Out-of-date technology poses problem for district
More than 90 percent of district’s computers still using Windows 95
BY DANIELLE MEDINA
Correspondent

PHOTOSBY CHRIS KELLY staff Above, Len Niebo, the director of information technology for the Brick Township School District, works on his computer in his office at the administrative offices off Hendrickson Avenue. Below, computers at the district’s technology center are used to train teachers and staff members.

BRICK — Almost 93 percent of the computers currently used in Brick Township schools have been classified as obsolete, under a new definition from the New Jersey Department of Education released this spring.

The results of a technology survey completed by the district indicated that only 262 of the district’s 2,576 computers received a passing grade, meaning that they are equipped with a Pentium III processor or better. Of those 262 computers, 39 percent (102 computers) are used by school administrators and are not accessible for student use.

A Pentium III processor increases a computer’s speed and is also better able to support more interactive software.

Last year, 95 percent of the district’s computers met the state guidelines, which meant that in order to be current they only had to have a CD-ROM drive, according to Len Niebo, the district’s director of information technology.

The classrooms at the Veterans Memorial Middle School had the highest percentage of up-to-date computers, with 55 out of 398 having Pentium III or higher (14 percent), followed by Lake Riviera Middle School (37 out of 320 or 12 percent) and the Primary Learning Center (13 out of 123 or 11 percent). None of the computers in the classrooms at Drum Point Elementary, Herbertsville Elementary, Lanes Mill Elementary, Midstreams Elementary, Osbornville Elementary and Brick Township High School are up-to-date, according to the state standards.

“It’s a gaping challenge,” said Superintendent of Schools Thomas L. Seidenberger. “But the comforting thing is that almost 94 percent of parents surveyed said technology is important to them, so we’re not out on a limb here.”

Seidenberger added that the district must make technological improvements in “small bites” because “there is no bonanza in state funding and there are no vendors dropping off equipment at our front door.”

But before the district can replace its aged computers, it has to replace the infrastructure — specifically the wiring, switches and file servers — in each of the 12 schools. To date, the rewiring of the elementary and middle schools is complete and both high schools will be rewired by the end of the June.

“If the wiring is not there, it’s like giving the teachers a Ferrari and telling them they can only drive in first gear,” Niebo explained.

Once the first two steps of the three-phase plan are complete, Niebo said he’d like to see the district embark on a three-year, ongoing plan to replace its computers, beginning at the elementary level. The district hasn’t replaced most of its computers in at least eight years, where the typical lifespan for a computer is three years. More than 90 percent of the district’s computers use the outdated operating system Windows 95.

“This affects kids more than anything else,” Niebo said. “We can’t offer classes because we don’t have the technology to support it. And it takes six minutes to log in and four minutes to get onto the Internet. That’s a quarter of a 40-minute period.”

So, Niebo said, most kids opt not to work on the computers in school because what it takes them a full period to do in school would take them 10 minutes to do at home.

But at $1,000 per computer, it would cost the district $1 million annually for new computers.

“I don’t know how palatable that is to the public,” Niebo said. “But technology isn’t a luxury anymore. We have to think of technology as a utility.”

Niebo explained that aged technology is a challenge not just in Brick, but in other school districts across the state. While the state has upped its standards and made technology literacy state mandated, it has cut programs and funding at the same time.

Yet Abbott districts — 27 districts throughout the state that have had low performance scores and were ordered by the courts to receive extra state funding — only have to pay $100 for a computer and the state picks up the tab for the rest of the amount, Niebo explained.

Seidenberger said that the district might consider leased purchases of computers because technology changes so rapidly. A technology referendum on an upcoming school election ballot is also an option the administration is looking at.

In addition to refreshing classroom workstations, Niebo said the district needs to create a centralized student information system and add a technology support person at each level (elementary, middle and high school).

“We currently have one person for 11,000 users,” Niebo said. “Nationally, the average is one person for 175 users and in New Jersey the average is one per 160 for grades K-12.”

While improving the district’s technology costs money, it can also help the district save money in the long run, district officials say. In addition to the centralized student information system, Seidenberger said that the district would be able to offer classes, electives and course selections online.

Improved technology, Seidenberger said, would also lead to improvements in staff development, allowing teachers to communicate directly through online bulletin boards and message centers across grades levels and buildings.

“It’s going to be a while, but we’re on the right track,” Niebo said. “The lawn hasn’t been mowed in technology in 10 years. It’s going to take a while for it to look like Yankee Stadium.”