Jennifer's Blog: RYSS–Plan of Action 2009

The plan of action will describe the many different contributions I have made to the organization since my tenure began as well as outline and describe new ideas, goals, and agendas for the future growth of the organization.

As the lead technician for the Junior Academy, I have successfully implemented new projects that include:

· Designed and built the EDUSS Learning Lab

· Setup the Infinity Project

· Setup the new Junior Lab

· Developed and deployed the new Help Desk

· Deployed of Classroom Management Software (Monitors student activity)

· Deployed Remote Management Software (Allows management of more than one PC at a time)

· Wrote Policies and Procedures for the IT Department (See Portfolio)

· Migrated all teachers and administrators in the Junior Academy to Outlook

· Designed and developed the Junior Academy Web Site (http://www.ryssjracademy.org)

· Implemented the new Teacher Technology Training Program

· Developing training materials (See Portfolio)

· Designed network drawings (See Portfolio)

· Designed Sponsor Postcards for China 2010 trip (See Portfolio)

· Designed Junior Academy 2009-2010 Enrollment Packet (See Portfolio)

· Designed and developed Senior Graduation Presentations for 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 (See Portfolio)

· Designed and developed NCLR presentation (See portfolio)

· Designed new logo for RYSS (See portfolio)

· Designed and developed the new Black-Brown Coalition web site (http://www.black-browncoalition.org)

· Designed and developed online learning modules to host online classes (http://www.ryssjracademy.org/class/)

· Many other special projects. (See portfolio)

It is my hope and desire to unite the organization’s Information Technology Department and move it into the future by working wholeheartedly with existing members of the IT Department to integrate technology into every aspect of Raul Yzaguirre School for Success’ educational curriculum as well as every facet of Tejano Center for Community Concern’s community service programs.

2 The Plan

The purpose of this plan is to define the objectives that will ultimately lead to a fully functional and solid IT department before the year’s end. Some of the objectives that are mentioned in this plan were taken from the recommendations made by Mr. Juan Torres. These are included because they are an integral part of the redesign, restructure, and renovation of the IT Department. In addition to the recommendations, I am also including further objectives that will encompass much of the teacher’s desires and needs as well as other goals that will further improve the functionality and overall operation of the IT Department.

2.1 The Tejano Center

In the coming months, RYSS will be erecting a new building which will house both the Junior Academy and the College Prep Academy. It will also erect and refurbish other facilities that will house the Primary Academy, Administrative offices, parking garage, gymnasium, and Technology Center. Therefore, RYSS should focus its plans on acquiring technology and putting in management practices which will help create a solid computing infrastructure in the new School and Technology Center as well as create a strong motivated team who is willing to grow and expand with the organization.

2.2 The IT Department

RYSS provides education to K-12 students at two facilities located in both Houston and Brownsville. The District operates four academies that house nearly 400 computers. Presently the Technology Department is unstructured and disorganized. This lack of structure and disorganization has created numerous problems for the technicians as well as administrators, teachers and staff such as:

· Inadequate service and repair

· Inadequate management of services

· Lack of access

· Lack of team unity and trust

· Lack of confidence in management

· Lack of overall trust and confidence in the IT Department

· Overall loss of productivity

The lack of structure and organization also provides an avenue for many of the activities that occur within the department to be done without prior approval from administrators, team members, etc. Ideas driven by teachers and administrators have been tested and implemented without prior consult from the IT team. For example, after the decentralization of the IT department occurred in September, 2008, the IT technicians worked independent of each other. Projects such as the configuration/testing/implementation of the new Help Desk were accomplished because I discretely researched, installed, configured, and tested the software for three months prior to anyone gaining knowledge of the intent to implement a new Help Desk. This could have ultimately led to an untimely breakdown of the entire system if I had unknowingly installed and configured a piece of hardware or software that conflicted with existing technologies. Conversely, this line of thinking was developed by all techs due to the previous Director’s management style. Prior to the most recent restructure of the IT Department, team members were discouraged from contributing to the organization’s growth and enhancement and therefore resorted to working independently to accomplish assigned tasks and improve the organization’s systems.

