School district technology budget reports savings

Fairfield school district?s technology department followed school board guidelines this past year to reduce expenditures and will continue to replace aging computers at low cost.

Director Mark Cremer reported at Monday?s school board meeting his department spent about $190,000 less in the 2011-12 school year than the previous 2010-11 year.

?That was accomplished with district-wide support,? said Cremer. ?We cut back on contracted services and worked to fix more problems in-house. An average of $15,000 per year had been spent on contracted services in each of the previous two years. That meant my staff ? and all district staff ? had to be more patient as we worked on solutions. And we added 162 new devices, including 26 laptops at Pence and Washington elementary schools and 22 laptops for Title I classes at the middle school. ?

Cremer contacted Rockwell Educational Access to Computer Technology, a non-profit organization in Hiawatha that receives used computers from Rockwell Collins in Cedar Rapids and other area businesses. Engineers refurbish the equipment to donate to area schools and non-profit community agencies that work specifically with children.

?We were able to get 58 flat panel monitors free, for only the cost of driving up and back,? said Cremer.

?I?ve also put the district on the Department of Defense list at Rock Island Arsenal. We are expecting to receive 180 desk computers, 200 laptops and 50 monitors, all for the cost of only picking them up and driving them here,? he said. ?This will help us to cycle-out some of our eight ?to -nine-year old equipment.?

A new professional development training lab is being set up at the Administration/Curriculum/Technology Center.

?When this building was planned, it originally included such a computer lab downstairs but it never got set up. We?ll finish it this summer. It will have 12 permanent PCs and spacing to bring in 12 laptops,? said Cremer. ?This will provide a place to have an on-site training area for any group of staff.?

Other major projects this summer include technology rewiring at Washington Elementary School, bringing back computer labs to all three elementary buildings and having the former Lincoln School building wired and set up for use by three separate programs for 2012-13 ? Opportunity Center, Career Academy and Young House services.

Cremer said Washington Elementary is being rewired because, ?we want the network to be as good as the equipment.?

Board member Amy Miller asked if creating computer labs at the elementary buildings meant computers set in classrooms would be pulled back out.

?No,? said Cremer. ?We?re not pulling anything back out of classrooms; they will keep what they have. The computer labs will be used differently than in the past. The district has purchased curriculum-based software for various grade levels, such as FastMath for grades 2-5. Teachers will have a schedule, such as taking their class for 15 minutes four days a week, to go to the lab and students will work using the math software program. About half a day will be consumed by scheduled uses like this. Classroom teachers will be working with their students, there won?t be a lab teacher or associate.

?And I will be working with teachers to increase their comfort level to manage computer lab classes.?

Cremer said fall technology projects include new equipment and updating computer lab wiring for the middle school.

In other business, the school board:

? Approved Superintendent Art Sathoff?s recommendation to modify Fairfield Middle School counselors? contracts, reinstating three extra contact days previously cut for budget reasons. Two middle school counselors and counselor?s secretary will provide coverage for Pence Elementary on a trial basis for the 2012-13 year. If adequate coverage cannot be provided for both buildings, adjustments will have to be made in the future.

?I gave this a lot of thought, and had a lot of discussions with [Pence principal Chris] Mr. Welch and [FMS principal Laura] Ms. Atwood,? said Sathoff. ?Middle school is the only building with two guidance counselors and a secretary. The proximity of the buildings helps with logistics.

?I?m really conflicted over this,? added Sathoff. ?Looking at numbers, this should work, but education is not just dealing with numbers.?

Pence Elementary School?s guidance counselor Kim Ledger resigned last month to move to a principal/curriculum director position with the Pekin School District. Sharing the middle school counselors will provide Pence with a less than half-time counselor.

Board member and retired elementary music teacher Jeri Kunkle said the trial would need to be scrutinized. In January or February, administration and the board would need to evaluate if the district should provide more counselors.

?We also cut our at-risk person, and there are many students who really need some help,? she said.

? Approved K-5 Title I summer school teachers (Luyre Sobaski, Nicole Spalla, Brandi Stickler, Danielle McEvoy, Jessica Sandbothe, Samantha Freeman, Deidre Bachar and Ann Hektoen) and administrators (Welch and Atwood) paid $22 per hour, up to five hours a day in July.

?Administrators are being paid the same rate as teachers, and only paid for days outside their contracts,? said Sathoff.

? Approved grades 6-8 summer school teachers (Cheyenne DeMoss, Jill Thomas, Martha Kreglow, Jeanna Bishop, Michelle Wiegand and Derek Philips) at the rate established through Title I Schools in Need of Assistance, of $30 per hour, and a director (Scott Munford) at $50 per hour, for time spent with students only; and Wayci Clark and Nancy Oliver as associate/clerical assistance at their current hourly rates for K-5 and 6-8 summer schools.

Fairfield K-8 summer school is 8-11 a.m. beginning today through Aug. 10.

? Approved the hire of Holly Callas as special education teacher at Libertyville Elementary School at $38,660 annually.

? Approved the hire of Michelle Crandall as Family and Consumer Science teacher for FMS and Fairfield High School at $33,911 annually.

? Approved the hire of Mary Kitch for the K-12 English Language Learners teacher at $36,761 annually.

? Approved the hires of one-on-one associates for students with special needs at FMS: Michelle Kocour at $12.66 per hour; Michelle Oliver at $10.65 per hour; and Teri Greenfield at $11.13 per hour; each for a maximum of 36 hours per week.

? Approved the hire of Elizabeth Knight as sponsor of the Troy Banner school newspaper for the 2012-13 school year, for $2,511 annually. Knight is newly hired to teach English at FHS.

? Approved the hire of Bonnie Watson for eighth grade assistant volleyball coach at $1,836; and the hire of Ashley Flynn for seventh grade assistant volleyball coach at $989.

? Approved assigning Donna Bruner to work 2.5 hours a day as a food service worker at Pence Elementary School, at $11.13 per hour; and Kimberly Stark to work full-time as a cook at FMS at $10.65 per hour;

? Accepted the resignation/retirement of Merle Ferrel, FMS custodian.

? Accepted the resignation of Michelle Wiegand as FMS student council co-sponsor after eight years.

? Accepted the resignation of Shannon Davis, associate at Libertyville Elementary School; and Roxanne Kuehl, associate at Washington Elementary School.