If you asked me where the first daughter and the CEO of Apple might spend their afternoon, Wilder, Idaho, is the last place I would guess.
But that is exactly where Ivanka Trump and Tim Cook were Tuesday afternoon.
During the visit, Trump referred to the “laboratories of innovation” she has visited during the past year, and praised Wilder for bringing innovation and technology into school districts.
“You come into districts where you have superintendents like Superintendent Dillon who is so deeply passionate about bringing innovation and making a system that works for his or her students,” Trump said during the visit.
The technology and iPads Apple donated to the Wilder School District allows students to learn at their own pace and in some cases, without a teacher, according to an Idaho Statesman article.
The focus by most of the media was on Cook and Trump, rather than the impact the technology is having on a rural Idaho community and its school district. While this is understandable and not uncommon in today’s media patterns, there was still too little emphasis on what brought Cook and Trump all the way to Idaho.
Many were disappointed with the visit and coverage of it for a different reason. I saw multiple social media posts and comments in which people complained that the visit was just another staged photo-op for Ivanka and the Trump Administration. While I certainly agree that this visit was partially due to the positive photo opportunities for the Trump Administration and Apple, there were positive implications for the visit.
While Trump does serve as an adviser to her father, she is often used for more ceremonial purposes within the administration so the photo-op Tuesday was not uncommon for her.
The visit brought national attention to a rural school district and the potential effects technology may have on it and other small school districts across the nation.
While there’s no denying that our president is not a great role model for young elementary-aged school children, his daughter by all accounts served as a good role model for the children Tuesday. The Idaho Statesman even described the students’ reaction to the visit as “joyous.”
We should cheer on any attempt to improve rural school districts in Idaho and across the nation. In the case of Wilder, any attention or funding that comes their way should be perceived as positive until proven otherwise.
While I may not agree with many of the Trump Administration’s policies on education, I am happy there has been some emphasis on rural schools and improvements that can be made to them. The effect of technology has yet to be researched and shown in Wilder. I am excited to see something new in a state which has been using old tools and techniques in the classroom for too long.
At the very least, we can be grateful that Trump and Cook received an inside look into what rural schools are like and are working to find solutions to problems these children face. I am grateful that someone is finally paying attention to the education of our future leaders.
Elizabeth Marshall can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @EJMarshall_.