On Thursday July 7, students at Salt Lake Community College will have the opportunity to get their computers repaired for free and donate to a good cause all at the same time at the Computer Repair Clinic, which will be sponsored by the TECH Club (formerly the Computer Synergy Club). This is the second such clinic sponsored by the club, with the first having been held last semester.
TECH Club Vice President Dean Elmore explained that the main reason behind holding such an event is the fact that such repairs often cost students more money than they may have.
“It’s something that most students need help with,” he said. “Students do not have infinite funds, so this was something that we (the club) did because there are a lot of students who don’t have the resources, and we have the knowledge and skills to do the repairs to the computers.”
Held in the Student Events Center at the Taylorsville Redwood Campus, Elmore indicated that just the system itself will need to be brought in, as the club will have things like mouses and keyboards there to set up. He said that while space allows for more than just smaller machines like laptops, only Windows-based machines will be examined.
He also indicated that some of the problems that arise with computers are due to the environment in which they are typically kept. Because the exact same environment will not be able to be duplicated at the clinic, such problems will not be able to be fixed.
Perhaps the thing that Elmore stressed the most was the idea that not only will the technicians be working on the computers, but they will also be explaining why they are making certain repairs.
“It’s always best to educate people,” Elmore said. “It gives them a sense of empowerment. When we finish with a computer we will go through and explain what we did to fix it and things that they (the students) need to be aware of, like if there is no virus protection on the system.”
Elmore advises that students arrive on time, with the event beginning at 1:30 in the afternoon. He indicated that at the first clinic, he was busy the entire time due to the volume of students that attended the event.
While helping students get their computers fixed is a main goal of the clinic for the TECH Club, there is a second important reason behind holding the event. While the event itself is free, the club has decided to use these clinics as an opportunity to help those in need through providing an opportunity for students to donate to a good cause.
Last semester the club chose the Student Orphan Aid Program (SOAP) as its beneficiary. This organization aims to help young people who are the victims of civil war in their homelands have opportunities for higher education. This semester the club has chosen Copperview Elementary School in Midvale as its beneficiary.
“The TECH Club decided to check out some of the local causes for our second Computer Repair Clinic,” said Mallory Black, club treasurer. “After some research online, we found a listing on CreateTheGood.org for Copperview Elementary, located in Midvale, which predominately serves a larger population of students from low-income families. The school was in need of school supplies, like pencils and erasers, scissors, markers, and colored pencils for their students.”
In explaining what the club hopes to provide these young children through the donations, Black reiterated the unique opportunity that each person who is at the clinic will have to help somebody.
“At the very core of the TECH Club is a responsibility to help our community through synergy, or more simply put, through combined efforts that we could not achieve alone,” she said. “With our free Computer Repair Clinic, our club members hope to provide the SLCC community with our technical knowledege and services. In turn, we hope to inspire other people to give and donate to our fundraiser in order to help us provide these young students with the tools they need to learn and grow.”
