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Technology staff outlines ticketing, website translation and security upgrades
Summary
District technology staff presented an overview of help-desk operations, the parent-facing website and translation tools, Chromebook replacement plans and recent security upgrades funded by a grant; staff answered board questions about device lifecycles, opt-in messaging and student-data scanning tools.
Neil Armstrong, speaking as the district technology presenter, told the board the technology team is a four-person unit that supports all schools and handles roughly 300 service tickets per month through the Incident IQ ticketing system. He said Incident IQ also functions as an asset-management tool that tracks device serial numbers and can schedule software renewals.
Armstrong demonstrated features on the district website, including a Google-powered translate tool and a prominently placed Family Resources page with links to PowerSchool, lunch menus and bus information. He said families having trouble accessing PowerSchool should use the “forgot password” function or email techsupport@orange.org.
On communications, Armstrong said the district recently moved from SwiftK12 to SchoolMessenger (part of the PowerSchool family) to handle emergency notices and routine messages. He confirmed families must opt in for text messaging but said those who do not opt in will still receive information by phone and email.
Armstrong described the district Chromebook fleet management and replacement approach: the district aims to refresh roughly a grade’s worth of Chromebooks per year and uses a device called a “Goox” box to configure multiple Chromebooks at once, reducing set-up time dramatically.
Security work funded by a recent security grant included replacement of external cameras with 4K units and installation of local recording servers at schools, Armstrong said. He described training campaigns to reduce phishing risks (“we send out about three or four campaigns a year”) and said the technology department is investigating a network security audit to identify further improvements.
Board members pressed Armstrong on staffing and privacy. When asked whether tech staff are assigned to individual schools, Armstrong said the team remains centrally based and cross-trained to respond across the district so staff can see issues at multiple sites and provide coverage when colleagues are unavailable. On device lifecycles, he said the ideal replacement window is three to five years but budget limitations sometimes require pushing devices to five to seven years, at which point security patches may no longer be available.
On student-safety scanning software, Armstrong said the district uses Bark to scan documents and student communications for concerning language and that detected items generate alerts to principals. A board member asked about privacy; Armstrong said he will gather more information and share details about Bark’s vetting and privacy protections.
The presentation closed with an offer from Armstrong to provide further details on Incident IQ’s broader market use and on Bark’s privacy implementations if the board wished to follow up.
