College of William and Mary Picks IBM ThinkPad Notebooks for New Program

’myNotebook’ Designed to Enhance Teaching, Collaboration, Communication

WILLIAMSBURG, VA -- Mar 23, 2005 -- The College of William and Mary has chosen IBM ThinkPad notebooks for its new myNotebook computing initiative, a program designed to use mobile technology to enhance teaching and communication at the second-oldest educational institution in the United States.

Beginning with the fall 2005 semester, students at William and Mary will begin participating in the IBM ThinkPad T42 notebook pilot program. Students entering the College of William and Mary in fall 2006 will be the first class required to purchase a notebook PC, and IBM ThinkPad has been designated as the preferred notebook. A William and Mary notebook requirement will make access to the computer technology that is essential for academic success both convenient and affordable for students.

“The myNotebook program brings the promise of enhanced high-quality collaboration and communication that are the hallmarks of the William and Mary educational experience,” said Geoffrey Feiss, Provost, the College of William and Mary. “The possibilities that lie ahead are both exciting and challenging and we look forward to our collaboration with IBM and Lenovo.”

William and Mary, located next to Colonial Williamsburg, plans to expand its already extensive wireless network under the myNotebook program to all academic buildings and public spaces. Students and faculty will be able to connect wirelessly to the Internet in all academic buildings, many of the College’s public spaces, and in outdoor locations popular among students, faculty and staff. Additionally, the college’s office of residence life plans to add wireless access in resident hall lobbies, lounges, and other public areas. The comprehensive wireless network at William and Mary, along with the wireless capabilities of the ThinkPad notebooks, allows for more effective collaboration in group projects, case studies, simulations and other interactive exercises that have expanded across disciplines.

After researching and reviewing notebook computing programs, William and Mary chose the IBM ThinkPad T Series for its myNotebook initiative, believing convenient wireless access and award-winning computer technology are essential for academic success. With the myNotebook program, faculty, staff and alumni of the College of William and Mary will also be able to purchase ThinkPad notebooks through the IBM/Lenovo partnership. William and Mary alumni, for example, will have the option to buy ThinkPad notebooks, ThinkCentre desktops, and ThinkVision monitors at the college’s discounted prices.

About the College of William and Mary
Founded in 1693, the College of William and Mary is the nation’s second oldest institution of higher education. It enrolls about 5,000 undergraduates and 2,500 graduate students in the arts and sciences, business, education, law and marine science, and is known as one of the country’s “public Ivys” -- state-assisted institutions offering high-quality programs at modest tuition rates. More information is available a www.wm.edu.

About IBM and ThinkVantage Technologies
IBM ThinkVantage Technologies are available on IBM ThinkPad notebooks and ThinkCentre desktops, which will soon be a part of the Lenovo Group. ThinkVantage Technologies help customers quickly deploy, connect, protect and support their PCs. These tools help make IBM personal computing systems less dependent on IT staff for basic tasks such deployment, backup, maintenance and security, freeing up PC users and information technology staff members to focus on their own work -- not on PC maintenance. More information is available at www.ibm.com/thinkvantage

For more than 80 years, IBM people and solutions have been helping schools, institutions and corporations innovate for greater achievement, productivity and efficiency. Today, IBM employees help clients develop learning strategies, manage content, build learning architectures, and apply new learning approaches to maximize the value of their learning investments. More information about IBM solutions and experience in education and learning is available at www.ibm.com/learning.


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IBM, ThinkPad, ThinkCentre, and ThinkVantage are trademarks or registered trademarks of International Business Machines Corp.

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