School is back in session and this September many families have equipped their homes with school supplies their kids need to succeed in a virtual learning environment – notebooks, desks, chairs, Wi-Fi, and a quiet place to work. However, Cortney Weber (Founder of Project Headphones) learned that many families in Arlington, VA do not have enough room in their homes to provide each of their children with a quiet place to work.  As a result, headphones became an essential item for back to supplies.

“If you have multiple learners in a small space, paying attention would be very difficult if the child didn’t have headphones,” Weber said. “Communicating with the teacher could be very difficult because if there’s a lot of background noise, then the teacher might not call on a student… Also, these kids are just starving for interaction at this point. Peer-to-peer interaction [through microphones in headphones] is going to be essential.” said Cortney Weber in a recent ARLNow  news feature.

Ardent has partnered with Project Headphones to ensure that the students of Arlington Public Schools have the resources and supplies they need, starting with headphones.  Brandon LaBonte felt this was an important project as many students may be participating in distance learning in small spaces, with multiple kids engaged in one home, with parents attempting to work full time. In many cases where funds are not available for the family to purchase headphones for each student.  Every student deserves an opportunity to learn, Ardent has donated $10,000 to help provide the students of Arlington public schools with the resources they need to succeed in a virtual learning environment.  To date, this donation has helped the Project Headphones initiative purchase approximately 2,600 pairs of headphones for students who can’t afford them.

To learn more about Project Headphones and to learn more about how you can support this important initiative, please visit Project Headphone’s GoFundMe’s page at:  Project Headphones