ART CLASSES HAVE ANGEL; ANONYMOUS DONOR GIVES COMPUTERS.Byline: Kevin F. Sherry Daily News Staff Writer Agoura High School Agoura High School is a four-year high school, freshman-senior, in Agoura Hills, California, United States. It is the largest high school in the Las Virgenes Unified School District, with an enrollment of approximately 2,400 students. art teacher Nancy Rizzardi knows she has an angel watching over her classes. For the second time in a year, a parent has donated do·nate v. do·nat·ed, do·nat·ing, do·nates v.tr. To present as a gift to a fund or cause; contribute. v.intr. To make a contribution to a fund or cause. thousands of dollars in computer equipment to Rizzardi for use in her various art classes. Both times, her benefactor ben·e·fac·tor n. One that gives aid, especially financial aid. [Middle English, from Late Latin, from Latin benefacere, to do a service; see benefaction. has insisted on remaining anonymous. ``We call her my angel,'' Rizzardi said. ``I'm so grateful. My students are the direct beneficiaries from this.'' Last week, the Las Virgenes school board approved accepting about $15,000 in equipment - 10 iMac computers with expanded memory See EMS, EMM and expanded storage. (storage) expanded memory - Memory used through EMS. In systems based on Intel 80386 or later processor expanded memory is part of the extended memory that is mapped into the expanded memory page frame by the processor. , five Epson color printers A printer that prints in color using three (CMY) or four (CMYK) colors of ink, toner or dye. Four color ribbons have been used in dot matrix printers, but these are rare today. See color laser printer and printer. , 10 zip drives See Zip disk. (hardware, storage) Zip Drive - A disk drive from Iomega Corporation which takes removable 100 megabyte hard disks. Both internal and external drives are manufactured, making the drive suitable for backup, mass storage or for moving files between computers. and a digital camera - for use in Rizzardi's art classes. The board also approved $920 to buy tables and surge protectors A device that provides protection against power surges. See surge suppression. See also traffic surge protection. for the iMacs. Last year, Rizzardi received software, zip drives and two high-end color printers. She does not know why she has been singled out for such generous treatment, but she speculates that the parent simply has a student in one of her classes and knows of the difficulty in getting funding for art-specific software and materials. ``Mine is so specialized spe·cial·ize v. spe·cial·ized, spe·cial·iz·ing, spe·cial·iz·es v.intr. 1. To pursue a special activity, occupation, or field of study. 2. ,'' Rizzardi said. ``Nobody else in the school is going to use it.'' The new iMacs sit along the floor in Rizzardi's classroom, awaiting tables that should arrive any day now. The top-of-the-line Apple computers will give students the chance to operate beyond the capacity of their current Power Macs, said student Dan Gruver, 15, a sophomore and member of the school's technology committee. Because the new iMacs will be in Rizzardi's classroom instead of the campus computer lab, art students will have greater access to them, Dan said. ``That'll be nicer to be able to (work at) the computer for a longer time,'' he said. The additional memory and zip drives will allow students to work on and save larger files, said senior Chris Janssen, 17, another student member of the technology committee. ``You'll be able to do bigger projects and such,'' Chris said. Students will be able to scan hand-drawn images into the computer and manipulate them with greater dexterity and features, Rizzardi said. ``This will allow us to have a lot more options,'' she said. ``Technology is going to be their life.'' Rizzardi plans to scan exceptional student-created artwork into the computer to show to future classes as examples of good work. The Las Virgenes district frequently receives gifts targeted for specific programs or teachers, but rarely are such large gifts from a single person, said Deputy Superintendent Deputy Superintendent, or Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), was a rank used by police forces of the British Empire. In some territories it was called Deputy District Superintendent of Police (DDSP). Donald Zimring. Also, such large gifts are usually made with used or recycled equipment. ``This is the first time I can recall an outright gift of new equipment,'' Zimring said. Rizzardi said she has chosen not to look her gift horse in the mouth and will focus instead on the opportunities the computers will create for her students. She just appreciates ``having somebody who is really willing to make my dream come true,'' she added. ``It wouldn't happen otherwise.'' CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Agoura High teacher Nancy Rizzardi displays the new computers donated for use in her art classes. Andy Holzman/Daily News |
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