• Technology

    March 5, 2024 Update

    • CTHS network switches (E-rate pays 60% of the cost) 
    • Hyperconverged Storage – Refresh of datacenter main server system
    • DES – Original campus with touch displays 2016 – Already replaced 8 DES classrooms this school year
    • iPads – Support PK-2 student growth and replacement of older generation iPads with no application support
    • Computer Lab Refresh:
    • Labs at elementary that are 6 years old and used in specials rotation
    • Labs at MS & HS used as classrooms for various classes requiring computers (Tech Apps, BCIS, Programming, Engineering, etc.)
    • Meraki license renewal – Licenses for wireless radios districtwide. Originally purchased in 2019, license required for wireless to work. Will be replacing radios over next 3 years at each campus pending E-rate approval.

    This proposition includes technology items including student devices as well as an expansion of the network infrastructure districtwide to accommodate the technology load on the network due to enrollment growth.

    • Over a five-year period in the bond, the district anticipates replacing nearly 30,000 student devices. This is in addition to adding devices as new students enroll in the district.
    • Bonds for short-term assets such as technology devices are funded with short-term bonds; in other words, the term for the bond matches the life of the asset. EMS ISD operates a five-year replacement cycle for devices, so bonds would be for terms of no more than five years. Using bond funds to purchase student devices rather than leasing them relieves the Maintenance and Operations budget that is used for salaries, supplies and daily operating expenditures.
    • Technology infrastructure includes replacing the wireless networks at Chisholm Trail High School and Saginaw High School that have not been updated since 2012 and 2013, respectively. In addition, infrastructure upgrades will include battery backups, access points, and replacement of fiber optic cabling that has reached end-of-life or been damaged. Other items include the districtwide telephone system not updated since 2015, upgrades and replacements of the district’s data centers, and general expansion of the network to support enrollment growth.