Saline IT director outlines AI plan, device counts and districtwide AV upgrades

Jay Grossman, the district’s technology lead, gave the Saline Area Schools Board of Education an annual technology update on July 8, reporting upgrades to classroom audio-visual systems, network infrastructure and a plan to introduce AI tools and literacy to students and staff.

Grossman told the board his nine-person technology team processed more than 3,368 support tickets this year (up from about 2,898 the prior year), closed 3,339 of them and has 22 open and seven pending tickets. He said the team supports roughly 2,100 student devices, about 750 staff devices and roughly 700 shared testing devices across buildings.

Why it matters: The update outlined operational work already completed (classroom AV standardization for K–3 and work extending to other buildings), and near-term changes that will affect how teachers and families communicate with the district — including replacement of several third-party platforms.

Key points Grossman reported: - Hardware and infrastructure: AV standardization across K–3 classrooms completed; AV work is underway districtwide at Heritage, Liberty and the high school. He said the district replaced its copier fleet and consolidated/replaced switches in all 42 network closets and added four more closets to support construction projects. - Device support and prep: The technology team cleans and preps Chromebooks and iPads and replaces aging staff devices on a planned schedule; Grossman said all staff devices will be replaced in April next year. - Platform consolidations: The district is consolidating family/staff communications into ParentSquare, moving data warehousing from Illuminate to Schoolytics, and replacing Securly with LineWise for filtering. - Classroom monitoring: The district is moving from GoGuardian to Classwise, which Grossman said will allow teachers to temporarily allow blocked sites for their classroom without district-wide changes. - AI: Grossman said the district is developing an in-house AI (internally named “Sting”) and will continue to use Brisk and other external platforms; he described plans to teach AI literacy during Hornet time and to provide limited student access to age-appropriate external models (noting Google’s Gemini and NotebookLM age guidance).

Direct quotes from the meeting include Grossman’s statement, "We are a team of 9," and his summary that "we have received over 3,368 tickets," figures he attributed to his team’s ticketing system.

Board members asked about policy alignment for AI use; one trustee reminded the director that board policies on AI exist and asked how communications will align with those policies. Grossman said tech staff are updating acceptable-use policies and will have staff re-sign them before broader AI rollout. He said a team member will work with the district’s tech integration specialist to deliver classroom AI literacy.

Grossman also described technology plans for facilities projects, including fiber rerouting for a new athletics field, Wi‑Fi and cameras for the field, InformaCast for the operations building, and a planned nine-panel LED video wall for the STEAM center.

What’s next: Grossman said trainings and documentation for ParentSquare, LineWise and Classwise will be prepared for staff before the fall term; device replacement rollouts and additional AV installations were scheduled for the coming school year.