Information Technology Services

Technology plays a crucial role in K-12 education, particularly because the generation of children we teach today are growing up in a digital society. To engage today’s students, the classroom needs to be tooled to deliver traditional school subjects within a media-rich, interactive environment that supports a variety of digital networking devices such as laptops, netbooks, e-readers and smartphones. We are working extremely hard to bring North Warren to this ideal. Through a convergence of several initiatives, we are excited to see an emerging use of digital tools in the classroom. This work is ongoing as we strive to enhance instruction by providing training, support and improving our technology systems and services.

Some of our most recent technology initiatives include

Wireless Network Upgrade: Wireless access points were replaced with a system that includes network access control features and improved visibility over the use of the system to prepare for the gradual implementation of bring-your-own-device. The new access points support the newer wireless-n standard which allows for improved data transfer rates. This system will be less costly to operate and easier expand due to inherent flexibility in the product design.

Managed Print Services: The District entered a managed print services arrangement with a contractor. We rolled out 14 new black and white printers and 13 new color printers to reduce make/model variety, and replace old / faulty equipment throughout the building. The managed print service will cost roughly the same as it did to deliver an in-house print service, but with several improvements, such as: Newer equipment and improved levels of service through auto-refresh of toner, along with next day service when a printer repair is beyond in-house support staff capability.

Google Apps for Education: The District completed the migration to Google apps for Education to provide an email system, calendar and document collaboration system at very low cost while eliminating the need to maintain and support email related equipment and services in-house.

Cafeteria Point-of-Sale: A point-of-sale system is in progress with being rolled out for the cafeteria. Parents/Guardians will be able to pre-pay for lunches through a secure web-site, and monitor what their students are purchasing from the cafeteria.

Server Virtualization: The District has virtualized all internal servers so that this equipment is consolidated onto 2 physical server devices. This reduces energy costs, frees up equipment space, improves up-time, and reduces systems administration workload by facilitating better practices.

Desktop Virtualization: The school’s computer desktop environment is in progress of being virtualized so that it may be made available on the cloud over the next several months. This means that the school desktop environment will be securely accessible over an Internet connection from almost any device such as computers, and many types of tablet devices / smartphones. Most physical desktop computers in the school are either being replaced by thin-client devices, while older hardware is being converted to run as a thin client. This changes the manner in which desktop computing is delivered, ultimately reducing the support workload, allowing I.T. staff to focus more on training activities and instructional support.

Technology Staff

Jeff Louw: Technology Systems Coordinator – X 1141
Brian Quigley: Technology Support Specialist – X 1145

Technology Support

When calling for technical support please provide detailed and thorough information about the problem. This helps us deliver solutions much more quickly by reducing time spent investigating the problem.

If you need help or repairs to equipment, including telephones, fill out the Helpdesk Form.
If you have an emergency situation (“show-stopper”), please dial 0.
Loan equipment such as projectors, laptops, and carts are available from the Media Center.
Feel free to contact us if you need help while trying something new with technology in your lesson, or need support with an idea or initiative.
We offer training by appointment on Technologies used at NWR which count toward Professional Development Hours. This training can be personalized and targeted toward specific lesson goals.

Services and Infrastructure

The North Warren Regional School District Technology Infrastructure provides services for approximately 430 desktop computers and laptops, and 11 servers, in a user community of approximately 100 staff and 1100 students. We also support many printers, projectors, interactive whiteboards, and the telephones. There are a number of general and specialized computer labs. This equipment is deployed on a firewalled, managed infrastructure that includes a wired and wireless network, with a content filtered Internet Supply.

We are continuously improving our Services and Infrastructure by considering needs, evaluating and refining existing systems, complying with mandates, and taking advantage of developments in the industry. Please visit this page often, as things are not static.

The following services are currently hosted on our network:

Internet Facing Systems

Helpdesk Web Site: Helpdesk application for requesting technology help.
Online Course System (Moodle): Interactive on-line course content, and collaborative instructional tools, like blogs, wikis, assessments, assignments and so forth.
Student Information Management System (Infinite Campus): Student data, instructional modules, and the parent/student/mobile interfaces to look up attendance, grades etc.

Internal Systems

Assistive Software Technologies.
Accounting and Human Resource Software.
Cafeteria point of sales database.
Directory server (user names/passwords), file server, anti-virus, operating system updates, print server, backup systems, deployment systems, and other systems administration tools.

We utilize several externally hosted web services for a variety of applications.