Growing Up Free

Bethel Homes residents participate in their second formal training with their refurbished laptops. These laptops are incentives for students participating in GED classes and adult literacy, leadership classes via the Bethel Homes community center. This class will be an Email Usage class covering topics ranging from creating an email, sending attachments, setting up signatures, formatting emails, etc. Volunteers are needed to setup the laptops and help the students follow along in class. Please email me at rachel@freeitathens.org or call me at 407-435-1497 if you would like to attend. When: Saturday, September 11 2010 at 8:30 AM to 11:30 AMWhere: 155 Hickman Dr Athens, GA 30601Park in front of the laundry center and walk down the sidewalk (right of the laundry center) until you find the community center two buildings down on your left.WhenSat Sep 11 8:30am – 11:30am Eastern TimeWhereBethel Homes Community Center 155 Hickman Dr Athens, GA 30601 (map)

At Free IT Athens, we're running low on the following items. If you have any that you could donate, it would be a real boon to our computer refurbishing program.Power cables (the standard kind used for desktop computers)Video Cards (PCI)Mice (PS/2 and USB)Keyboards (USB)

Free IT Athens now has bumper stickers for sale for just $1 each. The stickers are about 5 inches by 2 inches and will stand up to any wear and tear nature throws at them. Feel free to buy as many as you like during any Open Hours or Free IT Athens event.If you want to see what the stickers look like, click here.

Free IT Athens work with Bethel Midtown Village is mentioned in this article in the Athens Banner-Herald. From the article: Residents also highlighted a number of programs started to help educate Bethel residents, many of whom lack a high-school diploma. "If you don't have an education, there's nowhere you can go (for a job), not even McDonald's," Joyner said. Fourteen residents are enrolled in GED classes. The nonprofit Free IT Athens refurbished old computers, set up a computer center and offered training. The Athens Housing Authority cooked healthy lunches. Residents are starting up a child-care program so single mothers can work. And Barrow Elementary School, where Bethel children are zoned to attend, offers parents free transportation to school events.

Where: ACTION, Inc. Building - 594 Oconee Street Athens, GA 30605When: 6:00 PMThis is a brief orientation for those interested in volunteering with Free IT Athens.  All new volunteers must go through this orientation if they wish to volunteer at Free IT Athens.  This orientation session is being held on Thursday, August 26th at 6:00 PM in the ACTION, Inc. board room (second floor).  Orientation will begin promptly, so please be on time.  We look forward to seeing you!

Free IT Athens has been accepted into a UGA Athletic Association program that pays nonprofits $500 for helping to clean up the stadium after a football game. We need 20 volunteers to assist on our cleanup day, which we don't know the date of yet. If you're interested in helping, please contact freeitathens@gmail.com

This Thursday, August 19th, we will be having a special opportunity to volunteer refurbishing computers for the upcoming sales. All volunteers are welcome, even if you don't have extensive refurbishing experience. This session will last about 3 hours (which WILL count towards your total hours), so feel free to stop by and help get some computers working! If you have any questions, please email me at stephen@freeitathens.org.

If you're curious what a day at Free IT Athens looks like, take a peek at these photos from our Open Hours! Here's a picture of all the volunteers at today's hours.

Where: East Athens Community Center 400 McKinley Drive Athens, Georgia Time: Tuesday August 10, 2010 from 5:30 P.M. to 7:00 P.M.We need two technical oriented people and an additional volunteer to help setup a 10 laptop lab at the East Athens Community Center and show Ubuntu to the volunteers / staff that will be running the lab for the Athens Tutorial Program. These are with the school laptops that have been refurbished and will be connecting to a wireless network already installed at the location.I am unable to make it this night so I need someone to be the director. Greg Davis from CCSD will be there and this is not so much a class but more so an install and Ubuntu introduction.Please email me at rachel@freeitathens.org or call me at 407-435-1497 with questions.Best,Rachel

The J.R. Wells Boys & Girls Club is in need of some technical assistance before the school year starts. They need a few volunteers to:1) Install Ubuntu on four desktop computers.2) Install the firmware needed by broadcom-based wireless cards on several laptops that already have Ubuntu installed.If you're interested in helping, please write to freeitathens@gmail.com with the times you are available this Friday and Saturday, August 6th and 7th.

