NEWARK, N.J., Feb. 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- At one of its early childhood schools, the City of Newark today showed off two of the 75 Young Explorer(TM) computer learning centers it is receiving from IBM (NYSE: IBM) to help teach young children concepts in math, science, and language. As part of an IBM grant awarded with the guidance of United Way of Essex and West Hudson, the learning centers will be installed in 30 area locations, serving 190 teachers and 3,000 children between the ages of four and seven this year.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090416/IBMLOGO )

Volunteers from IBM are helping to install many of the Young Explorer computer learning centers, valued at $180,000. The grant is part of a $4.3 million nationwide initiative by IBM to provide more than 1,700 computer learning center and teaching curricula to schools and nonprofit organizations that provide services to disadvantaged students. The computer learning centers are part of more than $600,000 in technology and services that IBM has provided to the City of Newark in the past year, including a Smarter Cities Challenge grant in which top IBM experts made recommendations for improving the city's efficiency.

"This is a wonderful example of a great public private partnership and on behalf of the residents of our great city I thank IBM and the United Way of Essex and West Hudson for bringing this innovative technology to our public schools," said Newark Mayor Cory A. Booker. In order to compete in today's global market you have to be technologically savvy and these computer learning centers will give so many students the opportunity to build their math, science and language skills. By investing in the educational excellence of Newark's children today, we will create the foundation for our city's prosperity and competitiveness in the decades ahead."

"The Newark Public Schools greatly appreciates the generous donation of the Young Explorer workstations from our partners, IBM and United Way of Essex and West Hudson, who organized the distribution," said Newark Public Schools Superintendent Cami Anderson. "We are excited about this investment in our children, especially in the critical development stages of the early years that are so important to long term academic success."

"The way to improve student achievement is to start with children at a very young age and give them a strong foundation in basic skills," said Stanley S. Litow, IBM's Vice President of Corporate Citizenship and Corporate Affairs, and president of IBM's International Foundation. "We believe that the specially designed computer learning centers we are providing Newark City Schools will help build that foundation by increasing children's math, science, and language skills in a fun, interactive way. Adopting innovative techniques and technology are just some of the ways that the City of Newark can build a smarter city and a smarter society -- and we are pleased to be able to do our part."

IBM's KidSmart program includes the Young Explorer, a computer housed in brightly colored, child-friendly Little Tikes(TM) furniture and equipped with award-winning educational software to help children learn and explore concepts in math, science and language. The computer centers can also help children learn important socialization skills such as cooperation and sharing, which are essential to classroom success. In addition, teachers participating in the program become more confident about incorporating technology into their classrooms.

The KidSmart program also includes access to the KidSmart website www.kidsmartearlylearning.org. Available in eight languages, the site helps parents guide their children's use of technology and preschool teachers use technology more effectively in their classrooms.

IBM developed the KidSmart program in 1998 to help reduce the digital divide, especially in urban areas, where it was becoming apparent that children from less affluent backgrounds needed access to specialized technology tools and educational materials to better prepare them to enter school. IBM is focused on increasing the number of children entering into math, science and engineering, and believes that success in early childhood learning is a critical step. Since the inception of the KidSmart Early Learning Program in 1998, IBM has invested more than $133 million, donating more than 60,000 Young Explorers to schools and nonprofit organizations in 60 countries, reaching more than 105,000 teachers and serving more than 10 million students.

For more information about IBM's citizenship efforts, please visit: www.citizenibm.com

Contacts:

Ari Fishkind
IBM Media Relations
914-499-6420
fishkind@us.ibm.com

Newark Press Information Office
(973) 733-8004
Pressoffice@ci.newark.nj.us

SOURCE IBM