(Left to Right: Daisy Hampton of Including You, Deirdre Nowak of P.S. 723x@189x, Chuck Grimley and Chad Grimley of Grimley Financial Corporation)
11-Year-Old NYC Student Partners with Grimley Financial Donate Laptops to Special-Needs Students in the Bronx
60,000 Laptops Still Needed as Schools Switch Back to Remote Instruction
NEW YORK, NY — The day after New York City public schools shut down once again due to the spread of COVID-19, 11-year-old Daisy Hampton and Grimley Financial Corporation donated 10 laptops to P.S. 723x@189x in the Bronx. The laptops will be delivered to students of P.S. 723x@189x, a school that exclusively serves children with Autism Spectrum Disorder or multiple disabilities and who receive special education services.
At Wednesday’s press conference announcing the re-closing of schools, Chancellor Richard A. Carranza estimated that 60,000+ students still do not have a working laptop or tablet needed to participate in remote learning, nine months into the pandemic.
“There are too many students missing out on school. I’m so grateful to Grimley Financial for the gift of 10 laptops to help 10 more students connect to their teachers and classmates,” said Daisy Hampton, founder of Including You, a peer mentorship and philanthropy organization founded at the beginning of the pandemic. “Ten students down, 59,990 to go.”
The laptops were purchased, donated, and delivered to P.S. 723x@189x by Chuck and Chad Grimley of Grimley Financial Corporation, who read about Daisy’s efforts to provide students with laptops and wanted to help.
“We’re so inspired by Daisy’s efforts to connect students with devices they need to continue learning virtually,” said Charles D. Grimley III, President and CEO of Grimley Financial Corporation.
“While it took multiple trips to Best Buy to find and purchase these 10 laptops for students, we’re thankful that we could find a way to help students who need it the most,” said Chad Grimley, Analytics Manager, Grimley Financial Corporation.
“Now that schools have closed again, many of my students are in desperate need of laptops and devices to keep learning,” said Deidre Nowak, Unit Coordinator at P.S. 723x@189x. This is especially important because of the nature of our students’ disabilities and the importance of as much interaction with teachers as possible. I’m so grateful to Grimley Financial and Including You for these donated laptops.”
“I was so amazed when Chad reached out to me to ask how he could help,” Daisy Hampton commented. “I soon learned that his family has a long history of service. I’m so glad that they chose to support this cause because so many New York City kids are in desperate need of devices now that school is all remote. And without dedicated teachers like Deirdre — who plans to deliver them to each of the students herself — we would never know who there are!”
In the abrupt shift to remote learning in March, 11-year old New York City middle schooler, Daisy Hampton, noticed that some of her classmates seemed to have more access to technology and stable internet connections than others. Daisy understood that the pandemic would doubly impact students who were already experiencing hardships — those with disabilities, neurodiverse students, and those facing economic challenges. Daisy, with the help of her mom, Jennifer, founded Including You to support underserved students through the pandemic and beyond.
Including You has provided nearly 50 laptops and internet hotspots to Mississippi students served by partner organization Family Biz Builders. When Daisy learned that over 75,000 public school students in her own city lacked functioning devices needed for remote learning, she pivoted her focus to NYC.
After Daisy’s delivery of a laptop to a student in the Bronx, Daisy received more than 200 requests in one day for additional laptops from public school teachers on behalf of their students. Now, Daisy meets almost daily with those in need to deliver laptops or hotspots. To meet the need, Including You is raising funds to provide additional devices to students without access to a functional device.
For more information, visit IncludingYou.org.
