Schools to use large grant on technology in the classroom

The Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant Program administered by the Rural Utilities Service recently awarded the White County School District a $989,760 grant. The competitive grant, awarding up to $1 million, helps rural communities obtain advanced telecommunications technology to connect to each other and the world.

Technology Director Ashley Rust, alongside Emily Barnes, Instructional Technology Coach, and Shelia Felton, Federal Programs Director, applied for the grant in January after months of preparation.

“The RUS-DLT grant will enable us to provide cutting-edge educational tools for our classrooms,” Rust said. “With the interactive panel and video conferencing camera, we are not just upgrading our technology, we are also enhancing the learning experience for our students and educators.”

Grant funding will be used to purchase interactive panels with a video conferencing camera that can be used for virtual field trips, college tours, increased dual credit options, and other educational collaborative initiatives in each 6-12 classroom.  All elementary classrooms already have an interactive panel. Funding will be used to add a video conferencing camera to those grade levels.

According to Rust, in addition to the instructional benefits to students, teachers can utilize this technology to access and collaborate with other teachers across the district more efficiently.

“Our goal for this project was to improve the overall quality of education for students in our rural area to ensure an equitable learning environment compared to their urban counterparts,” Barnes said. “We’re very excited about the virtual field trip opportunities and college and career readiness partnerships we can bring into the classroom for our students.”

Barnes also said that this technology will be beneficial to the three district academic coaches who serve over 300 educators by eliminating the time and distance barriers.

“We know that technology can never replace the great classroom teachers we have in our district,” Barnes said, “but it can enhance what they already do, so we’re excited to be able to provide them the tools they need.”

The district elected to purchase ActivPanel displays. ActivPanel, owned by Promethean, boasts panels that deliver robust, seamless, and secure user experiences while offering features that respond to the needs of teachers, IT administrators, and school leaders. ActivPanel also offers integration with Google Classroom–the educational platform already utilized in White County schools.

Project implementation will begin this year and will span over the next three years.