Mountain Empire Unified School District Report

Mountain Empire Unified School District Technology Review July 16, 2010 Joel D. Montero Chief Executive Officer July 16, 2010 Steve Van Zant, Superintendent, Mountain Empire Unified School District 3291 Buckman Springs Road Pine Valley, CA 91962 Dear Superintendent Van Zant: In October 2009, the Mountain Empire Unified School District and the Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team (FCMAT) entered into an agreement to provide a review of district technology. Specifically, the agreement states that FCMAT will perform the following: 1. Review the district’s staffing for technology service delivery and make recommendations for improvement. 2. Review the district’s delivery of technology support services and make recommendations for improvement. 3. Review the district’s procedures for technology support services and make recommenda- tions that reflect best practices for support service delivery. This report contains the study team’s findings and recommendations. FCMAT appreciated the opportunity to serve the Mountain Empire Unified School District and extends its thanks to all the staff members for their cooperation and assistance during fieldwork. Sincerely, Joel D. Montero Chief Executive Officer FCMAT Joel D. Montero, Chief Executive Officer . . 1300 17th Street - CITY CENTRE, Bakersfield, CA 93 . 301-4533 Telephone 661-6 . 36-4611 Fax 661-63 . 6-4647 422 Petaluma Blvd North, Suite. C, Petaluma, CA 94952 Telephone: 707-775-2850 Fax: 707-775-2854 www.fcmat.org Administrative Agent: Christine L. Frazier - Office of Kern County Superintendent of Schools Table of Contents Foreword .............................................................. 3 Introduction ......................................................... 5 Executive Summary ............................................ 7 Findings and Recommendations ...................... 9 Staffing ....................................................................................9 Support .................................................................................13 Procedures ...........................................................................17 Appendices ....................................................... 45 Mountain Empire Unified School District 1 2 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team Study Agreements by Fiscal Year 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 92/93 93/94 94/95 95/96 96/97 97/98 98/99 99/00 00/01 01/02 02/03 03/04 04/05 05/06 06/07 07/08 08/09 09/10 Projected Mountain Empire Unified School District 3 seidutS fo rebmuN Foreword - FCMAT Background The Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team (FCMAT) was created by legislation in accordance with Assembly Bill 1200 in 1992 as a service to assist local educational agencies (LEAs) in complying with fiscal accountability standards. AB 1200 was established from a need to ensure that LEAs throughout California were ade- quately prepared to meet and sustain their financial obligations. AB 1200 is also a statewide plan for county offices of education and school districts to work together on a local level to improve fiscal procedures and accountability standards. The legislation expanded the role of the county office in monitoring school districts under certain fiscal constraints to ensure these districts could meet their financial commitments on a multiyear basis. AB 2756 provides specific responsibili- ties to FCMAT with regard to districts that have received emergency state loans. These include comprehensive assessments in five major operational areas and periodic reports that identify the district’s progress on the improvement plans. In January 2006, SB 430 (charter schools) and AB 1366 (community colleges) became law and expanded FCMAT’s services to those types of LEAs. Since 1992, FCMAT has been engaged to perform nearly 750 reviews for local educational agencies, including school districts, county offices of education, charter schools and community colleges. Services range from fiscal crisis intervention to management review and assistance. FCMAT also provides professional development training. The Kern County Superintendent of Schools is the administrative agent for FCMAT. The agency is guided under the leadership of Joel D. Montero, Chief Executive Officer, with funding derived through appropriations in the state budget and a modest fee schedule for charges to requesting agencies. Total Number of Studies....................743 Total Number of Districts in CA ........1,050 Management Assistance 705 (94.886%) Fiscal Crisis/Emergency 38 (5.114%) Note: Some districts had multiple studies. Eight (8) districts have received emergency loans from the state. (Rev. 12/8/09) 4 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team INTRODUCTION Introduction Background Located in San Diego County, the Mountain Empire Unified School District has an enrollment of more than 1,600 students served by six elementary schools, one middle school and a high school. In October 2010, the district entered into a study agreement with the Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team (FCMAT) that requested FCMAT perform the following: 1. Review the district’s staffing for technology service delivery and make recommen- dations for improvement. 2. Review the district’s delivery of technology support services and make recommen- dations for improvement. 