The St. John the Baptist Parish School System utilized its classroom technology to bring the Presidential Inauguration of Barack Obama live to its students.

Students throughout the system gathered in auditoriums, libraries, cafeterias and large meeting areas to watch special feeds that were broadcast on large screens.

At the same time, nearly every classroom connected to a live webcast of the ceremony. School technology coordinators said 652 individual computers — some broadcasting to entire classrooms — were on-line during the inaugural ceremony.

“We wanted to guarantee that as many students in our district could have the opportunity to witness this historical event. Not all of our classrooms have televisions, so we ran live feeds to all of our campuses to give every student the opportunity to see the event,” Superintendent Courtney P. Millet said.

As part of the day’s “history lesson,” many students reviewed the list of the past presidents and important accomplishments of each. Others studied customs associated with the Office of the U.S. President and the Inaugural Ceremony.

“Our new president serves as a powerful role model for all our students to have faith and hope that they can achieve anything that they set out to do with hard work, determination and a good education,” Millet said. “As educators, we have an opportunity to transform our system and the life chances of our students, so this served as a powerful reminder to them, too.”

Millet forwarded to all the school principals a quote from the new U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan to share with their teachers and staff. The quote reads, “Our students have so much potential, regardless of socioeconomic status or family background, when we give them real opportunities to succeed. We’re all fighting the same battles; the keys are focus, execution, and constantly trying to accelerate the pace of change.”

Patricia Triche, principal of East St. John High, said many of the teachers and staff who watched the inaugural ceremony with students were very emotional during the presidential oath of office to Obama and during some of the music interludes. Many of the students cheered and clapped during the announcements and joined with the prayers that were delivered as part of the ceremony.

“The students were so engrossed with the reading of the words of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech. You couldn’t hear a pin drop in our halls. It was a wonderful opportunity for them to enjoy the day’s events in perspective with what has transpired in history,” said Triche.

“Today means so much to so many people. Not only have we had the opportunity to witness the historical event but also use it as an education experience. President Obama, the first African American to lead our nation, had a platform of hope and change that resonated with our young people,” Dr. Millet said.