Restructuring the IT department will resolve many current issues within the department as well as eliminate the issue of techs working independent of each other. As Director, I will work with each team member as well as the team as a whole to ensure all team members are working to gain trust in each other’s abilities, have a rapport with each other, and provide complete IT service to the entire organization.

2.3 Teamwork

Creating a solid working team in the IT Department will not be a difficult task. Many of the issues that were the dividing force between the team members have dissipated over the past few weeks as changes have occurred in the upper management. When the members of the IT Department start working together again, team members will begin to trust each other and one another’s abilities. This will eventually provide for team unity and accountability. Once the unity occurs, team members will be more likely to have open communication, thereby effectively promoting the workflow process. As the Director, I would actively employ my interpersonal skills to encourage and create unity within the team. For example, team members would be encouraged to propose, test and implement new ideas that would lead to enhancements within the department or the entire organization.

2.4 Departmental Reorganization

As a part of this Plan of Action, I would work to reorganize the structure of the IT department. In order to improve and enhance the performance of IT Department’s team members, I would evaluate each team member to determine their contribution to the organization. I would restructure the department to support the following positions:

· Director of Information Technology

· Systems Administrator

· Media/Visual Arts (Graphics/Web) Designer

· Help Desk Analyst

· Desktop Support Technician

2.4.1 Desktop Support Technician

A desktop support technician is a person who repairs and maintains all Information Technology equipment including computers and servers. The technician's responsibilities may extend to include building or configuring new hardware, installing and updating software packages, and creating and maintaining computer networks. In addition to these traditional duties, the Desktop Support Technician would also be responsible for supporting PDA’s, Blackberries as well as other ‘smart’ technologies.

The Desktop Support Technician would be responsible for:

· Desktop Support

· Network Support

· VOIP Support

· Video Camera Support

· Firewall Support

· Blackberry and PDA Support

· Setup and configuration of new systems

· Software Support

· Repair and maintenance of existing systems

· Other assigned tasks

2.4.2 Help Desk Analyst

A Help Desk Support Analyst is an IT professional who mentors and improves the efficiency of computer users within an organization. This role requires having an in depth knowledge of one or more applications and systems so as to be able to quickly and effectively help users with their problems.

Duties of a help desk support analyst include providing answers to computer users’ problems, supplying training and feedback to those users to lessen the occurrence of future problems, troubleshooting difficult or unusual situations, and suggesting workflow improvements to management..is necessary. Equally important, however, are strong interpersonal skills such as effective listening, empathy, patience, and the ability to careful walk a user through problem resolution steps either remotely or in person. In terms of remote support, the capacity to visualize what’s taking place on the user’s desktop is hugely beneficial.

A person may consider entering this field after attaining a non-technical university degree or a one or two year computer diploma from a local technical institute. However, a person with a Computer Science or Computer Engineering university degree won’t regret the solid hands on experience that a help desk support job will provide at the start of a technical career. Also, some formal training in particular products or technical areas is highly recommended. The aptitude to troubleshoot problems under pressure, and the ability to defuse excited and sometimes irate users or customers, are also valuable traits.

A help desk support analyst will, in time, move on to more advanced technical roles, such as system or network administrator, application developer, or database administrator. In doing so, this person should also move up the salary ladder.

Salary information is so dependent on an IT professional’s particular skill set, experience and geographic location. However, diligent help desk support personnel may be remunerated with salaries around $35,000 to $45,000 USD.