3. Review the district’s procedures for technology support services and make recom- mendations that reflect best practices for support service delivery. Study Team Andrew Prestage Warren Williams FCMAT Management Analyst FCMAT Consultant Bakersfield, CA El Cajon, CA Leonel Martínez FCMAT Public Information Specialist Bakersfield, CA Study Guidelines FCMAT visited the district Feb. 4, 2010 to collect documents, interview employees and review information. This report is the result of that effort. Mountain Empire Unified School District 5 INTRODUCTION 6 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Executive Summary The Mountain Empire Unified School District has consistently provided quality technology resources for students, teachers and staff members. The district has many areas of technology excellence and supports a dedicated faculty that consistently strives to increase student perfor- mance through innovative technology applications. Mountain Empire Unified has struggled to develop an effective technology support model in part because of a shortage of funding, its remote location and a lack of trained personnel capable of supporting the district’s varied and complex operations. The most important component in the district’s efforts to improve support and efficiency is the development of an affordable support model. Users frequently comment that they cannot obtain the support they require. District administrators understand the frustration of students and employees who struggle to get by with equipment that is sometimes old, configured incorrectly or infected by computer viruses. District staff members understand the reasons for the lack of adequate technology support, but are unwilling to accept them as a justification for the continu- ing problems experienced by the district. Virus infections have continued to compromise data integrity and lead to loss of information. During interviews, several staff members indicated that the district should consider funding additional technology support positions by redirecting resources from other areas. Each person interviewed indicated there is a need for standardizing purchasing and setting configuration procedures. Although some were able to acquire equipment without official district approval, they realized that this practice is ultimately counterproductive. Some employees also configure their own computers and recognize that this can also be counterproductive when it comes to obtaining effective support from the district office. District and site staff members consider the current support structure broken. There is no con- sistency in the development or deployment of systems, and standard operating procedures have not been established. Particularly troubling is that the district lacks fundamental documentation such as a simple inventory of all computer hardware and software. A summary of FCMAT’s major recommendations is presented below. Staffing The district should: • Create a Technology Services (TS) Department. • Create a director of technology services position to lead the new TS department. The TS director should be assigned to report to the principal performing technology management functions. • Create a district technology committee to review policies, provide a direction for technology, establish protocols for user support and professional development, communicate the technology plan, and establish minimum standards for the purchase of computer hardware and software. • Abolish the current position of support technician. This position title does not adequately convey the broad range of duties and functions to be performed by TS department staff members. Mountain Empire Unified School District 7 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY • Consider abolishing the existing site lab operator positions. Eliminating these positions will allow the district to fund the correct number of technology support staff members within the TS department. • Establish two new positions titled technology support specialist (TSS). Support The district should: • More effectively utilize the work-order system to manage support requests and workflow. • Consider developing a student computer repair squad to help maintain technology resources. • Establish a stipend for a certificated person at each site to serve as site technology coordinator. • Establish a schedule of technology support for the schools. • Explorer the possibility of entering into a joint services agreement with the San Diego County Office of Education for additional technology support. • Revise the district acceptable use policy and ensure it is signed by every district employee and student. • Redesign the website and use it for communication and dissemination of district plans and initiatives. Procedures The district should: • Consider outsourcing maintenance and support of the telephone system. • Create a detailed survey and map of district technology resources including computer, network, systems and configurations. • Evaluate the critical servers and software, develop a replacement plan for them, and establish a time line for replacement. • Create a standard backup process for all district servers and computers. • Establish and communicate enforceable purchasing standards and processes. • Create and implement a plan to eliminate the computer virus districtwide. 8 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team STAFFING Findings and Recommendations Staffing The Mountain Empire Unified School District has one district-level position assigned to perform technology support functions. The position has been filled by four people in the past seven years, and the high turnover rate has made it difficult to establish standard technology support proce- dures that lead to greater operational efficiency. The reporting arrangement for the support technician position was recently changed from the business manager to one of the district’s principals. In addition to serving as a principal for two of the district’s elementary schools, the principal performs other leadership functions such as de facto director over the functional areas of technology services and categorical programs. The principal has provided valuable technology leadership, particularly as it relates to educational technology. However, the lack of a dedicated technology administrator position has made it dif- ficult for the district to develop and establish a long-term vision for technology. In addition, the increasingly data-driven nature of instruction and assessment has forced districts to reevaluate the need