| State: Washington | Number of Students: 28,032 |
| School Type: Public School District | Free and Reduced Lunch: 12.1% |
| Grade Level: PK-12 | English Language Learners: 9.2% |
School Context
Funding: Lake Washington received $127.2 million in 2014 from an Educational Programs and Operations Levy to be spent over four years. $85.6 million of these funds will go to technology teaching and learning tools. The district will replace student computers on a four-year cycle and improve server and network infrastructure. In addition, it will use these funds to pay for software and teacher training.
Academics: The district plans to ensure academic success for every student by providing rigorous and relevant curriculum and assessments and data informed systems.
Learning Environment: Lake Washington prioritizes both safe and innovative learning environments by implementing positive school climate curriculum, developing reliable technology infrastructure and providing up-to-date devices.
Top Teachers: Teacher quality is very important to this district. To recruit, hire & retain highly effective personnel the district is implementing a comprehensive professional development learning management plan and using data to drive professional learning.
Be Responsible: The district plans to be conscious of how it uses resources and tracks finances. All of these activities must be aligned to strategic goals.
Community Counts: To support community outreach, the district is developing a new website and mobile app to continue varies and consistent communication.
State of Technology
Access Pass: The district’s recently passed levy supports over 28,000 staff and students computers. Last year, the district kicked off its “Mobile Access for Students” program, providing every middle and high school student with a laptop or network, that they can take home. For elementary students, there are computer carts for every school that provide 3:1 access for kindergarten through second grade and 2:1 access for third through fifth grade. Devices across the district all have Windows-based operating systems.
Learning Management Bundle: With new devices, the district also adopted a learning management system to improve communication and collaboration online. Teachers use Haiku to make class announcements, assignments and share calendars. Teachers use Dyknow to manage content delivery, workgroups, and monitor student activity on the web. The district uses both devices in tandem to round out their LMS functionality.
Outbreak: Security is a major priority for this district. Last year, a “Goblin” virus took over the district devices. Students and teachers had to temporarily suspend their use of the devices. To resolve the problem, the district purchased additional equipment and security programs to ensure that it protects the network.
Professional Development: The district has undergone a huge effort to support professional development. Teams of coaches are out in the field, coordinating PD throughout the year for key trainers. Trainings are also delivered online, as well as in person.
Tech Needs & Requirements
All tools must operate on a Microsoft operating system and must be provisioned centrally. Tools can’t require something that’s “off-standard,” meaning no one-off deployments. The district must be able to have direct contact on the technical and academic side with vendors. The district also expects vendors to play an active role in the implementation process. Kent needs cloud-based technology.
Initiatives
Share Point: The district hopes to leverage Share Point for group work and to automate processes around video delivery and content delivery.