The Help Desk Analyst would be responsible for:

· Maintaining inventory of software and hardware

· Managing Help Desk and escalating issues

· Managing incoming/outgoing calls

· Recording issues and tracking problems

· Receiving equipment

· Manage and maintain video equipment

· Other assigned tasks

2.4.3 Graphics/Web Designer

This is combined position that incorporates both Graphic design and Web design. The Graphic/Web designer is responsible for planning, analyzing, and creating visual solutions to communications problems. They find the most effective way to get messages across in print, electronic and film media using a variety of methods such as color, type, illustration, photography, animation, and various print and layout techniques.

Graphic designers develop the overall layout and production design of magazines, newspapers, journals, corporate reports, and other publications, while web designers create presentations of content (usually hypertext or hypermedia) that is delivered to an end-user through the World Wide Web, by way of a Web browser or other Web-enabled software like Internet television clients, microblogging clients and RSS readers. Graphics Designers also produce promotional displays, packaging, and marketing brochures for products and services, design distinctive logos for products and businesses, and develop signs and signage systems—called environmental Graphics—for business and government.

The Graphics/Web Designer would be responsible for:

· Updating and maintaining current web sites

· Implementing new modules/web sites to support new functionality for teachers, staff and students

· All graphics design for organization

· All web design for organization

· Design and production of all TCCC and RYSS newsletters

· Design and production of all TCCC and RYSS banners, flyers, and promotional materials

· Design all presentation materials including training materials

· Train staff, administrators and students on software such as Microsoft Office Suite 2003/2007, Moodle, Joomla, Spiceworks, etc.

· Assists Desktop Support Technician when necessary

· Other assigned tasks

2.4.4 Systems Administrator

A systems administrator is a person employed to maintain and operate a computer system and/or network. The duties of a system administrator are wide-ranging, and vary widely from one organization to another. Sysadmins are usually charged with installing, supporting, and maintaining servers or other computer systems, and planning for and responding to service outages and other problems. Other duties may include scripting or light programming, project management for systems-related projects, supervising or training computer operators, and being the consultant for computer problems beyond the knowledge of technical support staff. A System Administrator must demonstrate a blend of technical skills and responsibility.

The Systems Administrator would be responsible for:

· Management and maintenance of WAN and LAN

· Management and maintenance of VIOP

· Management and maintenance of building security systems

· Management and maintenance of server software/hardware technologies

· Management and maintenance of Enterprise Application Software

· Management and maintenance of network security and filtering software/hardware technologies

· “Test Drives” new hardware and software technologies

· Configures, tests and implements new application software technologies

· Assists Desktop Support Technician and/or Media/Visual Arts Designer when necessary

· Other assigned tasks

2.4.5 Director of Technology

The Director of Information Technology shall provide leadership and management to the Information Technology (IT) department in its charge to provide, operate, and maintain computing and telecommunication facilities, equipment, and services that meet the needs of the administrative, educational, and research programs of the organization. The Director of IT is responsible for all aspects of information technology management and control, including supervision of information technology employees; budget preparation and management; recommendations for technical acquisitions; and development of guidelines, standards and procedures. The Director is charged with strategic planning, tactical action, and operational decision-making to fulfill the mission of the IT department. The Director must possess initiative and drive, have broad relevant technical knowledge with good management expertise and have excellent written and verbal communication skills.

The Director of Technology is to be responsible for:

· Manages acquisition and distribution of technology related software and equipment

· Researches, pursues and secures funding for technology related software and hardware for entire organization

· Manages technical staff

· Manages all aspects of Information Technology for both the Tejano Center for Community Concerns and the Raul Yzaguirre School for Success

· “Test Drives” new hardware/software technologies and actively promotes new ideas to effectively integrate technology into all facets of the organization

· Trains users to effectively and efficiently use technology

· Promotes automation of services through technology

· Assists Systems Administrator, Media/Visual Arts Designer and/or Desktop Support Technician when necessary

· Recognizes productivity downturns due to ineffective/inoperable technology and works to resolve related issues

· Works with educators to integrate software technologies into daily lesson plans

· Works with administrators to maintain information flow for daily web site updates

