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Kick It Up a Notch: Strategies to Reduce Costs and Increase Effectiveness

Chicago 2010. Kick It Up a Notch: Strategies to Reduce Costs and Increase Effectiveness. ►Sheryl R. Abshire , Ph.D. Chief Technology Officer ►Annette Ballard – Board Member Calcasieu Parish Public Schools Lake Charles, Louisiana

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Kick It Up a Notch: Strategies to Reduce Costs and Increase Effectiveness

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  1. Chicago 2010 Kick It Up a Notch: Strategies to Reduce Costs and Increase Effectiveness • ►Sheryl R. Abshire, Ph.D. Chief Technology Officer ►Annette Ballard – Board MemberCalcasieu Parish Public Schools Lake Charles, Louisiana sheryl.abshire@cpsb.org annette.ballard@cpsb.org Wayne Savoy – Superintendent of Schools www.cpsb.orgCalcasieu Parish Public Schools  Lake Charles, Louisiana

  2. District Overview Mission: Provide Quality Education for All Students • Southwest Corner of Louisiana • 30 miles North of the Gulf of Mexico • 2 hours West of Baton Rouge • Borders the State of Texas • Fourth Largest School District • 1,094.5 Square Miles

  3. District Overview CPSB Demographics • 33,000+ students Pre-K through Grade 12 • 54% at-risk student population • 61.21 % Caucasian • 36.04% African American • 1.16% Hispanic • 0.92% Asian • 0.22% American Indian • 17.79% with Exceptionalities • Largest employer in parish • 5,000+ employees, full and part-time

  4. District Overview • 32 Elementary Schools • 13 Middle Schools • 2 with grades K-8 • 11 with grades 6-8 • 11 High Schools • 2 with grades K-12 • 8 with grades 9-12 • 1 with grades 10-12 & 9th grade campus • 2 Alternative Schools • 2 Career & Technical Facilities • 1 Adult Education • 1 Academy of Learning

  5. CPSB Fast Facts • 20+ Consecutive Years of Excellence in Financial Reporting • $43.2 Million in Competitive and Flow-Through Grants • 241 Partners in Education • $260+ Million Budget • Revenue Sources • 48.13% Local • 49.7% State • 0.0% Federal • 2.16% Other

  6. CPSB Fast Facts • District Accredited by SACS CASI • 3.7 Million Meals Served Annually • 2.3 Million Regular Bus Route Miles Annually • 25,000 Computers (approximate ratio: 1.5 students per computer) • $340,000+ Employee Donations to United Way in 2009 • For more than a decade, Calcasieu Parish School employees have ranked #1 in the state of Louisiana in totaling giving to the United Way of Southwest Louisiana

  7. Calcasieu Parish School Board Vision  Mission  Goals  Core Values • Vision: All children are important to us. • Mission: Provide a quality education for all students • Focus Areas/Goals • High Academic Achievement • Safe, Productive Environment • Stakeholder Satisfaction • Operational Efficiency • Core Values • Visionary Leadership • Effective Communication • Continuous Improvement • Respect for All • High Expectations

  8. Technology Enabled District Redesign • National and state accountability expectations • Baldridge criteria • Visionary leadership • District, schools, classrooms • Process mapping • Data-driven decisions • Stakeholder input • Benchmark assessments

  9. Success with Quality Processes • Began Baldridge Quality Department Training – 2004 • All staff, retreat center, 100% team effort, aligned with district/school initiatives • Department Mission:Advancing Quality Education with Technology • Quality Tools/Processes • Continuous Improvement • Alignment

  10. Success with Quality Processes

  11. Success with Quality Processes

  12. Success with Quality Processes

  13. Success with Quality Processes CALCASIEU PARISH SCHOOL SYSTEM DISTRICT GOALS PLAN WORKSHEET

  14. Accountability:Success with Quality Processes • Higher academic standards and assessments designed to meet national and world standards • Students extend knowledge and skills learned to real-life, real-work situations producing lifelong learners • Alignment via formative benchmark assessments that inform and drive instructional practice

