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High-Tech Computer Center Opens

By HEATHER HADDON

With a switch, there was light as 24 flat-screen monitors were turned on at the inauguration of a new state-of-the-art computer center in North Fordham. After a year of construction, the computer lab, housed at Refuge House and run by Fordham Bedford Children's Services (FBCS), will offer open hours and a range of training classes within the next few weeks.

"Technology should not be a barrier in this neighborhood anymore, or at least a greatly reduced one," said John Garcia, executive director of FBCS.

The sleek lab, officially named the Heiskell Enterprise Center, is one of three city centers opening with $1.75 million raised by the Enterprise Foundation. Grants were made to the national organization in honor of Andrew Heiskell, former CEO of Time, Inc. and a longtime city philanthropist.

"I didn't quite understand the idea when it was first proposed to me," said Heiskell, who nearly jumped in his wheelchair when the first computer monitor flicked on. "But it gradually seeped in, and it struck me as extraordinary."

The renovations to the space, once the convent of Our Lady of Refuge Church and now known as Refuge House, are extraordinary. Traces of shuffleboard grids still lined the floors and the walls needed painting. "It looked a bit gloomy," said Roxanna Chowdhry, director of programs at FBCS. Now, carpeting covers the floors and the walls are a brilliant white. 

FBCS, founded by the nonprofit Fordham Bedford Housing Corporation, has offered services for children at Refuge House since 1995. While FBCS maintained a computer lab there since 1998, it housed only eight older machines. "We've moved into the year 2003 now," Chowdhry said.

FBCS is gearing up to offer a wide range of free computer instruction to all ages, in addition to supervised open hours in the afternoons. Along with computerized ESL and GED classes, Remy Edwards, the center's coordinator, will provide application training and computer fundamentals for novices. Most classes will be conducted in the evenings. But morning sessions will be available for the unemployed and residents of Concourse House, a transitional shelter for women and children run by the housing corporation.

"These skills give job seekers a competitive edge in the workforce," Edwards said. "It's often the first thing an employer asks about." For the self-employed, such as the home-based day-care providers who work extensively with FBCS, the center will also offer training in accounting applications. 

But FBCS has bigger dreams. "In four to five months, we will be offering Web design classes," Edwards said. "We're also thinking of starting a robotics lab for kids. We're really trying to make this place something special."

In the meantime, FBCS's after-school programs will utilize the lab for homework 
assignments and basic computer training. "When I was growing up, there was nothing like this available," said Edwards, a North Fordham native. "It's easier to learn [about computers] early."

Local youth appeared eager to learn immediately, rushing to the Dells when the center's opening ceremony concluded. "It's great," said Crystal Mendez, a fifth grader at neighboring PS 46. "I'll use it for the Internet, games and homework assignments like writing."

Victor Diplen, who also lives nearby, is excited about the center's upgrade. "I hope to use it more often now," said the 13-year-old.

Ed. note: For more information about offerings at the Heiskell Enterprise Center, call Fordham Bedford Children Services at (718) 733-2557.