Free IT Athens will host our first Ubuntu Orientation and Sales Day on Thursday, August 5th, 2010 at the Action Building.This class is held for pre-scheduled students who are interested in purchasing a refurbished computer. We will be covering Ubuntu basics and transacting the sales. I am looking for 5 volunteers who can with the class. The class will start at 6:00 P.M. to about 7:30 P.M. Volunteers need to arrive at 5:00 PM or as early as possible since this is our first class. 1) Assemble computers in the meeting room area / Power Supplies2) Ensure Internet / Network is functioning properly3) Roam during training to keep students on track4) Collect Payment and fill out sales form 5) Assist customers to bring computers to car6) Setup merchandise area with Ethernet cables, printers, USB Wireless Adapters, etc.Please email me at rachel@freeitathens.org or call me at 407-435-1497 to confirm your attendance. Thanks,Rachel

This class is a special class for Free IT Athens Volunteers who would like a structured review of Ubuntu. It is an open discussion class where we can collaborate on what we know how to do. The class is best suited for volunteers who frequently attend open hours and new volunteers who are looking to increase their technical skills so they can be a more effective volunteer during open hours. Here are things I would like to cover:Applications Review / Installing and Removing SoftwareAppearance Settings / Task Panel ResetInstalling a PrinterChanging a password & Adding a userResetting a password from the terminal promptRunning Fsck from the terminal prompt for computers that boot to a black screenUbuntu Update ManagerFree IT Athens Website & Ubuntu Resources Review Please confirm you will be attending class. I will also need help setting up for the class starting at 5:15 P.M. You will receive hours towards you volunteer time for attending the class. Email me at rachel@freeitathens.org or call me at 407-435-1497 to confirm you can attend. I cannot offer rides to the Action building but I can offer rides home.Thanks,Rachel

We're having our next next new volunteer boot camp on Thursday, July 22nd, at 6PM. During this time, we'd like to find a couple people to volunteer in the computer lab so that parents can leave their children supervised in the lab while they attend the boot camp in the board room. If you interested in helping, please contact freeitathens@gmail.com

July's board meeting has been moved from 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM. It will still be held on July 10th at the ACTION building.

Free IT Athens t-shirts are here! You can see the front and back on Picasa. The cost is $18. We'll have them for sale at SouthEast LinuxFest and then at our regular open hours. They're screenprinted by Shirtworks in Athens, GA. The logo design is by Zach Alig. The blank shirts are from a California company, not a sweatshop.

Nellie B. Software and Downloading Class When: Sat, June 12, 9am – 11am Where: Nellie. B. Community Center 200 Zetella Ln Athens, GA (map) Description: Free IT Athens will be holding a Software Installation and Download Class for Ubuntu users. We need four volunteers to assist with the trainings. Based on the feedback from previous training assistants, I've created some special training materials including two Open Office presentations and two screencasts. Advanced technical knowledge is not needed. I hope to see many of you there. Coffee and a continental breakfast will be served. I'm offering rides to anyone who needs it. Please email me at www.freeitathens.org or call me at 407-435-1497 if you'd like to attend.

Free IT Athens will be holding another New Laptop Orientation for CCSD Families at the Old West Broad School, also known, as the Old Rutland School on Thursday, June 10th. We need assistant trainers to help ESOL families create a login & password, and understand Ubuntu basics. The class will be held in English and an interpreter will translate the instructions into English. The Ubuntu presentation will also be in English.We need four assistant trainers and one Free IT Athens staff member to volunteer.Location: 125 Minor Street, Athens GADate: Thursday June 10thTime: 5:30 to 7:30Please email me at rachel@freeitathens.org or call me at 407-435-1497 if you would like to attend.Thanks!

Free IT Athens will be working with Nellie B. residents operating their personal laptops donated by CCSD. This particular class will be about Open Office Word and Open Office Spreadsheet Programs.I would like to get 3 assistant trainers to help with the class. If you require transportation, I am happy to pick up up and take you home. Please call my cell at 407-435-1497 or email me at rachel@freeitathens.org.CLASS: 9:00 am TO 11:00 amTrainers should arrive about 15 minutes early. Breakfast will be served at the community center.Nellie B. Housing CommunityEastside Community Outreach200 Zetella Ln Athens, GA 30601Attendees:James Fair - Athens Housing Authority'Timothy Preston - Nellie B. CoordinatorGreg Davis - CCSDRachel Rotz - Free IT Athens Trainer3 Free IT Athens Assistant Trainer

Free IT Athens will not be holding open hours on June 13th. All interested volunteers are instead encouraged to visit the SouthEast LinuxFest in Spartanburg, SC instead.