Acer Philippines aims to help ensure the protection of the youth amid the growing influence of the social media and easier access to online resources. The giant information technology (IT) brand continues to introduce new solutions and rollout programs that will contribute to the attainment of that goal.
In fact, the company’s Acer Academy focuses on this thrust as it celebrates its 5th year. During its recent members’ night, it adopted the theme ‘Keeping the Students Safe in a Digital World’ to help provide more insights on how the academic sector could more effectively do its part in shielding students against the rudiments of the information age.
“We are an IT company that doesn’t just sell our products,” said Acer Philippines Senior Commercial Sales Manager Carren Garcia. “We focus on developing the skills of faculty and students of our member-universities.”
Students’ development
Acer Academy is a membership program exclusively for schools, colleges, and universities nationwide. Since 2012, its activities have been culminating in a special members’ night, which adopts a different theme ever year to cover various fields and skills that would be beneficial to member institutions, their staff, and students.
In the previous years, Acer Academy focused on subjects like financial literacy and talent development. On its fifth year, it mounted a summit-type gathering for its members’ night to orient attendees about the latest technology products that can help safeguard students’ digital security. Among the invited speakers were experts from the National Privacy Commission and the Department of Education, who shared insights and tips on how to observe overall virtual security in the school setting.
Acer Business Development Manager for Asia-Pacific and Pan-American Market Kevin Chuang and Acer Philippines Senior Sales Manager Carren Garcia during the recent Acer Academy’s members’ night
Acer products for the academe
One of the products highlighted in the event was Acer’s Classroom Management (ACM) software. The product gives school instructors the administrative capabilities of taking control of students’ access to online sites, at least within the school premises. ACM can also lock screens of students’ Acer devices once the admins monitor disruptive activities online like accessing YouTube and other unnecessary websites.
Acer’s revolutionary CloudProfessor—which was first introduced by the company during the IFA 2015 event in Berlin, Germany—was also showcased during the event. CloudProfessor is a plug-and-play kit that introduces students to programming and how to apply it in controlling cloud-connected devices. The product will be piloting in five schools in the Philippines this year (2018).
The Acer Academy Year 5 members’ night (held in Manila Hotel) had almost 200 academic staff and students in attendance.
Acer Academy membership
Acer Academy is a pioneering initiative of Acer Philippines. Other Acer offices globally are looking at adopting and implementing the program in their respective territories. It currently has 110 members—80% of which are based in Metro Manila.
Membership is exclusive to colleges or universities that make one-time or 1-year accumulated purchase of at least P1 million worth of Acer products. Gold membership is accorded to schools that meet minimum purchase amount requirement, while platinum membership is awarded to those that purchase P2 million (or more) worth of products. A membership lasts two years and is renewable through further purchases, which could entitle a school to a loyalty program.
Aside from access to exclusive events like the members’ night, Acer Academy members can also enjoy the following benefits:
– A Sponsorship Fund (P10,000 for Gold members and P30,000 for Platinum members) that can be tapped for covering costs of any school activity.
– Hands-on training for instructors and administrators on the use and management of purchased software.
– Free design for computer lab dressing initiatives.
– Free access to available equipment (like speakers and projectors) from Acer that could be used in various school activities.
– Priority internship at Acer for students of member-schools.