USA Funds Board of Trustees Presents EduCat to Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida
USA Funds®’ board of trustees gathered with staff, patients and their families on March 8 at The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida in Fort Myers, Fla., to present an EduCatTM mobile classroom to the hospital.
The EduCat mobile classroom is designed to be a link from hospitalized students to their schools and teachers. The EduCat includes a laptop computer, printer, school supplies, Internet access and other media tools. The mobile classroom provides bed-bound patients with a private workspace and the tools to keep them current with their studies.
Featuring imagery of Garfield the comic-strip cat, the EduCat is decorated to make the cart fun for children and is named in honor of Garfield the cat. Garfield is the product of cartoonist Jim Davis, who has partnered with USA Funds and other organizations on a number of education-related initiatives.
“We are grateful to USA Funds for their generosity and support for our hospital school program,” says Laurie Gill, schoolteacher at The Children’s Hospital. “The EduCat is not only a valuable resource for our children to have at their bedsides; it’s a fun technological tool to help encourage our patients to stay involved in school. The EduCat will give our kids an opportunity to check daily assignments posted on the Internet, converse with teachers, chat with classmates, and work on assignments.”
While at the hospital, board members and their guests toured the facility and met with young patients and their families. Garfield accompanied them on the tour and visited with patients and staff. Patients also received stuffed Garfield dolls from board members.
“We are delighted to provide this gift to The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida, and we look forward to the benefits for these young patients,” says William Neale, chairman of the USA Funds board of trustees. “Because promotion of education is our primary focus, we have a special concern for children who are hospitalized for extended periods. We want to ensure that they are able to keep up with their schoolwork and that they don’t fall behind their fellow students because of a hospital stay.”
Staying current on schoolwork and in contact with friends allows children to maintain somewhat-normal activities in an otherwise unfamiliar hospital routine. The EduCat makes it easier for young patients to keep up with their peers in the classroom, and that can be important when they are well enough to return to school.
USA Funds has delivered eight EduCats to hospitals in six states — Arizona, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Texas and Washington.
USA Funds donated the first EduCat to Phoenix Children’s Hospital in Arizona in 2006. Carlos Sosa, president and design director of SosaGroup, designed the cart in conjunction with hospital educators in Phoenix and made adjustments based on feedback from patients and staff at Phoenix Children’s Hospital.
Each hospital is encouraged to customize the EduCat to meet its own unique needs. The technology eventually will allow students to connect with their home schools, participate in lectures, and communicate with peers and teachers from their hospital rooms.