Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Education Technology topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Technology director outlines device leases, cybersecurity and new subscriptions as costs rise
Summary
Technology Director Bob Hickey told the board the largest operational increases are for professional technical services, device leases (iPads and MacBook Airs) and cybersecurity; he cited MLTI offsets for device lease costs and said the district is expanding AI tools and subscriptions while he prepares to retire in June.
Bob Hickey, the district’s technology director, gave a detailed review of technology budget increases at the March 12 board meeting, flagging three main drivers: contracted technical services, device lease programs and rising software/subscription costs.
Hickey said professional technical services rose from about $72,000 to $92,000 this budget cycle largely to complete a storage-area-network installation and specialized integrations (Raptor security system tied to magnetic-door controllers). He explained device lease math: 100 iPads for pre-K–1 at about $800 per device equals roughly $80,000, leased over four years as $20,000 annually; 350 MacBook Airs for grade 4 at roughly $1,200 each equate to $420,000 over four years, but the Maine Learning Technology Initiative (MLTI) subsidy reduces that annual lease cost to about $65,000.
Hickey also listed notable software and subscription costs: a three-camera construction license (~$4,200), Campus Learning (~$13,000), Raptor (~$5,200) and a Frontline hiring/recruiting module (~$24,451) replacing SchoolSpring. He said cybersecurity spending is significant — Sophos at roughly $56,000 — and the district added Lightspeed web filtering (~$11,000) after free solutions proved insufficient. "We have 3,160 something, I believe, students, 700 staff, almost 4,000," Hickey said, noting scale drives per-license costs.
Board members asked about capitalization and classification of items (MDM vs. educational software) and about hardware timing given market volatility; Hickey said the district is largely virtualized and purchases servers and network hardware incrementally. He noted the district has sold retired equipment to offset costs modestly and that devices and subscriptions are being rolled out thoughtfully. Hickey also told the board he will retire in June after 21 years in the role, thanking staff and the community.
The board did not vote on technology items at the meeting; Hickey invited follow-up questions and said detailed line items are in the budget book.
