EduTech Steering Committee, Tuesday, November 19, 2013, RIT Inn and Conference Center
Members Present:
Scott Bischoping, WFL BOCES
Charlene Harvey, Manchester-Shortsville CSD
Tim Hayes, Geneseo CSD
Robert Ike, Palmyra-Macedon CSD
Kevin MacDonald, GV Educational Partnership
Terry MacNabb, Waterloo CSD
Jim McNeil, WFL BOCES
Dawn Mirand, Mt. Morris CSD
Camille Sorenson, EduTech
Members Absent:
Bruce Amey, Avon CSD
Guests Present:
Jeff Ginsberg
Chris Saxby
The meeting began with introductions and Camille welcoming everyone to a new year.
Brief Overview of the Committee Framework
The committee is made up of three superintendents and the district superintendent from each BOCES. Voting members consist of the superintendents and the district superintendents. This is an advisory group for EduTech. Members of the committee are here to represent the district, BOCES, region. There are three meetings a year – the two fall meetings are usually on operational items and budget, the spring meeting often focuses on instructional technology. Over the years Camille has served as the facilitator, but is open to a co-chair if any committee members are interested . One of the advantages of the meetings and presentations is that it gives the committee an opportunity to get to know different members of EduTech.
EduTech’s Technology Forensic Services, Jeff Ginsberg, Manager of EduTech Wide Area Network
Jeff has been with BOCES for 17 years and has been doing forensics for the past 12-15 years. He possesses a number of professional forensic certifications.
Jeff gave a brief history of investigative forensics and how it has grown.
Reasons you might contact Jeff:
Discipline – student/staff, Personnel, Criminal
In all cases we work with district and legal representation, we require a request in writing from the Superintendent to complete the investigation. The chain of custody in the process is key.
Types of Digital Forensics:
Log File and/or e-Mail retrieval, Workstation Forensic Analysis, Cellular/Mobile Device Forensics
Security Audit
What are the steps:
·
Secure any equipment if necessary
·
Contact legal representation if necessary
·
Contact EduTech if help is required to gather information/evidence
We recommend that if you think legal action will be taken, pull the plug and lock the computer up. The most important thing is to get the computer off the network and start the chain of custody.
Preventative forensics:
EduTech will perform a security audit. We will attempt several security breaches off and on-site and in the end we will advise you as to what areas need attention. Security process begins with EduTech meeting with superintendent and may include additional staff as the audit proceeds through the process. Deliverable at the end is a report that is presented to the superintendent.
Tim Hayes asked if there is an additional CoSer fee for the security audit. Camille explained that we do this as part of the LakeNet CoSer. There is no additional charge. If a district is interested in having an audit, contact Jeff or Camille.
Question was raised what is the procedure if the Superintendent is the one being investigated. Request usually comes from the Board through the District Superintendent to the EduTech Director.
Jim McNeil mentioned the importance of having all the passwords for your district.
Robert Ike summarized that the relationship between a superintendent and Jeff is important.
Tim Hayes asked that Camille share/send the list to superintendents of what needs to be documented.
Scott Bischoping said it is nice to have Jeff working on our side and thanked Jeff for what he does.
2012-2013 Year in Review of EduTech Accomplishments, Camille Sorenson
Camille reviewed a number of EduTech accomplishments over the year.
Successes:
o
Designed, procured, and installed $12.7 million in technology for our districts; increase of 32% over prior year
o
Enhancement of the LAKENet network infrastructure which provides an opportunity for delivering more web based services
o
Continued expansion of shared services: shared technicians, data coordinators and coordinators of technology
o
Process E-rate applications for 18 Monroe county districts and Monroe #1 BOCES in addition to our
region.
o
Expansion of the Assessment and Scoring Analysis Program across the state to 10 Regional information centers, with Regents forms being used by all 12 statewide RICs
o
Maximize vendor & cooperative relationships to provide cost effective, high quality services for our districts
o
Extremely knowledgeable test scoring, data warehouse staff which allows all districts, BOCES to meet the NYSED deadlines for assessment & student data submissions
Challenges:
o
How to balance the escalating demand for new technology & support of existing technology while managing delivery expectations
o
How to manage the continual changing demands to support NYSED initiatives
Opportunities:
o
As more districts turn to BOCES for cost savings & efficiency, we continue to evaluate new services, products for our districts
o
The potential exists to provide technology services to municipalities in our region
Threats:
o
External & internal attacks
2014-2015 EduTech Budget
Camille presented and reviewed the proposed 2014-15 budget.
Proposed expenditure budget
$14,791,610; + $332,806; + 2.30%
Services Pricing
+1.93% change on all EduTech services
+0.0% change on all EduTech installation charges
Districts subscribing to shared services: +3.7% increase
Influences:
Saturated services: 47/47 districts - while the revenue stays the same the cost increases due to salary and
fringe increases.
Declining enrollment, RWADA priced services
Tim Hayes asked about installation and support fee that we currently charge on PC’s. Will we charge for tablets?
At this time we do not charge for tablets. We usually look to see how much support is involved before adding a fee.
New Services for Districts: Potentia for more managed technology services (we currently have 22 districts with less than 1000 students, do they all need their own server ? can we share a central virtual bank?
Individual district comparison sheets were handed out and it was discussed how this information would be shared both in the GVEP and WFL regions. Camille suggested where you might look if your individual district numbers are different than the overall +1.93 %, what volumes, price points may have changed.
Scott Bischoping presented a proposed administrative fee for GVEP districts. At this time only WFL districts share the administrative services costs for EduTech employees (HR, Business office, Administrative) as part of the Administrative budget. Scott worked with Keith Henry, WFL BOCES Assistant Superintendent for Administration, on what the impact is in terms of percentage of operation and how much would be allocated to GVEP districts. Keith’s analysis determined that a 1.7% fee of all EduTech services purchased by district was comparable to the Administrative fee charged to WFL districts. For illustration, a 1% and 1.7% fee was presented to the committee and the recommendation to the committee was to implement the 1% fee for 2014-2015 (based on 2012-2013 volume).
Terry MacNabb asked why the 1.7% was not being proposed. Scott responded by indicating that EduTech handles many business office functions in their organization as such the 1% was more accurate, at this time.
In closing Scott briefly discussed the result of a survey of WFL districts that he facilitated as part of his entry plan and that the results indicated that there was a great deal of satisfaction, value with EduTech services.
Next Meeting
Monday, December 2, 2013 8:30 -10:00
RIT Inn & Conference Center
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