for dedicated leadership over instructional and admin- istrative technology initiatives. The position has been The support technician frequently receives assistance from other filled by four people in district employees including computer aides, library assistants, the past seven years, teachers, students and other district personnel. In addition, each and the high turnover school also has a computer lab aide. These aides vary widely in the skills, experience, and quality of support they deliver to rate has made it difficult schools. Some assist the entire campus while others concen- to establish standard trate exclusively on their computer labs. At the high school, a technology support Regional Occupation Program teacher manages most of the technology assets and regularly provides support to the school. procedures that lead to greater operational During interviews, district administrators indicated that they discussed the possibility of creating additional technology sup- efficiency. port staff member positions to keep up with increasing demand for support. In addition, administrators commented that the dis- trict technology support staff could be partially funded by providing technology support services to neighboring school districts. At least one neighboring school district has expressed interest in purchasing technology support services from Mountain Empire Unified. This is practice is not uncommon, and several California school districts provide contracted technology support services to neighboring school districts. For example, the Shasta Union High School District provides contracted technology support services to eight neighboring school districts in Shasta County. The district lacks a technology committee to provide oversight or operational guidance for technology initiatives. Because of this the lack of guidance, the educational and administrative technology support functions are not distinguished from each other, and it is difficult to priori- tize tasks. Mountain Empire Unified School District 9 STAFFING Recommendations The district should: 1. Create a Technology Services (TS) Department. Establishing a TS department would allow district administrators to more easily cultivate the technical and organizational capacities needed to succeed in an increasingly complex and data-driven education environment. 2. Create a director of technology services position to lead the new TS department. The director should be responsible for all aspects of instructional and administrative technol- ogy services. The TS director should be assigned to report to the principal performing technology management functions. The support technician staff member should be encouraged to apply for the director position. A sample job description is included in the appendix section of this report. 3. Assign the principal performing technology management functions to head the newly created department until the TS director position can be filled. Once the position has been filled, department leadership responsibilities should be transferred from the princi- pal to the new director. 4. Create a district technology committee to establish standards, review policies and provide a direction for technology. The core of this group should be composed of the site technology coordinators with and members of other district administrative and certifi- cated and classified bargaining units. The superintendent should appoint the chairperson of this committee. 5. Schedule regular meetings of the district technology committee, set meeting agendas and solicit suggestions for improvements from schools and district departments. District personnel should be invited to meetings to discuss suggestions and request changes in operations or the delivery of services. 6. Appoint a representative from each school and department on the district technology committee to ensure equal technology support and distribution. 7. Abolish the current position of support technician. This position title does not adequately convey the broad range of duties and functions to be performed by TS department staff members. 8. Consider abolishing the existing site lab operator positions. Eliminating these positions will allow the district to fund the correct number of technology support staff members in the TS department. 9. Train teachers who use the computer labs to assume greater responsibility for lab opera- tion during their assigned time. 10. Establish two new positions titled technology support specialist (TSS). The two TSS positions should report directly to the TS director bringing the total number of TS department staff to three. The current support technician should be encouraged to apply for one of the two new TSS positions. These two positions could be funded from the 10 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team STAFFING savings accrued by eliminating the site lab operator positions. A suggested distribution of tasks and responsibilities is presented in the proposed organization chart below. Specific workload balancing and assignment recommendations should be thoroughly discussed among district technology committee members. Director of Technology Services Technology Support Specialist Technology Support Specialist Network Support, Server Support Desktop Support, CComompuptuert eRr eRpaepirair Other assigned duties Other assigned duties Specific schools assignment Specific schools assignment 11. Consider sharing the technology technicians with other districts to partially offset the funding for the new technician positions. More information on how this recommenda- tion is working in another district can be obtained from Mike Vincelli, director of information technology, Shasta Union High School District, (530) 241-3261, extension 10580. 