“Apple Financial Services really worked with us to make sure the financial arrangements were a good fit. We’ve done several equipment leases with them in the past, and their flexibility has always been key to making things work for us.” - Bobby Ireland, IT Director Saint Agnes Academy - Saint Dominic School

Memphis, TN — The classroom model at Saint Agnes Academy - Saint Dominic School (SAA-SDS) is as unique as it is rigorously academic. Over 800 students attend the Catholic independent school, which offers coeducational pre-K and kindergarten classes, single-sex classes for girls and boys in grades one through six, coordinated junior high classes for boys and girls in grades seven and eight, and college preparatory education for girls from grades nine through twelve.

Throughout the school’s 153-year history, the concepts of brain-based learning (namely, in a brain not prohibited from fulfilling its normal processes, learning will occur), and how gender affects learning and academic development have been critical factors in the design of the school’s curriculum. Early on, school administrators realized the potential of technology tools to facilitate learning. But the school’s budget didn’t quite stretch far enough to allow equal computer access for all students.

“We saw that technology would play an important role in helping all types of learners,” says Bobby Ireland, IT director at SAA-SDS. “We wanted to create an environment where no one had to wait to get on a computer. But with just two computer labs and 800 students, that wasn’t really practical. We bought five iBook Wireless Mobile Labs. But as soon as people saw how easy they made it for any student to get access to a computer, we had fights over who’d get to use them. That really fueled the fire for us to consider providing a laptop for every student.”

Flexible Finance Options
Ireland, who had helped the school transition from PCs to Macs after his appointment in 2001, again tapped Apple for assistance. At the time, the school could ill afford to purchase hundreds of laptops. But, he says, AFS Education Finance came to the rescue with a customized, flexible leasing program. With a unique payment schedule, below-market rates, and a variety of options at the end of the lease, AFS Education Finance helped the school get the most out of its budget.

“We weren’t in a situation where we could pay the whole amount on the spot,” recalls Ireland. “But AFS Education Finance gave us the option to push our first payment back 60 or 90 days, or however long it would take to work within our fiscal cycle. The people at Apple who work with educators know that there are certain times of the year when schools have a big influx of tuition payments ... and they were willing to create a leasing payment schedule that took our cash flow into consideration.”