A boy from New Mexico has gone viral after a picture of him lying outside his elementary school to use an internet connection so he could participate in a remoted class.
The 9-year-old boy named Jonathan Endecott from Roswell had to sit outside a primary school building that was closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak because he did not have internet access at home.
Although his school at Roswell closed and switched to distance learning, his mother Angel Endecott, was unable to pay internet bills after she lost both of her jobs.
Schools in Jonathan’s district are now doing online lessons and this is the only way he can participate in classes.
“He was like, ‘Yeah, I need to be back on the school property, and I could be like a normal kid again,” his mother said.
It is believed that Jonathan’s family did not live too far from the primary school and Jonathan’s parents felt comfortable with him spending the day there, sitting outside the front door.
“The principal, the secretary, and a few teachers, they do come outside to check up on him and see if he needs anything,” he said.
But seeing the young man outside the building, day after day, affected a teacher named Sabrina Talbott Harbor. She finally shared her picture online.
“This young boy has no internet at his home. He has been getting up and walking to school every day to connect to the school WiFi from outside the school. He sits there every day from 8:00-2:45,” Sabrina said.
“This isn’t OK. The kids will be better off in school. The kids are suffering socially, academically, mentally, and physically,” added the teacher.
According to DailyMail, the photo has sparked a fundraising campaign to help their families with their finances.
It is said that someone paid the family’s internet bill for a year and Angel also raised funds at GoFundMe to help them with other expenses.
And now, Jonathan, whose favorite subject is Science, says that he is happy to chat with his friends and classmates online after the internet in his home has been installed.
Source: DailyMail, New York Post