On October 22, Keeneyville Elementary School District 20 received 25 Dell Latitude Pentium laptops from Mokena-based managed IT services firm Wynndalco Enterprises, gratefully putting this technology to use in spanning the distance between schools and homes during this extraordinary time of COVID-19 e-learning.

“With an Early Childhood Center for ages three to five, Greenbrook and Waterbury Elementary Schools, and Spring Wood Middle School, Keeneyville encompasses a truly diverse population,” says Julie 

Relihan, Director of Communications and Community Relations. And within the district itself, larger families with multiple students sometimes struggle to keep up with both hardware and Internet connectivity. “We’ve identified over 41 different languages spoken at students’ homes, with nearly 56% of families qualifying as lower-income,” Relihan states. “We believe technology in education is the main tool that can balance so many needs across socio-economic, language, and ethnic strata.”

DuPage County Board Member Greg Hart acts as the bridge, identifying area schools needing a helping hand with their technology and connecting companies like Wynndalco Enterprises, whose donations make an enormous difference…especially in this era of distance learning.

“Some of the inequalities in our districts and neighborhoods have been heightened by COVID,” Hart explains. “We work with the Regional Superintendent to best determine which schools could benefit from technology donations. Hanover Park is a really diverse area and, in this case, Keeneyville came to mind as a district that’s doing a phenomenal job to distribute resources wisely in most-needed areas.”

While Wynndalco Enterprises is a key provider in multiple public school system technology contracts, they also have a proven background as an E-Rate service provider to help secure affordable Internet connectivity for schools and libraries. Founder and CEO David Andalcio himself knows the benefits strong education can provide; after emigrating from Trinidad in his teens, he’s committed to making learning a constant in his life and seeks to give back to kids, locally and globally, who want to do the same.

“In Wynndalco’s work with public school systems here and abroad, we meet these amazing kids who are hungry to learn but need the equal opportunities to do so—technology access included,” Andalcio explains. 

In Keeneyville’s case, a diverse population, myriad needs (like before- and after-care for students with working parents) and hybrid learning schedules, both onsite and -off, have created a remarkable challenge that the District is meeting admirably, day by day.

“We are hugely fortunate to have a long partnership with both the Hanover Park and Roselle Park Districts, which provide additional childcare both at their facilities and onsite at our schools,” Relihan says. “This kind of support from local community entities and businesses like Wynndalco has afforded us the opportunity to keep education—and families—going during this unusual time.”

Adds Andalcio, “I know personally what it’s like to face these kinds of challenges, but also believe wholeheartedly these kids are our future, so it’s our joy to be able to support them however we can to facilitate their learning and future opportunities.” 

Established in 2009, Wynndalco is a certified DBE/MBE/SBE/BEP that serves educational institutions, state- and local governments, Fortune 500 and -100 businesses, and transportation entities with proven, affordable, professional support for End-User Device Management, Warehouse & Logistics, Project Management, Technology Infrastructure Operations, and SMART Board® and A/V services. For more information, visit www.wynndalco.com.