· Manages budget and performs other administrative tasks

· Writes policies and procedures

· Maintains network diagrams

· Manages inventory of all IT related equipment

· Maintains maintenance and troubleshooting guides

· Designs training materials

· Oversees management of Help Desk

· Manages Computers to Community program

· Assists in negotiation of all IT related contracts

· Negotiates with vendors to secure hardware/software for organization

· Manage all TCCC and RYSS domains

· Manage building security

· Manage systems software filtering/security software

· Other necessary tasks

2.5 Technology Enhancements and Improvements

In order to bring the organization into the 21^st Century, the Center will need to go through a metamorphosis and change much of the way they think about technology. Key Staff members along with Administrators and Board Members need to be further educated in existing technologies and introduced to new technologies as they appear on the market.

As part of my Plan of action I will work with the stakeholders to educate them in technology and keep them informed of future technology that could possibly be of benefit to the organization. This would be a significant advantage as each stakeholder would be more knowledgeable and aware of the organization’s needs and would be able to pursue funding from sources that support technology oriented schools.

2.5.1 Replacing Existing Systems

Since one of the major concerns of principals and teachers is the replacement of outdated systems, we as an organization need to look at the alternatives and weigh the pros and cons of implementing certain technologies. Technologies and solutions exists that enable an organization to purchase, support and maintain systems that provide a high end user experience while providing a cost effective long-term solution. For example, the EDUSS lab in the Junior Academy is built using NComputing technologies. NComputing is a computing technology that consists of a module that acts as an extension to the supporting computer’s peripherals. Different types of computers can be used to support the NComputing technologies. However to support a large number of end users, such as student labs and groups of mini-student labs, a high powered server will be necessary. Although the initial cost of the server far exceeds the cost of one PC, an entire setup that would support approximately 120 users would cost approximately $59,000, whereas 120 desktop PCs with LCD, mouse and keyboard would cost $137,340. The significant advantage to the NC technology is that there is only one computer to maintain, it is designed to have redundancy, and it can offer an excellent user experience.

Although NComputing is an excellent way to reduce the cost of deploying new systems for students, there are alternatives to replacing teacher, staff and accounting PCs. As part of my Plan of Action, I would actively research the advantages of purchasing ‘off lease’ computers. Although ‘off lease’ computers are good in that they are economical and provide an alternative to using an abacus, it is not recommended to purchase ‘off lease’ electronic equipment from just any vendor. This is highly due to the fact that most ‘off lease’ equipment is at a minimum of two years old and has been heavily utilized by previous owners. If the equipment is not adequately refurbished such as Dell or HP, the cost of maintaining the system far exceeds the cost of a new system. Additionally, since the average computer has approximately 5 years of life before it becomes completely obsolete, the purchase of already aged systems is highly discouraged.

An alternative to purchasing ‘off-lease’ equipment is to enter into a lease agreement with a corporation such as Dell or HP, who can standardize the organization’s systems. Standardization of all systems will aid techs in effectively managing and maintaining PCs, laptops and servers. The advantages to the lease program is that techs can become ‘Dell or HP’ certified and will be able to repair the PC on site. This will reduce the amount of time an employee is unproductive due to equipment failure.

As an alternative to leasing or purchasing branded PCs, I will also research local vendors and distributors to set a standardized custom build package that would reflect each department’s needs. PCs would be standardized according to use and future needs. For example, the Art Department would like to implement a new program that entails the use of the Adobe CS4 Master Collection. Since Adobe software is resource intensive, it is best to standardize their equipment with top-of-the line multimedia motherboards, Quad Core CPUs, DDRII RAM and SATA II hard drives. However for users such as the Shelter employees, office staff and some key personnel, computers would be standardized with medium-grade motherboards, Duo Core CPUs, DDR II RAM, SATA II hard drives as well as the appropriate software.

