The first semester of the Year of Service ended with a presentation from a group that wants to give an educational tool to children in need.

Caryl Bigenho, a support volunteer for One Laptop per Child, gave a presentation on Nov. 4 in the Forum to persuade the audience to start a university chapter on campus.

One Laptop per Child provides children around the world with the XO, a ruggedly constructed green and white laptop computer that has a variety of educational programs as well as internet capabilities.

Bigenho pointed out how the goal of the program was more than just giving away a machine.

“It’s an education project, not a laptop project,” said Bigenho.

A university chapter would allow students to volunteer with the service to help repair the laptops, design programs, research and help write technical manuals that would be included in the machines.

Bigenho also stressed how they were in need of programmers to help them make more applications for the machines.

“So many of our programs are written by volunteers when a need is seen, and if a need is seen they can do that,” said Bigenho.

Bigenho also showed off some of the places where they had given laptops, such as Ethiopia, Ghana, Nicaragua, and even a few places in the US such as Florida.

The audience had an opportunity to come up onto the forum stage and play around with a selection of XO’s.

Kathryn Adams, Year of Service Co-Chair, says that she thinks the first semester of the Year of Service went well.

“I think it’s gone really well, I feel like it’s just starting to get a rhythm and pick up motion and I think we’ll get more into students really doing projects next semester,” said Adams.

She also feels that the OLPC presentation fit in with the overall theme of service nicely.

“If we can start a chapter here at the college, then we can help students take the skills they’re learning here at college, and take those skills and turn them into a project that could connect through the laptops to kids who need advantages,” said Adams.

Mackenzie Fuller, a 19-year-old international relations major, said she enjoyed getting a chance to fiddle with the laptops, and is intrigued at what they can accomplish.

“I’m interested in the development that can come with these things, I think they look really sturdy,” said Fuller.

19-year-old Saul Damji also enjoyed learning about OLPC.

“I’ve gained a lot of knowledge about this program, and I think it would be really beneficial to students in third world countries and even students here at home,” said Damji.