than $2 million in mobile technology, cash and professional development.

Part of the company's 2006 HP Technology for Teaching grant program, these "leadership" grants were presented to 15 K-12 public schools and 10 two- and four-year colleges and universities. These schools received grants in 2004-2005 and were invited to apply for additional investment support.

Recipients were selected for reinvestment based on their success integrating HP technology into their classroom curriculum, demonstration of positive results on student achievement, and innovative plans to expand their programs to have a broader impact on student success.

The HP Technology for Teaching program is designed to transform teaching and improve student achievement through innovative uses of technology in the classroom. Many of the grant recipients' projects have a focus on science, math and engineering at schools that serve low-income students.

"HP is offering this additional equipment and training so the excellent work already demonstrated by these educators can be expanded," said Bess Stephens, vice president, Philanthropy and Education, HP. "We are delighted to make these reinvestment grants so that even more educators and students can benefit from innovative applications of technology to improve teaching and learning."

From 2004-2006, HP has contributed a total of $36 million in Technology for Teaching grants to more than 650 schools worldwide. Over the last 20 years, HP has contributed more than $1 billion in cash and equipment to schools, universities, community organizations and other nonprofit organizations around the world.

K-12 grants

HP is awarding $850,000 in HP equipment and professional development to teams of teachers at 14 K-12 public schools in the United States and one in Canada. Each school will receive a mobile technology cart that can be moved throughout the school for use in any classroom. The cart is equipped with 15 HP Tablet PCs, an HP digital projector and an HP digital camera. Additional HP equipment also is being donated for use by three educators joining the HP Technology for Teaching team at the school.

The award additionally includes a professional development program for educators led by HP partner, the International Society for Technology in Education. A team from each school will receive training and mentoring as they implement a project that will have an impact throughout the school.

The value of the grant award for each school is more than $56,000. The K-12 recipients were recognized at the 2006 National Educational Computing Conference in San Diego this week, where they shared their project results and best practices to the larger education community.

An example of a K-12 grant-winning project is at Florin High School in Sacramento, Calif. In a project called "The Common Denominator of the World: Currency," students explored various monetary systems around the world, comparing currency values against U.S. currency, learning about world stock markets and making projections based on data collection, such as student market portfolios.

Comparisons in student learning assessments from classrooms with and without HP technology show that students from technology-enriched classrooms not only learned the concepts in greater detail, but also better retained the knowledge.

Higher education grants

HP is awarding 10 two- and four-year colleges and universities in the United States a total of $1.2 million in cash and equipment. Each recipient package will include HP products and a faculty stipend valued at more than $120,000. The award includes two wireless HP Tablet PCs, two HP digital projectors, two HP printers and two HP digital cameras for faculty use, 40 additional HP Tablet PCs for student use, and a cash stipend of $10,500.

In addition, the grant includes travel expenses for one participant from each campus to attend the Worldwide HP Technology for Teaching Higher Education Conference in February 2007.

An example of a higher education grant-winning initiative is at Canada College in Redwood City, Calif. At this two-year community college, instructors have been using the Tablet PCs to create an interactive learning network in select pre-engineering courses, enabling real-time student assessment and assistance.

Initial results from Canada College's 2005-2006 pilot project show a marked improvement in student grades compared to previous years, elevated student confidence in engineering dynamics and a dramatic increase in engineering enrollment. The HP Leadership Grant will enable educators to extend this success to other courses in engineering, computer and information sciences, math, physics and chemistry.

2006 Technology for Teaching Leadership Grant recipients

More information about 2006 HP Technology for Teaching program and grant recipients is available at www.hp.com/go/hpteach. This year's HP Technology for Teaching Leadership Grant recipients, listed alphabetically by state/province, include:

Arkansas
Norfolk School, Norfolk

California
California State University, Sacramento
California State University, Los Angeles
Canada College, Redwood City
Florin High School, Sacramento
Washington Middle School, Vista

Colorado
Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind, Colorado Springs

Florida
Broward Community College, Davie
Country Oaks Elementary School, LaBelle
Warfield Elementary School, Indiantown

Georgia
Darton College, Albany

Kansas
Kansas State University, Manhattan

Kentucky
Meade Memorial Elementary School, Williamsport
Murray State University, Murray

Massachusetts
Ferryway School, Malden

New Jersey
Dawes Avenue School, Somers Point

New York
Medgar Evers College, City University of New York

North Carolina
Duke University, Durham

Oregon
Culver Elementary School, Culver

Ontario, Canada
Brookfield High School, Ottawa

Rhode Island
Ashton School, Cumberland

Tennessee
Southwest Tennessee Community College, Memphis

Texas
Dunbar Primary School, Lufkin
Liestman Elementary School, Houston
W.H. Wharton Elementary School, Houston

About HP

HP is a technology solutions provider to consumers, businesses and institutions globally. The company's offerings span IT infrastructure, personal computing and access devices, global services and imaging and printing. For the four fiscal quarters ended April 30, 2006, HP revenue totaled $88.9 billion. More information about HP is available at www.hp.com.

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