The 'A' In Maine Stands For Apple As In Notebooks

There’s no doubt about it. Maine is Apple country, at least when it comes to technology in the classroom.

The Maine Department of Education announced Tuesday it will expand its Learning Technology Initiative (MLTI), which has provided Apple notebook computers to all middle school students since 2002, into high schools. The DOE has placed an order for more than 64,000 MacBooks for students and faculty in grades seven through twelve as well as 7,000 additional laptops.

The MLTI seeks to provide professional development and 21st century tools to secondary education teachers and students to support the attainment of the Maine state standards.


In making the announcement, Main Education Commissioner Sue Gendron said the middle school success in boosting student engagement and achievement was the reason the department decided to extend the effort to the high school level.

The middle school laptop program put Maine on the technology map as being the first and only state with a statewide implementation of laptops for every student. The high school expansion will mark the world's largest educational technology program of its kind, according to the DOE.

"This is not just about technology — it’s about using the technology to support education,” said Gendron. “Apple has been a great partner and consistently demonstrates that it understands the need to provide a complete solution that puts education first. We're very excited about the new school year."

The DOE, in a press release, noted that the MacBook's compact, durable design is “perfect” for learning in and out of a classroom. Each laptop provides students and faculty with a wide array of educational software, professional development, repair and replacement and technical support.