www.canisiushigh.org
15
hink back to what was once
considered high technology,
and you’ll get a good picture of
the progress over time of Canisius’s application
of technology to its educational mission. English
teacher Russell White remembers that the over-
head projector he used in his ‘60s classroomwas
considered hot stuff. In the late ‘80s The Rev.
Eugene Zimpfer, S.J., ‘49 introduced personal
computers to the school. He authorized a com-
puter lab for administrative support staff, who
wore T-shirts saying “I boot for Zimpfer,” in rec-
ognition of the momentous occasion.
The early ‘90s brought in electronic grad-
ing—“barely,” says Principal Timothy Fitzgerald,
laughing. Just before the advent of affordable
laptops, Canisius owned 25 computers, three of
which were devoted to teachers.
Once teachers began carrying laptops, the die
seems to have been cast. Conversations began in
earnest about getting technology into the hands
of all students. Ultimately, Canisius decided to
implement what’s known today as a one-to-one
computing initiative that features iPads, “flipped
classrooms” and a whole new way of learning
and teaching.
T
Awhole new
way of learning
and teaching