District Technology Overview
updated on 8/17/11
Macintosh Environment
EAPS is primarily an Apple Macintosh district with the vast majority of student and teacher computers running the Mac OS X operating system. We have approximately 500 Intel-based Macs running OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard) and another 300 PowerPC-based Macs running OS X 10.5 (Leopard). The Intel-based Macs allow both OS X and Microsoft Windows to run on the same machine. Our business applications lab at the High School is a great example of this: the machines can be booted into either operating system, depending on the course being offered. Our special education rooms throughout the district are equipped with the same Intel-based Macs, which allow our special ed teachers to switch back and forth between OS X for everyday educational use and Windows to access their proprietary EIEP software. The ability to run both Windows and OS X on the same hardware allows the district to standardize on one classroom machine, regardless of software requirements, which provides a more familiar environment for our teachers and students. It also provides a more efficient support structure as our service technicians are able to concentrate on hardware that they are most comfortable with. EAPS is an Apple Self Servicing District; all repairs—warranty and non-warranty—are performed in-house, by Apple Certified Hardware Technicians.
Apple iPads
The district currently has approximately 150 Apple iPads in use between all five schools. We have at least one iPad in every classroom from Kindergarten through 6th Grade. In addition, all of our Title I, Speech, and Special Education classrooms are equipped with at least one iPad from Kindergarten through 12th Grade.
Interactive Classroom Technology
All of our classrooms from Kindergarten through 12th Grade are equipped with ceiling-mounted digital projectors and digital document cameras. In addition, all of our high school classroom projectors have interactive whiteboard technology built in. Each of our elementary and middle school buildings have multiple interactive whiteboards on mobile stands which can be moved between classrooms. This year, many of our K-6 teachers will pilot an interactive pen that converts a traditional classroom projector and doc cam into an interactive whiteboard solution. Our goal is to start the 2012-13 school year with some form of interactive whiteboard technology in 100% of our regular ed classrooms.
Windows Environment
Our secretarial staff use Windows PCs—primarily Dell desktops—to perform their job duties. We are in the process of upgrading our PC fleet to Windows 7 and Office 2010. The district also operates various task-specific Windows computers, including a laptop used by the mechanic at our bus garage to diagnose engine and transmission problems on our fleet of school buses.
File Servers
The district maintains and operates over a dozen file servers, all of which are housed centrally in our district data center, which is located in the Middle School. The data center is a climate controlled environment that allows our servers and head-end network infrastructure equipment to operate in optimal conditions. Most of our file servers are Macintosh Xserve rack-mount servers that provide our student and staff authentication services. Student and staff data is stored on a Macintosh XRAID server with over 5TB of storage capacity. The district operates several PC servers—primarily Dell rack-mount servers running Windows Server 2003—which provide the district’s DNS and DHCP services as well as authentication services for our PC users.
Local Area Networks (LAN)
The district has standardized on Cisco switches and routers for the local area networks in all of its buildings. We are currently running 10/100 Cisco Catalyst 3500 series switches and are exploring the feasibility of moving to Gigabit Ethernet switches in the future. In addition to the wired infrastructure, wireless access is available to students and staff in all of our buildings. Our newly upgraded High School is equipped with high-capacity Xirrus wireless arrays throughout the building, while our remaining buildings have standardized on Apple’s AirPort wireless technology. Our extensive wireless coverage provides access for our many iPads as well as allowing some teachers—such as our itinerants in elementary Art, Music, and PE—to utilize laptops for grading as they move between the buildings.
Wide Area Network (WAN)
Our wide area network is a combination of district-owned and leased fiber optic cable that tie our buildings together into one cohesive network. Each building is connected back to the district data center and ultimately to the Delta-Schoolcraft ISD, which provides our access to the Internet.
