B-T approves technology update for staff, students
Students and faculty in the Blair-Taylor School District will have new devices at their disposal starting next year as part of a technological update approved by the school board during their meeting last Monday.
Blair-Taylor Superintendent Lynn Halverson explained that IT director Bryce Anderson and IT support Tristen Koxlien looked into the district’s current devices and found that there were some inconsistencies among them due to the district previously undergoing technology updates in bits and pieces.
“Historically, we’ve gotten technology updates in small pockets, which resulted in some different versions of models and different ages of models,” Halverson said. “It’s just not as efficient to be able to maintain different ages of devices as well as different versions of devices. So, basically what we’d be looking to do is update all of our student devices and staff devices at the same time.”
Anderson and Koxlien found that iPads were proving to be more durable than Chromebooks, so in this technology update the high school and elementary school will change over from Chromebooks to iPads.
Halverson shared that Anderson got a quote from Apple totaling $387,442.50 for the technology update, most of which comes from the purchase of 650 iPads and iPad keyboards for student use and 100 MacBook Airs for staff use. However, that amount drops $16,000 to $371,442.50 thanks to the resale of the district’s current MacBooks that are being replaced.
The cost will be spread out over four years with annual payments of $92,860 with zero percent APR. The first annual payment will come in the 2025-26 budget year and the new devices will be swapped out for the existing ones this summer.
“I think this is kind of achieving the best of both worlds regarding dividing budgetarily and all having the same device,” Halverson said.
Board reorganization results in continuity
The Blair-Taylor school board will continue to look the same following their annual reorganization at the start of Monday’s meeting.
Incumbents Neil Kniseley and David Thompson were each sworn in for new three-year terms after winning their respective elections in early April. The board officers will all also remain the same: Troy Tenneson as president, Perry Kujak as vice president, Thompson as clerk and Michele Steien as treasurer.
Other business
This month’s personnel approvals for the district included the retirement of Brian Rogers as a middle school science teacher, the resignations of Bekka Baures as an elementary school counselor and Andrew Scheller as a technology education teacher, the approval of Grace Mlsna as a middle school track coach, and the hirings of Lauren Koss as an elementary physical education teacher and Briana Sass as a high school science teacher.
There were also two transfers: Amber Frederixon from a high school special education teacher to a third-grade teacher and Michael Lampman from an elementary physical education teacher to a high school technology education teacher.