12. Consider reducing Technology Department staffing requirements by contracting for functions such as telephone system maintenance. Mountain Empire Unified School District 11 STAFFING 12 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team SUPPORT Support The variety of software, hardware, and systems assigned to the support position is beyond the capac- ity of one person to manage consistently. The support person spends an inordinate amount of time driving to and from school sites. The overload detracts from the delivery of appropriate services to end users. The practice of assigning each school with a scheduled day for technology support is ineffective because the district office needs or emergencies often interrupt the schedule. Julian High School has indicated a need for a general technician for many of the same reasons expressed by the district. The technology coordinator at that school is willing to explore an agreement to share a technician. One option to enhance technology support is for the district to develop a student program to help maintain technology resources. Credit should be provided as an incentive for this program. Another option is providing a stipend for a certificated person at each site to serve as site technol- ogy coordinator. They can respond to initial calls for user support at their school site and refer more complex issues to the TSS. These teachers should be provided with training to assist in the support of site technology. The teachers could form the nucleus of the district technology committee. Many employees While lab aides are generally the first line of support at the district’s complain that the elementary schools, the quality of support is diverse. Some schools support staff lacks a use the aide as a school-wide technology technician while others do service orientation. not effectively manage the aide’s time. The high school relies on an ad hoc support group consisting of an ROP teacher and students. Other staff members throughout the district offer their time to help support educational or administrative technology resources. This unstructured approach exacerbated the district’s problems in developing technology solutions. End users report technol- ogy issues to the informal support staff, and the resolution of those issues often results in a new problem. The dysfunctional cycle will ultimately render the district’s technology unworkable. Many employees complain that the support staff lacks a service orientation. Some schools are complimentary of the support they receive while others refuse to call the support staff for assis- tance. Some staff members perceive this inconsistency as favoritism. The district’s work-order system is ineffective. There is no protocol for establishing a priority for work orders. Therefore, priority is frequently based on the person who is the most vocal. Many users complain that staff members arbitrarily prioritize and respond to work orders. Some work orders wait months before receiving attention. Inconsistent and nonstandard support service has caused many staff members to provide their own support. This has resulted in computers and a network infrastructure that continue to degrade and that are ultimately unsupportable. Input from staff members at school sites and other departments is not routinely evaluated to diagnose problems and implement preventive measures. Workflow could improve by enhancing support practices and communication, providing documentation, organizing work practices, and implementing more effective prioritization. Teachers and staff members are sometimes no noti- fied of repairs to their computers. In addition, several staff members indicated that the upgrades, installations and reconfigurations made frequently cause additional problems for end users. The technician frequently obtains assistance from the county office. However, county office sup- port is often ineffective because the district has not established consistent procedures to ensure that county office is aware of ongoing problems. The district should develop procedures for requesting county office technology support such as troubleshooting and problem resolution. Mountain Empire Unified School District 13 SUPPORT The district does not have a standard procedure for notifying end users of the type of technology work performed. As a result, the administration and teachers are frequently unaware that the support person has been on campus. The district lacks a staff development program. End users do not receive training on how to correctly utilize systems in administrative or educational set- tings. As a result, staff members struggle and waste an inordinate amount of time performing relatively simple tasks. Teachers also are not trained on educational applications. Technology resources like smart boards are distributed without proper orientation or ongoing support. While there has been a recent attempt to control district purchasing through policies and procedures, it is still possible to circumvent the process. Recommendations The district should: 1. Ensure all support providers develop a customer-service orientation. A staff in-service would facilitate this process. 2. Ensure that the work-order system is fully implemented and utilized to manage work- flow. Reports from this system can help resolve systemwide problems. Further, worker productivity can be maximized, and a reasonable schedule for repair can be established. 3. Use the work order system to schedule system maintenance, forecast needed equipment replacement, and provide insight into areas where additional professional development would reduce the number of support calls. 4. Consider developing a student computer repair squad to help maintain technology resources. Credit should be provided for this class 5. Establish a stipend for a certificated person at each site to serve as site technology coor- dinator. These teachers should be provided with training to assist in the support of site technology. The teachers will form the nucleus of the district technology committee. 6. Reorganize the delivery of technology support services. The ad hoc relationships that have evolved over time should be reconsidered or institutionalized and documented. The director of technology services should coordinate the efforts of all support providers. 