Six N.J. school districts receive $1.1 million in technology equipment

Six school districts in New Jersey last week received a total of $1.1 million in computer networking equipment from Cabletron Systems Inc. as part of the company's national effort to get young people acquainted with computers.

The Folsom, Garfield, Guttenberg, Riverton, Stanhope and Hillside school districts will receive equipment including local-area network hardware, personal computers, racks and cables. In addition to allowing more students to use computers, the schools will be able to develop intranets and provide additional support for special education programs.

"New Jersey has an ambitious technology agenda, [and] this public/private partnership to wire six of our schools is a very important part of our plans to strengthen our children's education by bringing the Internet and educational programs into the classroom," said the state chief information officer Wendy Rayner.

Cabletron, based in Rochester, N.H., began its $100 million Project Connect program last year in an effort to provide school-age children with the opportunity to learn more about the Internet and computers, regardless of the resources available in their districts.