For many high school students, staying inspired and focusing on a path to successful careers can be
daunting. Many students do not have enough opportunities to discover untapped talents and reach for
their dreams. This can be especially true in Title I schools in the United States, where financial assistance
is provided to schools with high percentages of children from low-income families to help ensure that all
children meet challenging state academic standards.
U.S. President Barack Obama launched the ConnectED initiative to help increase learning engagement and
outcomes by providing 99% of American students with industry-leading technology and access to a world
of ideas through high-speed broadband connections. President Obama asked the nations top technology
companies to help through donations.
As part of its contribution to ConnectED, Adobe is donating more than $300 million in software and
professional development services to K-12 Title I schools over four years. Lawrence County High School
(LCHS) in Alabama, a Title I school with 640 students, was among the first recipients.
Our tax revenues to fund schools have taken a big hit since our areas largest employer shut down last
year, says Gina McCarley, computer science and business teacher at Lawrence County High School. Grants,
such as the one we received from Adobe, are essential for us in helping students acquire digital skills that will
improve their success after graduation.
Last years closing of the largest employer in the area cost the region 1,100 jobs. The countys schools are
now the largest employer, but they are reliant on tax revenues to operate. With dwindling tax income, it
has become even more difficult for LCHS to afford even the basics, such as technology and new band
equipment. Furthermore, more than half of students at Lawrence County High School are eligible for
federally subsidized or free lunch.
Adobe software grant in action
Sometimes challenges at school and in the local economy can lead to a sense of hopelessness. Teachers
have had to work with limited resources and equipment. In her Multimedia Design class, McCarley resorted
to pairing two students or more on one computer due to limited access to software.
Today, students and teachers at LCHS can envision and explore a broader range of career possibilities with
access to Adobe software through the White Houses ConnectED initiative. Adobe creative software such as
Adobe Premiere Elements is now available on every computer in the schools lab so everyone can contribute
their best work. Students have their own digital canvasses to express their unique ideas and more successfully
build skills for future success.
Each student can sit down at an individual computer with Adobe software and be creative in their own
way, so their personalities really come through, says McCarley. Students now take more ownership of their
projects and are really proud of their ability to work with industry-standard, recognized tools from Adobe.
New drums, please
Through video storytelling powered by Adobe Premiere Elements software, students are finding new ways
to be creative and communicate their ideas to the world. The resulting projects are impressive.
As part of a collaborative effort between McCarley and school Band Director Blake Ferguson and his drum
team, students created a video for Zildjians My Pits The Pits video contest. A compilation of individual class
assignments from McCarleys Multimedia Design class were cut together using Adobe Premiere Elements
and scenes were set to music and audio created by Ferguson and his students.
The video starts with a students hand knocking on an office door with a Zildjian logo, superimposed onto
the door using Adobe Premiere Elements. It continues on to ask Zildjian in song, Do you want to buy us
new drums? After that, the schools talented drum team showcases an impressive performance that won
first place, resulting in a grand prize award of $10,000 in percussion equipment from Zildjian.
This sophisticated video was LCHS second contest entry. The first, which was part of a top five finalist group,
was for the Compass Learning Classroom Refresh Contest. The LCHS student video shows the desire for a
new approach to learning through online tools. The video explains the impact Compass Learning would
have on the school by engaging them every day and helping them better understand concepts.
The Compass Learning video contest was our first video project, so students were just starting out, says
McCarley. The second project resulting in the first-prize Zildjian video is a real testament to how quickly
students can learn and gain confidence and creative skills using Adobe software. Students were quickly
adding layers and using more advanced, Expert features to make the Zildjian video more sophisticated.
Looking to the future, LCHS is expanding beyond video. McCarley plans to start incorporating photo editing
and stop motion animation, topics students are keenly interested in, into her classes. A combination of
both Adobe Premiere Elements and Adobe Photoshop Elements on every computer will allow students to
explore these new areas.
McCarley is also beginning to record eLearning content and develop a library of sessions so that students can study when and where it is most convenient using Adobe Presenter and Adobe Captivate software. As well, she is taking advantage of professional development opportunities provided by their grant from Adobe to
take self-paced online courses to learn from Adobe and other teachers and share her newfound skills.
As a teacher at a Title I school, I cant overstate how important it is to give students creative outlets, says
McCarley. With software grants from Adobe as part of the White Houses ConnectED initiative, my students
are discovering talents, learning new tools, enjoying class, and getting access to software we otherwise couldnt afford. Gaining skills using Adobe software opens students eyes to new career possibilities and even more
important gives them hope.
**The above article was reprinted with permission from Adobe Systems Incorporated, 2015.
