MP school improvement committee talks technology, facility needs

BY BRYCE KELLY

Mt. Pleasant News

Much of Wednesday?s school improvement advisory committee meeting, or SIAC meeting, has already been discussed for some time by staff, school board members and parents alike, but last night many topics related to both school technology and facilities were officially put on the table.

As mandated by the State of Iowa, SIAC boards are charged with discussing and making recommendations to the school board, which are based on the committee members? analysis of the needs surrounding education and other various goals that the school has. During Wednesday?s meeting, topics of discussion were focused on the school?s use of technology as well as school facilities.

?It?s important to hear the voices in our community,? said Mt. Pleasant superintendent, John Henriksen. ?That?s what these meetings allow. We as administration need to know what you feel are needs in our school.?

First to be discussed was technology. Mt. Pleasant?s middle school and high school have already undergone major changes to its technology usage with the passing of its 1:1 laptop initiative, and while the majority of the roughly 15-member committee felt the 1:1 was an overall positive improvement to the school?s educational and technological plan, the group wanted to see the district deepen its usage of computers and continue to do more computer integration in educational practices.

?I think the overall tone here is that we want the school to continue working on the 1:1 to make it better than it already is,? said school board member, Melinda Huisinga.

Since the technological upgrades made with the 1:1 initiative, staff members reported that computer speeds are much improved and that there are more computers available for use at the elementary schools.

And although technology has reportedly seen many improvements since the 1:1, teachers did report there being some barriers to the program with regards to certain students - mainly low-income students.

?On the one hand, we have more low-income students with access to a computer as some may not have one at home,? said Mt. Pleasant English language learners teacher, Dina Saunders. ?However, it?s a double edged sword because while they have a computer, many don?t have Internet access at home, which means they can?t do most of their homework at home.?

School board member David Christensen added that slow Internet or dial up Internet that many students have at home might also be a barrier to education in regards to the 1:1.

?If it takes a student five minutes or more just to open a webpage, how many students are actually going to do their work at home?? he said. ?Probably not many, and that might be a real issue for some kids.?

Additional improvements to the 1:1 discussed included improving student typing skills. Currently, typing is taught at the elementary level. However high school teacher Jeff Batty added that he sees many students who, while they understand the ins and outs of computers, struggle to type efficiently and correctly.

Outside of the 1:1, the committee also added the expansion of security cameras and security systems to all school buildings as a need.

Moving on to school facilities, it was no surprise that expanding energy efficient heating and cooling to every school building was a top concern. And while it was only briefly discussed that a possible solution to such a problem would be to build a whole new elementary school rather than add new air and heating systems to older buildings, much of the evening was simply spent identifying problems and strengths in regards to school facilities.

It was also widely reported that many of the elementary school classrooms are beginning to struggle to accommodate the number of elementary students the district is seeing from year to year. Elementary staff and some parents of elementary students present at the committee meeting reported a lack of elementary school parking as well as a lack of room at elementary school parking lots during student drop off and pick up times.

Strengths of the school?s current facilities were many and varied. Items which were mentioned multiple times included the school facilities? overall cleanliness, the adequate playground equipment available at elementary school sites, and the security cameras that are in place at the various school buildings seem to be functioning well, according to staff. High school staff, as well as parents present with high school students, said parking at the high school was adequate.

The next SIAC meeting, which will focus on discussing staffing and school programs, will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017.