2.5.2 Standardizing Personal Productivity Software

Once desktop/laptop upgrades begin, the next step in my Plan of Action is to increase the performance of the organization’s staff by standardizing the organization’s personal productivity software to Microsoft Office 2007. By standardizing to a common version of Microsoft Office, the organization will have more opportunities to share files, workspaces, collaborate on projects, and fewer incidents of document incompatibility. In addition to streamlining file sharing, having a common user experience across the organization this will help improve opportunities for peer training and focuses the support and training burden on a single product.

Another part of my Plan of Action is to evaluate each department to determine the exact software that will be necessary to support each department’s curriculum. After a standard software package for all users has been agreed upon by all staff members, individual staff will be able to pick task specific applications from a software pool. For staff members who require the similar configurations, I will have the IT department make a standard image of the hard drive once all software and drivers have been installed. The image will be stored on a backup server or device, which will insure the machine will continue working at full capacity with little downtime. If the machine experiences hardware damage or suffers a virus infection, it will be quickly and easily repaired.

2.5.3 Teacher Training Program

As soon as a software package has been agreed upon by all faculties and staff, as part of my Plan of Action, I would evaluate each employee to determine their level of understanding of the software they will employ. I would also require all staff to pass a Basic Skills test on all primary Office 2003 applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook, Internet Explorer, and Windows XP operating system. Staff members that are trained or who are receiving training are more proficient in completing their tasks and more confident when demonstrating their work to peers and students. For example, after I completed the ‘roll-out’ of the Junior Academy web site that included a CMS (Content Management System) and a LMS (Learning Management System) and migrated the teachers and staff to Microsoft Outlook, I setup training for the new software technologies to be held bi-weekly after school was released on Friday’s. When I first began these workshops, I was under the impression that the teachers knew more about computers and software than they normally display. However after interacting with all of the teachers in the Junior Academy, I have come to learn that many of the individuals who think they are well versed in technology are actually just a little more than a novice user.

Since a good technology training plan is such an integral part of staff and teacher development, it will be vital to design a training schema that will fit the schedules of teachers and staff. As part of my Plan of Action, I will work with Mrs. Barrientos, Mr. Rodriguez, Mr. Cano and Mr. Yzaguirre to set up regular training schedules in each academy and work to incorporate technology training into workshops that will be hosted at the beginning, middle and end of each school year. I will also work with all staff to set up and host regular ‘mini-workshops’ either weekly or bi-weekly. These workshops will cover specific Microsoft Office applications along with other applications that have been or will be implemented. Staff members who are more versed in personal productivity software will be encouraged to engage in providing training to their peers.

The advantage to developing a training plan is that when the initial workshops begin, they will spark excitement and expectation. This alone will invite new technologies to be incorporated into classroom instruction. If teachers and staff are comfortable with and knowledgeable of technology and software, they are more apt to utilize every aspect of the tools they are provided. Therefore it is highly important to include the following into any training plan:

1. Technology workshops at the beginning, middle and end of school

2. Weekly training workshops for specific software

3. Incorporate policies and procedures into training materials

4. Monthly assessment of attendees

5. Certification of Completion

2.5.4 Help Desk

To further improve the performance of technicians and employees, as part of my Plan of Action I would work with staff members to establish the new the Help Desk I recently pioneered as being the primary point of contact for IT related issues. Once domain trusts have been established within Active Directory, I will set the Help Desk up in Brownsville so that we, the IT Department here at the Houston campus can manage Brownsville’s Help Requests remotely. At the same time I implement the new Help Desk in Brownsville I will and/or will have each PC set up so that they may be managed remotely from the Houston campus. This will reduce the amount of time a PC is down due to a virus or other software related issue and reduce the cost of contracted administration. Additionally, it would allow an official RYSS IT person to administer the machine rather than allowing a non-IT employee to manage and support the PC. This will aid in reducing some of the security related issues that currently exist due to non-IT people having administrative access to PCs, laptops and the servers at the Brownsville campus.

