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We are pleased to see that BVSD management has taken a small, but positive step toward addressing the numerous criticisms and recommendations outlined in an outside audit of the BVSD Information Technology organization in Spring, 2008 (see links below to the detailed audit reports). The issue BVSD addressed is the failure of IT decisions to reflect the needs of instructional curricula.
By way of background, in November, 2005, BVSD citizens passed a referendum authorizing approximately $3 million per year for computer purchases and technology support. Shortly after passage, BVSD management changed its long-standing policy of allowing schools to determine what technology should be purchased, based on curriculum-driven needs at individual schools. Instead, BVSD management mandated that all future computer purchases would be IBM-compatible PCs from a single vendor: Hewlett-Packard. At the time, more than three-fourths of BVSD computers and associated software were Apple Macintosh based. The announced reason for the rather dramatic shift in policy was to save money by purchasing computers from only one supplier; curriculum needs were not a consideration.
This decision created a significant uproar among teachers, as well as many citizens. BVSD later announced that exceptions could be made, based on individual requests to the IT organization, with an appeal process to then assistant superintendent Dr. Chris King. The reality was that requests were summarily denied by the IT organization and appeals were required for deviations from the new BVSD policy. Very few exceptions were granted.
The external IT audit, conducted by the CELT consulting firm, recommended that future technology decisions be curriculum driven. And this summer, we were excited to hear about the first such decision occurring at Boulder High. Multiple labs currently using Macintosh computers were slated for replacement with PCs. Boulder High presented convincing evidence that this would negatively impact curricula in multiple departments. In addition, Boulder High recommended, and BVSD accepted, the replacement of a current PC lab with new Macintosh computers, again, to address curriculum needs.
Curriculum-driven decision making is only one of dozens of significant recommendations within the audit report. Hopefully, this recent action is not an isolated instance, but rather the beginning of change within BVSD toward addressing the many issues within the BVSD IT organization addressed by the audit, as well as toward addressing the many other challenges facing BVSD in the future. We’ll see. For now, BVSDWatch chooses to remain cautiously optimistic.
We recommend anyone interested to download and read the reports given to BVSD by CELT.
Links to the CELT audit of the BVSD IT organization: Board of Education Briefing: http://agendapublic.bvsd.org/AttachmentViewer.aspx?AttachmentID=1151&ItemID=1231 Performance Audit Executive Summary: http://agendapublic.bvsd.org/AttachmentViewer.aspx?AttachmentID=1198&ItemID=1231 Performance Audit Full Report: http://agendapublic.bvsd.org/AttachmentViewer.aspx?AttachmentID=1153&ItemID=1231
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