  15. Tech Training Center: Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • Mission: Advancing Quality Education Through Technology-Connected Learning • Aligned with the district and other departments • Denoted on all hand-outs/email messages, etc. • Goals are related to improving communication and processes both within the department and with external customers • Communication with stakeholders • Plus/Deltas from participants • F2F meetings with K-12 curriculum representatives • Meetings with assessment team to denote district strengths and weaknesses with respect to test score data

  16. Tech Training Center: Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • Current Professional Development Data • McNeese State University teacher candidates (E3) – 130 (2 days each) • Classroom-Based Technology (CBT) training – 300(3 days each) • Blackboard & specialized district training – 854 (1- 3 days each) • School sites & online - 500 (1-3 days) • Promethean Administrative Assessment – 150 (3 days each) • Professional Development Current Focus Areas • Blackboard/Web, online resources, Web 2.0, Intel • Promethean Activclassrooms, Connected Classrooms • I-TEC Model Classrooms • UbD/Differentiated Instruction • Essential questioning techniques • Assessment strategies • Ensuring Educational Excellence (E3)

  17. Tech Training Center: Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • Emerging Technology Integration Focus Areas • Web 2.0 Tools • Podcasting/Vodcasting • MP3 players • ACTIVboards – Interactive technologies • Alignment for Reduced Cost & Increased Effectiveness • 12 Tech Training Staff • 8 Grant Funded Positions • 4 District Funded • Collaboration with C & I • Collaboration with McNeese State University • Stakeholder surveys • Mapping additional processes • Using district test score data to align and develop continuing professional development

  18. Tech Training Center: Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • Alignment of resources • Aligned with district needs and goals • Targeted training sessions • District wide meeting planning - Sharepoint • Human and monetary resources are aligned and used to meet department and district goals. • SpEd, art, music, and world language teachers participate in professional development models aligned with all professional development initiatives; provides all teachers with the baseline skills and resources. • SMART goals – 3 years • Specific, Measurable, Agreed Upon, Realistic, Time Bound

  19. CPSB eLearning:Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • Streamline communication within the district • Network/Communicate/Collaborate within curriculum content areas • Enhance classroom instruction • Identify and share best practices • Access resources • Provide just-in time learning • Increase knowledge and utilization of technology in teaching and learning • Increase home/school communication

  20. CPSB eLearning: BlackboardQuality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • High Academic Achievement • Professional Development – Provide key Tech Integration & Blackboard Uses to Support Instruction for High Academic Achievement . • Participant Survey Results Indicate a Desire for More Blackboard PD • Stakeholder Satisfaction • Emerging Technologies - Investigate Feasibility and Implement Web 2.0 tools and Other Emerging Technologies and Innovations (i.e. digital video, MP3 player) in Blackboard and Other Avenues. • Pilot Classrooms with Web. 2.0; MP3 Players, Digital Video in Blackboard • Online course to teach Web 2.0 Tools • Safe, Productive Environment • Departmental Workflow - Department Bb Organizations, Content Collection, Portal • Learning Objects Catalog to Share Resources • Operational Efficiency • Blackboard Support - Develop and implement a plan utilizing the Footprints System to provide help desk assistance and support to Blackboard users. • 2,000+ Recorded resolved Issues in the Footprints System (These are separate from requests handled by individual Bb instructors and staff.) • Blackboard Mentor Program with 16 Mentors InitiallyTrained Summer 2008 • ITECH Teachers

  21. CPSB eLearning:Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs Who’s Online? • System Usage Data • 2,700+ Course Sites • 75 Communities • 5000+ Active Users • 45,000+ Users • 5,000+ K-12 Student Users • 25,000+ Average Page Views Per Day • Department's Online • Career & Technical Education • Drug Free/Title IX • Federal Programs • Food Services • Gifted Teacher's Corner • Hearing Impaired • High School ELA • High School Mathematics • High School Science • High School Social Studies • Media Center • Middle School - English/Language Arts Department • Middle School - Mathematics Department • Middle School - Science Department • Middle School - Social Studies Department • Nursing Department • Pupil Appraisal • Purchasing • Risk Management • Risk Management: Employee Benefits • Special Education • Special Education Technology • Speech Therapy • Technology • Web Publishing Policy Committee • World Language

  22. CPSB eLearning:Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • School's Online • 80% CPSB Schools • 2,700+ classrooms online • Gifted • Online AP • LCB Academy of Learning Who’s Online?

