Technology plan calls for new iPad lease, infrastructure upgrades and $600K-plus in audio/security work
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Summary
District technology staff proposed adding a third iPad lease (510 iPads plus cases), a $35,000 staff laptop refresh (35 laptops), and infrastructure/audio upgrades estimated around $620,513, bringing the year's technology purchases to about $992,000 largely because audio improvements were moved into the tech plan.
Cary CCSD 26 technology staff on Feb. 17 presented a multicomponent technology plan that would add a third iPad lease, refresh staff devices, and fund infrastructure and audio enhancements tied to building renovations.
Mr. Fitzsimmons said the district will continue leasing iPads for kindergarten and fifth grade and plans to add a lease this year that would include 510 iPads, 300 Keyfolio cases and 300 kindergarten cases; staff listed the subtotal for that lease and cases as $165,009.81. He told the committee the district is continuing a five-year refresh cycle for staff and that 35 staff devices are due for replacement this year at an estimated cost of about $35,000.
The presentation moved audio-enhancement work for Deerpath into the technology plan this year. Fitzsimmons estimated audio enhancement costs at roughly $354,000 plus about $60,000 for wiring and a near-$207,000 switch upgrade, describing the combined technology package for those items as approximately $620,513. He said the overall summary of purchases this year was "just under $992,000," a figure elevated by the inclusion of audio-enhancement components that had previously been part of the referendum-driven building enhancements.
Fitzsimmons emphasized student safety and device management: the district will continue to use Lightspeed for iPad management, with content filtering and alert features, and said classroom microphones are not recorded or remotely accessible — "there is no way to remotely listen to what a teacher is saying on those microphones," he said. He also described the wiping process for devices sold to a vendor (Second Life Mac) and said the district performs the wipe and releases devices from the district domain before resale.
Board members asked about leasing versus buying, cross-district device compatibility with District 155, the vendor used for staff laptops (Lenovo) and certification of data-wipe procedures; staff said the wiping is performed by the district before sale, the laptops were purchased recently and fell within the current technology budget, and the vendor provides documentation as appropriate.
The committee did not take final action; staff said some invoices or lease documents were with Mr. Shepherd and that approval was likely to be on the agenda in a near-term meeting.