Social Impact & Volunteering

HP Launches Education Innovation Fund in China with $1 Million Donation

Apr 14, 2012 12:00 AM ET
Campaign: Empowering Students, Teachers, and Entrepreneurs to Succeed in the 21st Century

(3BL Media) Beijing, China - April 13, 2012 - HP today announced the creation of an Education Innovation Fund in China. HP’s fund will support teacher training through a $1 million donation to Zhejiang University and the National Commission of the People’s Republic of China for United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).  

The fund’s aim is to increase the use of information, communication and technology (ICT) solutions to improve education outcomes in China.

“HP has always believed that the success of businesses and the overall well-being of society are interdependent,” said Gabi Zedlmayer, vice president, Sustainability and Social Innovation, HP. “Through our partnership with Zhejiang University and the National Commission of the People’s Republic of China for UNESCO, HP’s scale, network and technological strengths can uniquely contribute to China’s education innovation and reform.”

HP, a catalyst for innovations in education around the world, is partnering with Zhejiang University and the National Commission of the People’s Republic of China for UNESCO to manage the Education Innovation Fund for China.

Given the importance of science, technology,engineering and math (STEM) education, teachers will learn how to use ICT effectively and innovatively in classrooms with a personalized learning approach.

Over two years, more than 5,000 teachers from 500 rural and urban schools in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, and Chengdu, Sichuan Province, will be trained through the fund, impacting thousands of students yearly. These educators will be subsequently invited to enter a competition to demonstrate how they applied their training toward innovating teaching.

The project will contribute directly to the implementation of China’s National Medium Strategy for Education Planning and Development (2011-2020), supporting the Chinese government’s determination to improve education through the innovative use of ICT in teaching.
The announcement, made at the 2012 HP Catalyst Summit Beijing, is part of HP’s initiative to use technology to drive education development, reform and innovation in China. HP hopes to foster talent that meets the demands of business and economic development and contribute to the country’s overall social advancement.

“As one of the first high-tech companies to enter this burgeoning market, HP has firmly upheld the strategy of ‘In China for China’ over the past 27 years,” said Steve Gill, managing director, China HP. “This donation and the deepened cooperation with our local partners further demonstrate our confidence for long-term growth and our longstanding commitment to this market.”

“China’s Medium and Long-term National Educational Reform and Development Plan defines information technology as a revolutionary tool for education development,” said Yue DU, secretary-general, National Commission of the People’s Republic of China for UNESCO. “When applied to academics, informatization can improve our country’s education advancement. We are pleased to work with HP on an innovative project in this field and hope this partnership will provide valuable knowledge for future activities that promote education modernization.”

During the 2012 HP Catalyst Summit, China HP’s business groups are demonstrating some of their targeted solutions that can support the country’s educational development with HP technologies and expertise.

HP Catalyst Summit Beijing
The 2012 HP Catalyst Summit is being held from April 12 to 14 in Beijing. The summit brings together more than 120 educators, education experts and policy leaders from 15 countries. The goals of the summit are to exchange new best practices, establish professional networking and collaborations, and explore how technology can enable STEM innovations. The event is hosted by HP in collaboration with the International Society for Technology in Education (www.iste.org).

During the summit, six representatives from the HP Catalyst Initiative international consortia will share and demonstrate their latest achievements. Tsinghua University’s School of Economic Management, the first leading organization in China to participate in the “STEM-preneur” consortia, will share research findings and lead other member organizations in a discussion on entrepreneurial study.

 

About HP
HP creates new possibilities for technology to have a meaningful impact on people, businesses, governments and society. The world’s largest technology company, HP brings together a portfolio that spans printing, personal computing, software, services and IT infrastructure to solve customer problems. More information about HP (NYSE: HPQ) is available at http://www.hp.com.