Wednesday, August 1, 2001

Technology keeps making life better

By DAVE HAMRICK
dhamrick@TheCitizenNews.com

More technological help for parents and students is coming this year, says Ed Steil, Fayette County School System's director of technology services.

For instance, soon you'll be able to prepay for school lunches.

"It's an excellent program," said Steil, adding, "We're still working out the bugs."

Students who participate in the program are randomly assigned four-digit personal identification numbers. Lunchroom cashiers enter the PIN into a computerized system to debit money from a student's account. Parents can place as much money into the account as they want to cover lunch costs for a week, month or entire year. If a student forgets his or her PIN, cashiers can easily look up the student's number using a last name.

The program was piloted in Spring Hill and Oak Grove elementary schools, and the first to get it this year will be Peachtree City Elementary.

Ten more schools will offer the program by year's end.

Two new computer labs also are on tap for Fayette County High School, with 60 wireless lap tops, said Steil. The wireless lap tops were piloted at Braelinn Elementary School last year.

Two new labs also are coming to Brooks Elementary, one at Hood Avenue and one at Fayetteville Elementary.

Workers are setting up special instructional Web sites at several schools, said Steil, to provide more space for teachers to put up homework assignments and other information for parents.

"Most elementary and middle schools are using the Homework Helpline," said Steil, where parents can phone in to get assignments, and many teachers already e-mail parents with information on a regular basis. "But this will provide a lot more space to save things," he said.

For instance, parents and students also will be able to look up old assignments their students might have missed.

"We're still catching up" on a lot of projects, Steil said, because the school system's budget was passed late. But as the year progresses, technological advances will keep getting better, he said.