Apex has partnered with the nonprofit Kramden Institute to host a computer drive and recycling event Saturday.

The computers will be refurbished and donated to economically disadvantaged students in Apex schools.

While Kramden has partnered with businesses and local groups in the past, this is the first time the nonprofit is partnering with a municipality in recent memory, said Executive Director Michael Abensour.

Jeffrey Sandhofer, Apex resident and Kramden volunteer, is the force behind the collection drive.

"I would be out and about, and I kept running into Michael in the most random places, and I said, 'Is there anything that you need?' " Sandhofer said.

That discussion led Sandhofer to approach the town of Apex.

"What we'd like to do is get as many machines that are usable back into Apex," he said. "I would like it to be an annual event."

The goal is to give 40 to 50 students their own computer. "If we can get a computer in their hands, they seem to do much better in school and stand a much better chance of heading off to college," said Sandhofer.

Since 2003, Kramden has given away about 9,800 computers to students and expects to hit the 10,000 mark in March, Abensour said.

Among the recipients are about 100 Apex Middle School students, said Principal Camille Hendricks.

The school has been participating in the Kramden Scholars program for three years, she said.

"Imagine trying to do any assignment without a computer," Hendricks said. "This is a bad time in history to be on the wrong side of the digital divide. You can't function without a computer."

She said that while Apex may not be considered a poor town, it isn't a rich town either. Each year the school identifies about 30 to 40 students in need, she said.

The school also provides students with flash drives in case they don't have access to the Internet or printers at home. With the flash drives, students can transfer data to school computers.

"Sometimes a family can afford the Internet but not the computer," she said. "The great thing about Kramden is that they keep a computer in that child's hands until the 12th grade."