District Administration- August 2008 - (Page 47)

Work? The destination landing pages for “Parents,” “Students” and “Community” offer a particularly direct way to get at desired information (although these sections were still under construction at the time of this review). The “Parent Resource Center” is a one-stop shop for all content of parental interest, including links for “Developmental Assets,” “Documents and Forms,” “Dress Code Policy,” how to “Get Involved,” and much more. The “District News” section is especially impressive. It is searchable by news topic category (for example, “District Administration,” “Press Release,” and individual schools) and by month, with an extensive archive available. tory” link. For general inquiries, there is a direct-submit e-mail form with a variety of subject choices. A phone number and mailing address for the district also are provided on the same “Contact Us” page, as is a prominent cross-reference to the staﬀ directory (containing the e-mail addresses for individual staﬀ members, along with their positions). In “Upcoming Events,” a list of imminent happenings is featured, as is a link to the full calendar (presented in a traditional calendar layout) that is navigable from month to month. Use of Online Technology Gates Chili e-News, an e-mail newsletter, is oﬀered to keep interested persons apprised of the latest goings-on. The sign-up link is available from an icon on the home page. It is customizable via a choice of enews subscriber lists, based on topics of greatest interest. RSS feeds are available. When selecting that link (on the top tier of the navigation bar), users are directed to a page with a number of category tabs (for “Site Content,” “Calendar,” “News” and others), but these tabs do not provide links to individual RSS feed subjects, as would be expected, and there is no straightforward list of choices. There is an explanatory page on RSS/XML, which mentions www.DistrictAdministration.com clickable orange RSS or XML buttons by which users can subscribe to the various feeds; however, those icons were hard to ﬁnd on the site at the time of this review. “Video On-Demand” is oﬀered on the site’s home page, with entertaining and informative school-related coverage. The “Jobs” section allows access to the personnel pages of the district’s site, with online access to job opportunities and the employment application. This recruitment system is hosted separately. Up-to-Date-Information The information on this site is up-todate and well tended to. The “District News” section is especially impressive. It is searchable by news topic and by month, with an extensive archive available. There are prominent links to updates on new construction projects underway at several schools in the district. Detailed information is provided on contractors, work in progress and project history. The site’s home page has a current dateand-time stamp, as well as a WeatherBug widget noting real-time conditions. DA Laura R. Bona is a contributing writer for District Administration. To nominate your district for a site review, contact Judy Hartnett at jhartnett@districtadministration.com. August 2008 47 http://SchoolWorld.com http://www.DistrictAdministration.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration- August 2008

District Administration - August 2008
Contents
Editor's Letter
Letters
News Update
Curriculum
English Language
8th Annual Salary Survey
Do You Know the Drill?
The Evolution of Notification Systems
How Well Does This Web Site Work?
New Products
Problem Solutions
Technology Books
Profession Opinion
Supervisor's Opinion
Crisis Response
Speaking Out
Calendar of Events
Understanding the Times

District Administration- August 2008