The School City of Hobart provided its students and staff with a technology
rich educational environment some 14 years ago. However, budgetary problems
forced the corporation to eliminate the position of computer coordinator
and virtually halt technology acquisitions. This dealt a severe blow to
the progress of the educational technology program.
With an infusion of new dollars into the technology program over the past
four years, the hiring of a Director of Technology, and the support of teachers,
administration, the Board of Education, and the community, the School City
of Hobart is once again a leader in the utilization of educational technology.
Technology has become such a vital part of our student's educational experience
that everyone must be diligent in ensuring that a budget priority for the
School City of Hobart remains the acquisition of new technology every year
in the future.
Our budget for technology for the next five years is contained in the appendix.
The budgetary plan should be viewed as occurring in phases. The first phase
brings large capital expenses to effect building-wide area networking linking
vital resources in such a manner that minimizes restrictions on access to
information. The second phase entails getting teacher, student, administration,
and support staff increased access to appropriate technology.
Thus, our budgetary plan is broken into two sections. The first section
contains estimates of technology costs primarily for networking and infrastructure
that would allow us to move education into the 21st Century. The second
represents estimates of technology expenditures for the continuation of
programs that we deem essential to our educational program. We believe that
it is necessary for our teachers to have ready access to professional tools
including computers in the classroom. Thus, this section channels significant
technology dollars to support this effort. Also, administrative workstations
are planned for replacement. As has been our practice in the past, as computers
are replaced, they will be moved to less demanding curricular applications.
Other major expenditures include bringing our library collections on-line
by 1997.
As additional funding is identified, it may require a reevaluation of the
budget plan as to the order and sequence of purchases.
Also, as technology is acquired, the end user (i.e., teacher, administrator,
support staff) will select the software that best meets their needs. We
employ a variety of methods to make software selections including ordering
preview software and holding software preview sessions to help in selection
of the best application for our needs.
The most important component to remember about a five year budget, is that
technology evolves very rapidly. In addition, our needs change. Therefore,
it is imperative that a careful review of our needs, an evaluation of progress
toward goals, and our technology budget be completed each year.
The remainder of our plan is broken into two components. The first part
is an identification of the problems that face the School City of Hobart
as well as an identification of causes and effects. A requirement was recommended
to address each problem and solutions were offered to support the required
action. Finally, benefits were identified that derived from the course of
action.
The second section takes the solutions recommended during the problem identification
phase and establishes a plan of action. The
addresses the technology, training, and support necessary to effect the
action. The person or persons responsible to see that the plan is carried
out are identified as well as the methods used for its evaluation. Finally,
a targeted date for completion is identified. It is understood that some
of the recommendations of the School City of Hobart Technology Committee
require an extensive outlay of funding necessary to effect their completion.
Therefore, targeted completion dates can only be a benchmark for planning
and resource allocation.