  23. CPSB eLearning: Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs Online Moderated Workshops • Six-week workshops - opportunities for teachers to learn more about technology integration within the classroom. 1 - 2 hours online each week, CLU’s provided. • Current online workshop offerings: • Excel-ing in the Classroom • Creating Teacher Webpages • Inspired Learning • Early and Often: Using Technology in the Early Childhood Classroom • Microsoft Word Projects in the Classroom • Easy Integration of World Book Online and Gale Group Resources into the Curriculum • Searching for Success • WebQuests: Journeys for the Classroom • Math Maneuvers: Improving Mathematics Instruction through Technology • Web 2.0 Tools • Promethean 101, 102, 103, 201…..

  24. CPSB eLearning:Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs eLearning Components • Learning System • Portal System • Content System • www.cpsb.org

  25. Administrative Leadership:Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • Began 2000 – provides ongoing technology proficiency training for principals – 3rd laptop • Focus - Wikis, Blogs, Podcasts, Microsoft Live Meeting and Skype for local and global collaborations • LEADTech • Continuous improvement – development and alignment of technology/school improvement plans • Blackboard for school collaboration/leadership/faculty study groups • Ongoing models for standards-based, technology integrated lessons (Classroom Walk-Through – PDA) • Resources to support improved student achievement • Promethean PD – assessment rubric • State online surveys provides data and goal setting for continuous improvement using NETS standards and yearly school site data • NETS for teachers, NETS for students, NETS for administrators

  26. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • 3.5 full time A+ Certified Technicians are employed to repair the 25,000 computers in the district as well as printers and monitors (average 250 per month) • All repairs are tracked with an in-house web-based work order system so that repair data can be collected and analyzed • Data can show trends regarding particular types of repairs that are occurring more frequently orwhether morecomputers are needingrepair due to age

  27. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • 3.5 full time Help Desk specialists are employed to answer technical questions arriving via phone and the email from the 5000+ district employees (20% increase each year) • All incoming email requests are automatically entered into the Footprints help desk system and phone requests are entered manually (average 130 per day) • All help desk issuesare tracked and theentire history of anyissue can be called up if there is a recurrenceof the problem

  28. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • Networking department monitors and analyzes the performance of the network throughout the day • The types of network data analyzed include network availability and responsiveness, bandwidth use, email traffic statistics and filtering statistics • Real-time monitoring of thenetwork is performedusing What’sUp Pro alongwith other server andswitch managementsoftware

  29. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • Average number of workstations accessing the network at any given moment – 10,000 computers • Number of web page and/or object network requests per day – 4.5million items • Average amount of data transmitted into the network per day – 50 GB • Average number of emails processed per day – 425,000 messages

  30. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs • Core technology systems have a achieved a 99.9% availability statistic over a three year time span which includes three hurricanes. • Internet bandwidth consumption has steadily increased over time in a controlled predictable manner coinciding with installed technology deployments and training initiatives. • Currently processing about 425,000 emails daily, approx. 1,000 of those messages daily contain viruses.

  31. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs Server Reduction and Data Explosion • District server count reduced from 140 to 100 in the last few years. • While increasing the number of enterprise applications which provide predictable, measurable and anywhere access to learning tools – Accelerated Reader, READ 180, FasttMath, Destiny, Scantron, Laserfische, Edulog, Lunchbox, eSchoolPlus • CPSB has embraced server virtualization - Microsoft Hyper V - operating 20% of servers virtually today. This summer plans to move to greater than 50% of servers virtually. • Reduce server refresh; CPSB has not purchased a physical server in 2 years • Reduce hardware support service; CPSB has reduced support by $20K. • Reduced environmental impact; power, HVAC, networking, rack space • Increased responsiveness to needs of the district

  32. Tech Support/NetworkingQuality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs Wireless Connectivity • CPSB has designed a complete wireless system requiring little management which reduces support costs and increases use by students and educators. • CPSB equipment is automatically allowed to use the wireless system without pre-configuration and the system automatically tunes itself to adapt to the changing learning environment. • 72 campuses operating 1000 WiFi AP’s operating 802.11a,b,g,n • Centralized management, distributed & backup controllers • Rogue AP detection • CPSB AIR – Access to Internet Resources - new project to provide Internet to all student and educator devices (brought from home) • $2+ million system primarily funded by federal grant dollars (ERATE) over multiple years

