The Dunham School is excited to announce that it has been recognized as an Apple Distinguished School (ADS) for 2022-2025 for its use of innovation and technology to transform teaching and learning.

Apple Distinguished Schools are centers of innovation, leadership, and educational excellence. Through the use of iPad and Mac products, these schools cultivate technology-rich environments that connect students to the world, fuel creativity, deepen collaboration, and make learning personal. At present, there are 724 Apple Distinguished Schools in 36 countries.

Dunham is the only PreK-12 school in the state of Louisiana to be designated as an Apple Distinguished School, an honor the school has held continuously since 2011. Additionally, Dunham was one of the first schools in the nation to have 100% of its full-time faculty recognized as Apple Teachers, a testament to the school’s commitment to provide teachers with technology tools and support as well as ongoing training and professional development opportunities.

 “The credit for this award goes to our teachers, students, and technology department for the ways that they apply technology to achieve greater academic success and experience transformational learning,” says Head of School Steve Eagleton, who currently sits on the Apple Distinguished School board. “When we talk about innovation and creativity at Dunham, we’re really talking about students having the ability to understand coding and the creative tools enabled by technology. In addition to helping our students engage with the curriculum to a greater degree, we’re building excitement and equipping them with important future-ready skills that have real-life relevance and application.”

Director of Innovation and Technology Nikole Blanchard, who also serves as the president of the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), concurs. “For Apple to consider The Dunham School a center of excellence is an extreme honor. I am beyond proud of our teaching staff and technology team. Their dedication is the reason for our success in digitizing our curriculum.” 

“I have the opportunity to work with administrators and teachers who understand the importance of integrating technology,”  she continues. “I am confident that, through the work our teachers and technology staff do every day, we are preparing students to be the next generation of leaders,  problem-solvers, and critical thinkers. Our students enter college with future-ready skills essential to their continued success.”

The Dunham community plans to celebrate the renewal of its ADS award throughout the month of January with a series of fun events and giveaways for students and teachers. Additionally, in an effort to share knowledge and expertise with other area educators, Dunham will host a Think Tank for leadership teams on Thursday, January 12, 2023, followed by a visit from executives with Apple, Inc. on Tuesday, January 24, 2023.