Public Computer Centers Provide Access in the Heart of KC's East Side

Pioneer Campus Public Computer Center located at 2700 E. 18 Street,
Kansas City, MO (photo credit: Metropolitan Community College)
I was curious to see what the facilities were like that housed the new Public Computer Center at the Pioneer Campus of the Metropolitan Community College on Kansas City's East Side. After all, the expansion of computer centers was publically-funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to provide computer access and training for anyone that wants to use the computers.

This means community college students or anyone can use the computers after registering online or at the site. The registration allows administrators to track compliance with computer-use policies, but I did not interpret this as a limitation on people using the computers.

Mario and Dale, lab technicians at the computer center, shared how the centers provide a full curriculum of free training classes from basic training to Microsoft Office to social media to iTunes and Google Docs, as well as instruction in career opportunities, resume-writing, interviewing, among others. The computer center at the Pioneer Campus had updated computers and monitors, along with updated audio-visual equipment for projecting class material on a screen.

The room, equipped with 20 computers, was quiet but busy with five students, but a few entering and leaving during the 15-minute visit to the center. There are six public computer centers located at Metropolitan Community Campuses in addition to a new center located in Kearney, Missouri that opened on November 12, 2012.

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