News > October 8, 2003

By Ally Diljohn

Old Gold and Black Reporter

Twelve ThinkPad computers formerly used by university students were recently donated to Kabul University in Afghanistan. The laptops, along with other computer supplies, were donated to the Cisco Networking Academy Program. They arrived in Afghanistan Sept. 19 and will soon be used by students in Kabul.

According to Jay Dominick, assistant vice president of Information Systems, the computers sent were returned by juniors two years ago during the annual computer exchange. In addition to the computers, printers, several dozen printer cartridges and two boxes of paper were sent to Afghanistan.

Only two boxes of paper were sent because of logistical problems. “We were very limited in weight for the shipment,” Dominick said.

The Cisco Networking Academy Program, sponsored by the Women’s Affairs Ministry and the Ministry of Telecommunications, is helping to “train students on Internet-based technologies,” according to Dominick.

“As Afghanistan re-enters the modern world, the need for people that can build, support and use computer networks is large.”

The idea to send the laptops came as a result of a meeting between Dominick, John Anderson, vice president of finance and administration and John Chambers, Cisco president and university parent, which took place in January.

The university ROTC played a major role in transporting the computers. According to Major Robert Seals, the ROTC took the computers to Fort Bragg Sept. 12. From there, they were taken to Pope Air Force Base and flown to Kandahar, Afghanistan with the Third Special Forces Group.

“We were happy to be of assistance,” Seals said of the ROTC’s role in delivering the computers. “When lots of folks work together we can move mountains,” he said.

The university has donated computers before, but, “as a general rule we don’t donate many computers,” John Henderson, director of administration of Information Systems, said.

Despite this, there is a potential for continued interaction between the university and the program in Kabul.

“I’ve spoken to our contacts in Afghanistan about extending the project and they are very interested,” Dominick said.

As of now, there are no official plans for donating more computers.

According to Henderson, old ThinkPads are usually sold to Winston-Salem Forsyth County schools. Through an agreement with the department of instructional technology, all of the schools in the school system have received computers from the university. Over 1,000 computers are sold to the school system annually.

Other school districts, including the Thomasville and Yadkin County schools have purchased used laptops, although most of the computers go to the local school system. Recently, the university sold 20 used ThinkPads to the San Carlos Apache Tribe in Arizona through the help of Stephen Boyd, professor of religion.

The university has donated old desktop computers to other organizations in the past.

In addition, Henderson said that the university gave between 30 and 35 old computers to a hospital in Moldova last year through CompuMed, a part of university computer sales and service.

The university is looking to take part in a similar donation project this year, Henderson added.