7. Provide and communicate user documentation for support procedures, purchasing guidelines, educational and administrative systems, and computers. The website would be the best place to post this information. 8. Assign the director of technology services to develop a schedule of support for the schools. This schedule should be altered only for emergencies and major implementa- tions. Principals should always be notified of changes. 9. Schedule a meeting to discuss technology support services with the San Diego County Office of Education. The county office provides a variety of free and/or low-cost services that the district does not utilize. The district should pursue any opportunities for tech- nology support collaboration with the county office. 14 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team SUPPORT 10. Revise the district acceptable use policy and ensure that it is signed by every district employee and student. This should be an annual, audited process. 11. Redesign the website as the central site for communication and dissemination of district plans and initiatives. Mountain Empire Unified School District 15 SUPPORT 16 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team PROCEDURES Procedures The district’s procedures for sustaining technology lack the systematic organization needed to maximize district resources. Therefore, problems are dealt with on an individual basis without a coherent plan, making it difficult to find effective solutions that can be duplicated. For example, a virus attack infected district technology and has persisted for one year without resolution. Other examples of this lack of organization include the following: Because of the lack of standardized procedures, district support personnel solve problems only temporarily, increasing the number of calls for assistance when these issues resurface. The lack of adequate time to analyze problems and implement measures to reduce ongoing problems causes the support staff to use shortcuts that compound issues over time. Each district computer is managed differently, producing hundreds of configurations. Orders to repair district equipment are not effectively prioritized to manage workflow. Work orders are often cleared without any action being taken or the end user being notified. The district servers have not been evaluated for configuration issues or tested for failure potential. District server resources are in danger of failure unless they are recon- figured to handle the systems residing on them. Systems Because of the lack of on those servers are subject to data corruption or loss of standardized procedures, district information. support personnel solve problems The district has no scheduled maintenance or update only temporarily, increasing the schedule. Backups occur, but they do not comply with industry standard processes, and the data may be useless. number of calls for assistance The backup and restore procedures have not been tested or when these issues resurface. documented. The district’s e-mail system is ineffective, frequently becoming nonfunctional and sometimes losing critical messages. Networked systems are also inefficient. Teachers can spend hours creating a special education report only to lose the data because of a network outage. While there has been a recent attempt to control district purchasing through the introduction and enforcement of policies and procedures, it is still possible to purchase technology outside the process. Once delivered to sites, end users are permitted to change settings on district-configured computers. Many district employees and students have not signed an acceptable use policy and there is no adequate audit process to ensure all necessary signatures are collected. This lack of acceptance of district procedures constitutes a significant liability for the district. Recommendations The district should: 1. Consider outsourcing maintenance and support for certain district systems such as the phone system. Mountain Empire Unified School District 17 PROCEDURES 2. Create a detailed survey and map of district technology resources including computer, network, systems and configurations. Outside services from FCMAT or the county office can assist with this process. 3. Use industry standard procedures for maintaining the surveyed systems. The district should employ personnel who have experience managing similar systems. 4. Develop standard hardware and software configuration procedures. The district should prioritize the order that these systems should be documented and create a time line for accomplishing this. The documentation can easily be accomplished by acquiring a relevant screen shot(s) during configuration and writing a simple narrative. 5. Evaluate the critical servers and software and develop a replacement plan with a budget and time line. 6. Utilize the district work-order system to prioritize issues and establish repair and main- tenance schedules. Work orders should not be cleared (closed) without any action being taken. 7. Evaluate all district servers and make recommendations as to their viability to run appli- cations, potential service life and configuration settings. 8. Create a standard backup process for all district servers and computers. The district should acquire software to reimage teacher workstations and develop a process to store teacher files. A practice restore session should be completed on a server to verify backup procedures. 9. Evaluate the e-mail system and establish standard operational protocols. The district should ensure it has proper backup and restore processes. 10. Create a network map including equipment, protocols, passwords (stored in a separate secure document) and planned upgrades. There should also be plans for voice over inter- net protocol. 