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619 SCHOOL DISTRICT TECHNOLOGY POLICY

The people of the Independent School District #363 have undertaken a commitment by putting forth resources to provide its schools with the most current technology. In order to maintain and preserve this investment for the maximum benefit of the district, a uniform policy should be established. The technology committee has recommended the following guidelines: A. Access to Computers 1. Students: Computer labs will be open to students during classes scheduled in the lab. Only with prior permission and with approved supervision, will the labs be open to students during other times, such as: study halls, after school, lunch period, etc. 2. Faculty Members: Computer labs are always open to faculty members. Use of a faculty computer in the classroom is restricted to the responsible faculty member and to students ONLY with the permission of that same faculty member. 3. Office Areas: Office computers are restricted to use by office personnel only. B. Supervision of Computer Lab Supervision of computer labs will be performed only by faculty and staff trained in the use of computer software and equipment. Labs may be supervised, on occasion, by students who have received adequate instruction in the regulations and procedures of the lab. These students need to have been approved for this responsibility by both the building administration and technology committee. Training sessions for computer lab supervisors may be provided periodically by the technology committee. C. Protective Software Protective software, such as Mac Control, will be installed on all laboratory and office computers. This software may be installed on faculty computers in individual classrooms at the discretion of the faculty member. The protective software will permit users access to all approved programs and applications needed for classroom instruction while protecting the integrity of the operating system. D. Computer Software Only software (computer programs) legally licensed and owned by Independent School District #363 may be installed on computers in the school. This includes lab computers, faculty computers, and office computers. The technology committee will provide a list of educational programs approved for use on school computers. E. Role of Technology Committee The technology committee shall have the following responsibilities for technology development: 1. Formulate and work toward both short and long term goals relative to the acquisition and integration of new technology into the school system; 2. Solicit input from the faculty, students, and community, relative to the possible applications of technology; 3. Establish, record, and maintain an inventory of all technology-related hardware, software, and relative documentation for the building; 4. Locate and preview possible software applications requested by faculty members for specific purposes; 5. Provide the faculty members and administration with specific information concerning both hardware and software materials applicable to any particular need; 6. Establish a priority ranking of selected technology needs based on consideration of all identified areas of application; 7. Submit recommendations to the administration for the acquisition of technology-related items; 8. Establish a system of maintaining a working technology apparatus by monitoring the use and reporting any abnormalities to a designated individual who will determine the proper course of action and who will maintain open communications with the suppliers of technology devices and arrange for required services as needed when the problems cannot be corrected without outside assistance.

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