Michelle Obama, Ellen DeGeneres surprise DC elementary school with new computer lab, $100K donation

Former first lady Michelle Obama surprised a D.C. elementary school with a new computer lab and $100,000 donation from comedian Ellen DeGeneres. 

Obama visited the southeast D.C. elementary school in a segment that aired Tuesday as part of Degeneres’s “Ellen’s Greatest Night of Giveaways.” 

“When I look out at all of you I see a room full of future doctors and teachers and engineers and presidents, and I want to make sure you have the tools you need right now to help make that happen,” Obama told students at Randle Highlands Elementary School.

I am so grateful to @MichelleObama and Apple for what they did at this school. Wow. Wow. Wow. #EllensGreatestNight pic.twitter.com/MLhOksZf6s

— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) December 11, 2019

The school is also receiving iPads for each student, laptops for every teacher, and a new basketball court, Obama said. 

“Growing up my parents always taught me that it’s not enough to go through life just working for yourself, you’ve got to reach back and lift others along the way,” the former first lady said. “It’s a great way to connect with each other to the world around us and to the things that matter most.”

School Principal Kristie Edwards said 65 percent of the school’s students are in foster care or are homeless. The school’s teachers, she said, go “above and beyond” for students. 

Teachers often dip into their own pockets for supplies for students and some have even taken families from the school to get groceries, she said. 

The school can use the $100,000 donation to help cover any additional expenses that arise, Obama said.

“When our students come in here they expect the same thing: to get love and a hug and to ensure that they’re in a safe space,” Edwards said. 

“Every day I get excited to get into this building and see my scholars, every single day,” she continued. “Whether they’re laughing, whether they are upset about something, whether they’re playing, there’s something about them that just brings so much joy to me.”