11. Establish enforceable purchasing policies and procedures and district standards for equipment and software. The director of technology services should create these stan- dards in collaboration with the technology committee. The purchasing agent should enforce the standards. 12. Immediately create and implement a plan to eliminate the computer virus districtwide. 13. Provide training for educational and administrative applications. The district technology committee should establish priorities, and the district should consult with the county office for assistance. 18 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team APPENDICES Appendices A. Sample Job Descriptions B. Study Agreement Mountain Empire Unified School District 19 APPENDICES 20 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team APPENDICES Mountain Empire Unified School District DRAFT POSITION DESCRIPTION Position Title: DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY SERVICES Department: Technology Services Reports: Principal, Clover Flat Elementary and Jacumba Elementary SUMMARY: Responsible for creating and maintaining vision, leadership and budgets for the Technology Services Department to create environment in which advanced technology supports all aspects of district business and educational endeavors. ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: • Sets vision and provides leadership for Technology Services Department, including coordinating and supervising all aspects of the Technology Services Department, in order to keep district technology current, progressive, and responsive to user needs • Responsible for Technology Services Department functions • Provides leadership in developing and fulfilling District Technology Plan • Communicates regularly with district management regarding technology vision, needs, and projects • Supervises and evaluates all Technology Department staff members • Facilitates departmental communication • Maintains Technology Services Department budget • Develops and implements policies, procedures and guidelines regarding information technology • Plans, implements, manage, monitors, and maintain district server hardware and software, backups, assessment and documentation. Manages and troubleshoots district servers to assure a continuous flow of service to district users • Works with other technology support staff members to troubleshoot and diagnose production problems; provides leadership to correct identified problems • Works with other technology support staff members to implement and integrate new servers into existing environment; perform backups and recoveries • Works with district and site management to develop technology systems to meet user needs • Ensures maintenance of district e-mail system • Ensures creation and maintenance of staff user accounts • Ensures E-rate coordination and application • Ensures highest level of customer service to district constituency • Supports all Technology Services Department staff • Coordinates with other departments on projects • Delegates responsibilities and tasks as necessary to ensure highest departmental organization and response to user needs • Other related duties as assigned Mountain Empire Unified School District 21 APPENDICES Mountain Empire Unified School District DRAFT POSITION DESCRIPTION Position Title: TECHNOLOGY SUPPORT SPECIALIST Department: Technology Services Reports: Director, Technology Support Services SUMMARY: Responsible for providing technology assistance and support services to technology users in the district. This includes software, hardware and operational support to ensure minimal down time and greatest staff productivity. In addition, duties may include installing and maintaining computer systems including software and hardware; installing and Level I testing of basic network infrastructure equipment including switches, routers, servers, and associated cabling; determining causes of computer/software/network malfunctions through evaluation and testing and resolution via modifications, repair, or external support assistance. ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: • Sets vision and provides leadership for Technology Services Department, including coordinating and Other related duties as assigned • Provide technology assistance and support for all technology users in the district for network/ hardware/software issues • Assist staff members to resolve problems relating to daily or routine technology usage • Diagnose user problems • Determine appropriate solutions for the user • Field questions pertaining to software and hardware necessary to facilitate completion of job • Work cooperatively with other Technology Services Department staff members • Maintain appropriate documentation of technical resources and services as provided throughout the district • Log support calls as to origin and type and track amount of time needed to complete entire service process • Document repeated calls by type and origin and evaluate as to the need for additional training or other systemic issues • Assist in training district staff regarding either changes in technology or areas of concern • Advise users of the necessary changes in operations due to new installations • Consult and or assist manufacturer’s representatives in the installation of new or malfunctioning equipment • Utilize support management software as appropriate to assigned tasks • Determine causes of computer/software/network malfunctions through evaluation and testing and resolve via additions, modifications, repair, or external support assistance • Resolve problems by taking appropriate actions relative to the specific problem • Modify system parameters as necessary to resolve problems • Advise Field Service Technician if maintenance service is necessary • Document support methods and processes 22 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team APPENDICES Mountain Empire Unified School District 23 APPENDICES 24 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team APPENDICES Mountain Empire Unified School District 25 APPENDICES 26 Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team