  33. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs Going Green to Reduce Costs • Not much interest to go green for the environments sake but huge driver to reduce costs • Laserfische - document management system that stores over 2 million documents and utilizes information workflows • Electronic fax system to eliminate paper analog fax machines, increase efficiency • Electronic storage provided to all students and staff both private and collaborative spaces available online 24/7 • Data de-duplication services, real-time backup and self-service data restoration • Virtualization has increased energy efficiency • Blackboard, Sharepoint, Unified Communications

  34. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs IT automation • Technology use and complexity increases exponentially as opposed to other traditional school systems like Transportation, Food services, Facilities. • Technology staff must provide ever increasing support with reducing resources for over 25,000 computers • 50% increase in IT services over 5 years; 0% increase in IT staff or budget

  35. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs IT automation – How Do We Do It? • Computers are preconfigured and usable directly from manufacturer to the classrooms • Security and policies are automatically applied to computers as they come and go on the network • Software packages, windows enhancements and security patches are deployed automatically • Automated network and email account creation for students and staff • Automated user provisioning in educational applications like Destiny, Renaissance Learning and Blackboard, … • Automated data updates within support systems saving FTE hours LunchBox, Scantron, SchoolMessenger • Reducing FTE hours, increasing data accuracy and reporting to state and federal entities

  36. Technology Enabled District Redesign Systems perspective • SIF – SchoolsInteroperabilityFramework • Infrastructuredrivescontinuousimprovement andprocessalignment • Need more SIF support from vendors like Scholastic, Pearson & Edulog

  37. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs Unified Communications • VoIP, FoIP, video and chat tools, presence information, emergency notification, conferencing system available to reduce travel costs in district and in state. • Live distance learning system ready to be expanded to all classrooms prepared to use it. • Record teaching sessions and meetings for secure playback to students and staff online. 

  38. Tech Support/Networking Quality Processes/Increased Effectiveness/Reduced Costs

  39. The Journey…. • 1988 -It all began at an NSBA T+L meeting in Dallas, Texas. • 1990 – Opened the CPSB Technology Center • 1992 – First NSBA Salute District Award • 1998– Technology Department Alignment – CTO Hired • MIS consolidated with Tech Training, Networking, Tech Support • 2000 – e-Learning initiative (Blackboard) • 2001 – NSBA AOL/Time Warner X-Change Project • 2001 – USA/British Council International Technology Connection • 2003 – Implementation of Baldrige-based Quality Management system wide • 2003 – American Association of School Administrators Civic Star Award – USDOE CTC

  40. The Journey…. • 2004 – NSBA/Center for Digital Education Top Ten Digital School District Award • Committed, Innovative, Comprehensive Solutions, Proactive, ROI/TCO • 2006 – NSBA Trailblazer Award – Disaster Recovery • 2007 – ISTE Sylvia Charp Award for Innovation with Technology • 2009 – NSBA Technology Leadership Network Site Visit • 2010 - New facilities – CPSB Technology Campus – North & South

  41. How Did We Do It? The Plan… • Board Approved Comprehensive Tech Plan • Endorses the National Technology Standards for Students, Teachers, and Administrators • Movement toward a “Digital School Board” • Laptops (Board/Administrators), Blackboard Community Portal • Strategic Alignment of Resources • Federal, State, and Local Funds • Technology Enabled Processes

  42. How Did We Do It? • The Infrastructure… • Reliable • Predictable • Secure • Scalable • Strategic • Data standardization • Compliance

  43. How Did We Do It? The Support… • Help Desk • Repair Center • Tech Contacts • Intranet • Standardization • TCO

  44. How Did We Do It? The Initiatives… • Technology Integration • Administrative Leadership • eLearning • Special Projects

  45. How Did We Do It? The People

  46. Contact Information Dr. Sheryl Abshire Chief Technology Officer sheryl.abshire@cpsb.org Annette Ballard Board Member annette.ballard@cpsb.org www.cpsb.org  Calcasieu Parish Public Schools  Lake Charles, Louisiana

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