Four iPads used for learning math, geography, spelling and reading at Lawton Elementary School?s after-class homework club were stolen over the summer.
Staff noticed the theft on Sept. 13, when the iPads were not in the audio-visual room of the school library.
The school was closed throughout the summer so a construction crew could renovate most of the school?s ventilation system. The construction company had full access to the school, according to Seattle Police Det. Rene Witt.
Lawton Librarian Kathleen Dial said construction workers were in and out of there and that the iPads, though in the audio-visual room, were not locked away. Teachers were not allowed in the building during construction.
Principal Christine Helm contacted the construction company. A report was with police. Det. Witt said there isn?t a lot for detectives to go off of. She said police will investigate but the case may wind up an insurance claim.
Dial said the school would likely wait to see if the iPads turn up before buying new ones.
The iPads will be missed, she said, as they were very popular with students.
?Children were learning words before they got to school, they?re so engaging,? Dial said. ?At the after-school homework club they were all the rage.?
“….were not locked away……”
What did they expect? These are $500 portable items.