By VICKI URBANIK

Duneland Director of Media and Technology Randall Eckley said he was shocked when a technology consultant described the computer infrastructure at Chesterton High School as being at the end of its line.

Eckley made his comments to the Duneland School Board on Monday as he outlined the need to replace a core switch at CHS, a project that will cost $570,311. With some sense of urgency, the school board unanimously agreed to fund the work, with the bulk of the money coming from the school corporation’s Rainy Day Fund.

Eckley gave an overview of some of the technology shortfalls facing Duneland, in particular, at CHS. He said that four years ago, CHS teachers were trained in a new technology program that allowed them to keep gradebooks electronically, as well as to report attendance electronically. But, he said a variety of problems surfaced, and the teacher program was put on hold as school officials attempted to work out the bugs.

Then came a series of fiber breaks. One was caused by a railroad crew and another by a moving van in Jackson Township. But the bulk of the fiber line problems occurred because of squirrels chewing on the line, he said.

In the 2005-06 school year, Eckley said Duneland received a consultant report recommending an upgrade of switches and the elimination of obsolete equipment. The following school year, a second technology consultant found that the technology devices at CHS were at the “end of the line.”

“That really shocked me,” he said, expressing frustration that CHS is the newest school building but has problematic technology infrastructure.

In the most recent school year, Eckley said CHS teachers were retrained successfully on the new teacher program after Duneland acquired a new IBM server. Further, he said CHS is about to significantly increase its bandwidth. Just this past week, a new core switch serving the entire school district was installed. The work was critical, Eckley said, since if the switch went down, the entire school district would be affected.

Eckley said that with a new server, more band width and new core switches, some of the technology shortfalls at CHS will be addressed. He noted that teachers get frustrated when download speeds are so slow, and that the increased band width should help improve that situation.

He also expressed support for a recent recommendation from the Duneland Key Communicator Group, which called for a major technology upgrade in all the schools, with a portion of the work possibly to be funded through a bond issue. Eckley said while all the schools have technology needs, it makes sense to focus on immediate improvements at CHS, not only because CHS is a heavy user of technology but also because about one-third of all Duneland students and staff are at that building.

School Board Member Mike Trout said that business world, technology glitches often occur. While frustrating, he said the need to upgrade and replace technology should be viewed as an ongoing process.

CPF Review

In a separate but related matter, Duneland Assistant Superintendent Dave Pruis gave a preliminary overview of the proposed 2009 Capital Projects Fund. So far, the CPF totals about $11.5 million, higher than in any previous year.

The CPF covers assorted capital expenses, in addition to technology staff and pension bond obligations. Pruis said individual schools have submitted a variety of requests for new technology, ranging from smart boards to computer lab upgrades. “The list is never-ending,” he said.

Eckley said he has asked media specialists at the Duneland schools to submit project-based proposals and to prioritize each one.

Exactly how much the CPF will end up at remains to be seen. Pruis noted that Duneland -- like all other taxing units in Porter County -- has yet to receive final approval for the current year’s budget, so it’s not known what the state-approved CPF will be this year and how much will be allowed for next year. Pruis noted that 54 of Indiana’s 92 counties have now received this year’s budget orders from the state; as of last week, Porter County, along with neighboring LaPorte and St. Joseph counties, is in the second of six steps of the budget process.

The school board approved a budget calendar for the coming weeks. The 2009 overall budget will be reviewed at a board meeting on August 5, with a budget adoption set for Sept. 22.

Building Report

In a report on the summer building projects, Duneland Director of Special Services Mark McKibben said this season has been very busy. However, in his 16 years with Duneland, it’s also been the most uneventful in terms of problems that arise.

The biggest summer project now underway is at the Liberty Schools. At Liberty Intermediate, the exterior wall covering is being replaced, while a new heating and air conditioning system is getting installed at Liberty Elementary. McKibben said that Duneland was able to get more than $4,000 from the scrap material in the old ventilator units. Further, he said Duneland is saving a considerable amount of money by having in-house maintenance staff do much of the necessary work.

Half of the new ventilators are expected to arrive later this week. The general feeling is that the new HVAC system will be in place before the new school year begins, he said.

Other summer building projects include new paint in the middle school locker rooms, exterior painting at the Instructional Materials Center, and classroom painting and new carpeting in almost every school building. In addition, Chesterton Middle School is getting new roofing, which is nearly half way completed.

Personnel

The school board approved the following new appointments: Joyce Goodwin will serve as assistant to the LES principal in the first semester, and Judy Polite will fill this post in the second semester. Russ Hardsock was appointed as assistant to the Yost Elementary principal. Lauren Norris was appointed as first grade summer school teacher.

In addition, Diana Alger was hired for the guidance department and as an administrative assistant at CHS and the Duneland Alternative Learning Center. Alger has a master’s degree in school counseling, with her graduate work done at DePaul University.

Hired as summer school aides were: Heidi Henniger, kindergarten; Sandy Campbell, first grade; Diane Yagelski, Susan Roseicki, Cris Bledsoe, and Tracy Anderson, all in special education.

Hired as community coaches for CMS were Sommer Watts, Erin Lobsinger and Mitch Semans, all in cross country; and Alex Ericksen, Nate McMillan and Derrick Lee, all in football.

Posted 7/15/2008