School buses in Caldwell County to be equipped with Wi-Fi

CALDWELL COUNTY, N.C. — School buses in Caldwell County are being equipped to do more than get students to and from school.

The new improvements will give students an opportunity to access the internet during their travel times.

These improvements are the first in North Carolina that will bridge a big gap for some families.

Isaiah Deskins is like a lot of students at Gamewell Elementary.

He rides the bus nearly an hour each way to and from school.

Now he and his classmates can get a jump start on their homework because there's Wi-Fi on their buses.

"I think it's pretty cool. Easier to do homework if I don't want to do it at home and stuff," student Isaiah Deskins said.

"It was kind of boring before, and when you get your computers it's more fun," student Mary Smith said.

The school district showed WSOC some of the Chromebooks they provide the middle-schoolers who otherwise couldn't afford one.

Enoch Moeller, from Google, showed Channel 9 some of the equipment on each of the buses.

The tech giant partnered with the Caldwell County education foundation to provide Wi-Fi on 10 buses.

"There are many students in this county who, for a variety of reasons, whether location or because of family income levels, may not have access to internet at home, and that puts them at a real disadvantage," Moeller said.

Reporter Dave Faherty decided to put the bus Wi-Fi to a test by opening up WSOC interactive radar, and the Wi-Fi worked.

But it is the classroom work school leaders hope students focus on.

There are three teachers riding buses right now to help.

The content is filtered and there are three cameras on all of the buses to monitor what's going on, Principal Anna Crooke said.

"Our students have done great so far. Our behavior has been better with the cameras on our buses. It's been a wonderful experience for everyone," Crooke said.

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