The 600 members of the Pala Indian Reservation can recall a time not so long ago when their tribe's learning center had only one computer, complete with dial-up Internet access. A sign posted to the monitor explained in bold letters a 30-minute use rule.

But it's been two years since a $2.3 million research grant awarded by the National Science Foundation to nearby University of California-San Diego funded the Pala Reservation's purchase of 18 new computers with 802.11b wireless connectivity. Visitors to the learning center can now surf the Web at speeds of 11 Mb/s.

“With the dial-up connection, the kids would get disgusted and leave,” said Doretta Musick, the Pala Learning Center's head librarian for the last 10 years. “Now they are completing their homework.” And the computers aren't just promoting the Pala tribe's future, but also preserving their past.

Located at the foot of Palomar Mountain, Pala is one of 18 Native American reservations in San Diego County — more than any other county in the U.S. — and Musick boasts that her students are graduating high school and attending college at a higher rate than any of the other local tribal lands. Just recently, when the learning center hooked up with some online tutors from U.C. San Diego, Pala students raised their average math grades from D's to B's.

But while the children of the Pala Reservation have become computer whizzes, their parents haven't been so quick to embrace modern technology. In fact, few tribal members even have basic telephone service in their homes. So when volunteers from San Marcos, Calif.-based Palomar College taught a class introducing basic Internet skills to older tribal members, many were naturally fearful.

Today, Musick sees a tremendous turnaround in their self-esteem. “We've seen a complete change in them,” she said. “They have a more positive attitude toward computers and technology.”

One tribal member was able to obtain a contractor's license through his research on the Internet. A woman who works as a caterer looks up Native American recipes on the Web, while another is narrowing down which college to attend based on the information she gleans online.

Perhaps most notably, tribal members are employing technology to ensure that their native language, Cupeno, will survive. Cupeno is dying out quickly, but Web cameras are recording linguists speaking and teaching the language so that future generations can study the Pala culture online.

In the meantime, Musick is busy writing grants for more computers. How has high-speed Internet access changed her life? “Kids come in and research their information directly online,” she said. “It's made my life a lot easier.”