By Jennifer Eisenbart
Editor
The Burlington Area School District on Monday took the next step in providing students one-to-one computer technology.
BASD Technology Director Scott Christensen gave an update at Monday’s Burlington Area School District Finance Committee on the three-year lease of equipment the district is pursuing, with the committee approving the proposal unanimously.
That lease will provide all students with one-to-one technology through iPads at the lowest grade levels and Chromebooks the rest of the way. Burlington High School students will be able to take the Chromebooks home, while grades kindergarten through eight will store them at the school.
Chromebooks are laptop computers that run on Google’s operating system.
The cost for the lease has yet to be determined, but Christensen is estimating it to be about $300,000 a year. The lease budget for the last four years was $258,000, and Christensen said the difference will be made up by shifting spending from costs that no longer need to be funded.
As Christensen explained Monday evening, the term “lease” is a bit of a misnomer, as the dealer providing the computers won’t actually take the computers back. The district is also hoping that at least some of the computers will last longer than three years, though the exact terms on both points have yet to be determined.
Through his presentation, Christensen showed how the change in technology even over the course of the last tech lease – started in 2012 – has changed, especially when it comes to personal devices being used.
Christensen said there are 4,000-plus devices on the district’s 600 MB network daily, with 3,500 district-owned devices. With the guest login, however, students are more often than not logging on with cell phones and not computers or tablets.
As a result, the guest login will likely be shut off during the day at the various schools, since the Chromebooks will all automatically connect to the network. Students with cell phones will be forced to use their computers for school-related work.
Currently, Christensen estimated, about 350 to 400 megabytes of the 600-mb network is being used. The district will nonetheless upgrade to 1 gigabyte because the discount being offered by WiscNet to upgrade.
As for the devices themselves, Christensen priced two different machines – the Lenovo N22 Chromebook, and the Dell Chromebook 11. The Lenovo computer came in $46 cheaper per unit, and Christensen expects to lease the computers through Firefly Computing in Minneapolis.
That lease will include what is called “white glove service,” setting up the computers with the various passwords and network connections as well as making sure they work properly.
The computers will include LanSchool software that will allow teachers control over the students’ Chromebooks, including being able to monitor activities or setting all the computers to one particular website or application.
“You can do all sorts of neat things with LanSchool,” Christensen said.
For now, Christensen said, the district will not purchase a warranty for the computers, as it is cost prohibitive ($90,000 for computers that cost less than $200). Instead, the district will purchase 100 spares, and investigate pay-per-repair programs and consider the warranty in the future if needed.
The computers will be fitted with a “cranium cover,” a hardtop addition to the screen side of the computer to prevent screen breakage. Students at Burlington High School will have added incentive to keep the computers safe, though – any computer broken more than once will result in consequences for the student who has it.
As of now, the district is wording it so students in that situation will be forced to leave their Chromebooks at the school versus taking them home. However, School Board President Jim Bousman said that limiting access could result in limiting opportunities to learn.
After going back and forth with Christensen and the rest of the board for a few minutes, Superintendent Peter Smet said he would look into altering the last page of the handbook students will receive.
Students will be assigned the same Chromebook for all four years of high school, Christensen said, with barcodes and numbers issued to ensure the units are distinct to their owners.
Other business
The Finance Committee also unanimously approved the planned purchase of a new one-ton dump truck with a plow and trailer hitch for $45,129. The item will be purchased through Lynch Truck Center, and was originally budgeted to cost $46,000.
The Policy Committee also unanimously approved a specific policy to fill board vacancies as required by state law. The district’s policy states it will accept applicants, and set a meeting where all applicants will then get a chance to make an opening statement and answer questions. All School Board members will vote via signed paper ballots that will be made public. A majority vote will elect the new member.
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