State: Missouri | Number of Students: 2,670 |
School Type: Public School District | Free and Reduced Lunch:13.8% |
Grade Level: PK-12 | English Language Learners:N/A |
School Context
Funding: The school district of Clayton raised $39.4 million from local bond (Proposition W) in 2010 to build a new middle school, Wydown Middle School. The school opened for the 2012-2013 school year. The district also raised $51 million from a local bond (Proposition S) in 2009 to repair and improve the district’s facilities. The funds were used to build new science labs and classrooms, update the technological infrastructure, and add small group learning spaces in addition to other facility upgrades. Additionally, the district raised $9,410 from the Clayton Education Foundation in 2012. These grants go to Clayton teachers to implement innovative instructional practices into their classrooms. Teachers apply annually for the privately funded grants.
High Achievement: To promote high achievement the district supports standards-based lessons and units as well as data-driven instruction. Small student-to-teacher ratios and individualized instruction are also emphasized.
Talent: The district is committed to high-quality teachers and administrators. They use performance evaluations, as well as parent and student surveys to assess teacher performance. They also offer offsite and onsite professional development.
Whole Child: The district promotes personal development as well as academic, focusing on students’ social and emotional needs.
Fiscal Responsibility: The district is committed to careful planning and budgeting. They also do community outreach and fundraising to help support the budget.
State of Technology
Laying the Foundation: Over the past several years the IT team has been getting its house in order. The district increased its bandwidth in order to improve internet speed and reliability. The IT team purchased servers and replaced outdated computers. Now, each teacher has an Apple laptop and every classroom has at least five devices (either Apple or Dell). The district hopes to prepare for a one-to-one initiative in the future.Keep it in the Cloud: As the district gets infrastructure in place, the next step will be to shift to cloud computing web-based applications. District leaders hope this will give everyone universal access to content, regardless of the machine they use or the location they are learning from.
Training & Tools: The district adopted the International Society for Technology in Education’s (ISTE) National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS*T) in 2008. These standards outline how teachers should use technology in their classrooms. The district plans to offer PD on how to integrate technology into classroom instruction. In addition, the district will offer PD on how to incorporate technology into STEM projects and lessons. The district is looking to add more edtech tools (including online subscription and web 2.0 tools) to help teachers with this initiative. They plan to review all of their current technology licenses (and fees) and assess their software needs in 2014-2015.
Upgrades: The IT team is planning to implement a new district-wide phone system in 2014-2015 at an estimated cost of $450,000. They’re also planning to replace some of the ~1500 desktop computers and some of ~400 laptops they have at a cost of $500,000. Desktops are replaced every four years and laptops are replaced every three years.
Tech Needs & Requirements
The district prefers cloud-based solutions. The district needs device management tools.
Initiatives
Microsoft and Google: The district is supporting teachers to transition from Microsoft tools to the Google apps.