District Administration - July/August 2011 - (Page 60)

Finding the Right Purchasing solution Krueger also believes this patience is important. “Often, some of the most innovative solutions are from new entrants to the field, but unfortunately, they may not be around for the long term,” he says. Ironically, even at the competitive phase, the price of a product is often not necessarily a top consideration. “The upfront cost is usually toward the bottom of the list,” says Pileiro. “I think that’s because our ultimate priority as a school system is improving student learning, and we try to look at long-term value instead of initial purchase price alone, no matter what we purchase. Schools are not businesses, so it’s not just about keeping costs lowest, but instead it’s about impacting learning for students effectively, and costeffectively. Obviously, you want to be wise with taxpayer dollars, but the cheapest option is not always the wisest.” Cator agrees. “Price is definitely important, but it can be difficult to make it a top consideration,” she says. “Because there are so many different pricing models and different ways of defining costs long term, the price ends up becoming more of a judgment call that administrators have to make, taking into account the product’s performance, value, effectiveness and other requirements important to them.” Future Proofing Once administrators have gone through this long process and narrowed the field to a handful of competitors, what criteria are most important to decide between them? “Definitely look at how intuitive the interface is,” says Cator. “If you think about consumer technologies, they don’t need professional development, but many of those in education do. The ‘how you operate this product’ question should require very little training. ‘How do I make the best use of this product?’ is the part worthy of professional development time.” Matthews in the Recovery district agrees. “Ease of use and minimal training time are very important,” he says. “That goes for the user side as well as the support side. It’s important that our IT staff can support things easily.” He adds that flexi60 July/August 2011 Elementary students in the Barrington (Ind.) 220 School District collaborate on class work using a netbook purchased and issued by the district. Frank Pileiro, technology coordinator for the Linwood (N.J.) School District, trains a teacher to use a new document camera the district recently purchased. bility is also a crucial factor for the Recovery district because of its unique makeup, with a varying number of schools that changes year to year, fluctuating enrollment, and dozens of independently operated charter schools, which are all supported by central office IT staff. “Each charter has its own goals and makes decisions about what to implement,” he says, but the district technology department helps it decide and supports whatever products and technology the school uses. “So flexibility is extremely important to us,” he says. “We decided on a content filter, for example, that enables each school to be independent and allow or block sites as it sees fit, while still giving us centralized control and support.” Given the rapid pace of technology, however, it is also crucial to have an eye on the future and to think about purchases as long-term investments. “It’s critical for districts to take into account the fact that technology will inevitably become obsolete,” says Scrogan. “Smart district purchasers are looking toward the future with what they buy,” he continues, noting that Boulder Valley’s projector purchase included 3D capabilities, that although unused today, might be of use in the future. “Look at the value long term, the total cost of ownership, what you could be doing years down the road,” advises Pileiro, who says the Linwood schools are researching which tools they can implement today to facilitate a bring-your-own-device environment at some point. “The flexibility and adaptability of the product, the ease with which it can be updated, upgraded or improved over time is very valuable,” adds Cator. “Try to anticipate your future needs when making purchases.” Matthews agrees. “We try to make decisions that meet our needs now as well as what we think we’ll need in the future, to keep moving forward and looking ahead,” he says. “I tell my staff to always remember that technology is like a race, but one without a finish line.” DA Kurt Eisele-Dyrli is products editor. District Administration

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - July/August 2011

District Administration - July/August 2011
Contents
From the Editor
News Update
Facilities News
Inside the Law
District Profile
Administrator Profile
The Social Media Dilemma
Is Year-Round Schooling on Track?
After 50 Years, Ethnic Studies Still Controversial
Finding the Right Purchasing Solution
Look, Listen, Learn
Research Center
Supervisor’s Opinion
Going Mobile
Superintendent’s Insight
Books
Product Focus
New Products
Online Edge

District Administration - July/August 2011