Woonsocket-Based CVS Helps Students Learn from Home

WOONSOCKET, RI (WLNE) –Woonsocket-based CVS Health is helping local public schools purchase 750 Chromebook laptops for students to use at home.

The CVS Health is donating $150,000 to the Rhode Island Foundation to guarantee every K-12 student in Woonsocket’s district gets a computer and access to Wi-Fi for remote learning.

Previous to the donation, the Rhode Island Foundation partnered with the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) and dedicated $100,00 for the same cause in early April and is challenging individuals and companies across the state to contribute.

Lisa Bisaccia, the Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer at CVS Health, knew the transition to home learning would put many families in difficult situations so she hoped “that providing access to technology helps ease the burden on local families in our hometown of Woonsocket.”

The Mayor of Woonsocket, Lisa Baldelli-Hunt, said she was pleased with the generous donation by CVS Health and all the work RIDE has done and wanting “to thank my community partners in enabling us to place hundreds of Chromebooks into the hands of children.”

Echoing in Hunt’s thankfulness, Rhode Island Foundation President and CEO Neil D. Steinberg and Commissioner of Education Angélica Infante-Green were both amazed by the generosity of Rhode Islanders. Steinberg called the support for students and teachers “inspiring,” as Infante-Green sees Rhode Island as “a national model for distance learning.”

Governor Gina Raimondo applauded the efforts by CVS Health and others in donating to the Rhode Island Foundation, saying it “sends such a powerful message about what our state is all about and what we can do together.”