2.5.5 Maintenance Schedule

Another aspect of my Plan of Action is improving performance and productivity by developing a district-wide Desktop/Laptop/Server maintenance schedule. Through daily use, computers become cluttered with unnecessary files, hard drives become fragmented, operating systems are infected with virus/malware, internal components become cluttered with dust, etc. Automated task scheduling as well as a 30/60/90 day maintenance plan for each campus will be employed. This will reduce the amount of time a tech has to physically perform maintenance and repair to a unit. As part of maintaining and protecting the organization’s electronic resources, I will work to acquire a data storage and back-up system that includes hardware and software. Presently RYSS does not employ a consistent data storage and backup strategy that ensures the backup of all of the organization’s data. While RYSS has off-site backup at the Houston Campus, it doesn’t backup data stored locally on workstations and there is no written policy for users storing files centrally. I will take several steps to better utilize our existing backup hardware and software by changing how it organizes data and creating a more comprehensive backup procedure.

2.5.6 Policies and Procedures

To further improve the effectiveness of the IT Department, I will continue to review, write and implement Policies and Procedures that are relevant to the IT Department, computers, and users. The policies and procedures I intend to cover include the following areas:

Security Administration
System Maintenance
Software Version and Change Control
System Performance
Archive and/or Purge System Files
System Network Diagram
Application Backup and Recovery
Running Batch Jobs
Information Technology Policies
Systems Development and Acquisition
Help Desk and User Training

2.5.7 Disaster/Data Recovery Plan

As part of Policies and Procedures, I will work with staff and teachers to develop a Disaster/Data Recovery Plan as soon as possible. A Disaster/Data Recovery Plan states the processes and procedures for preparing for and recovering from an impending disaster. The Plan dictates the necessary steps for shutting down servers, telephones, and other electronic equipment. The Plan also states the procedures for protecting electronic equipment throughout the school, what backup systems are available, and also includes necessary steps to restart the business in the event a catastrophe occurs. In the event data is lost from a PC or server, the Data Recovery processes and procedures that are incorporated in the plan will describe the necessary steps to restore the PC or server to its last known state.

2.5.8 Network Performance

In order to improve the overall performance and security of the current network and systems, as an element of my Plan of Action I will follow the recommendations Mr. Juan Torres has submitted to the organization. However, to reduce expenditures to support the reorganization and restructure of IT, I will utilize the existing staff to perform the necessary upgrades and implementations to the existing structure. The existing staff, although uncertified, is an excellent team when allowed to work together. Mr. Glenn Garraway has the knowledge and experience it will take to manage a mid-sized network environment and will be an excellent Network Administrator or Systems Administrator once he is further trained and is allowed to evolve. 90% of the recommended upgrades to the servers and the network Glenn will be able to perform with little assistance. The other 10% either Mrs. Sara Acosta or myself will assist. Aside from using existing staff to reduce costs, I will solicit local vendors and manufacturers for equipment equal to or better than equipment recommended by Mr. Torres at a much lower price than he has quoted us. This could ultimately save us hundreds of thousands of dollars since we will be able to purchase the same products directly from distributors and manufacturers. (See attached quotes from Bass Computers).

2.5.9 Web Site Management and Maintenance

In completely taking control of the new IT department, another element of this Plan of Action is to take over all development, maintenance, and deployment of new or existing web sites owned by the organization. Currently the organization has several web sites being managed by various people. The best way to manage and maintain these sites and domains is to have one person who is actively in charge of them. This will ensure that all links between the sites are maintained as well as provide an avenue to have continuity between the sites. Additionally since RYSS will be acquiring more web sites and domains in the near future, it will be more prudent to have a single manager to maintain the web sites as well as manage and develop built-in modules. Since Mrs. Sara Acosta is such a creative graphics artist and has a knack for web design, I will teach her to manage the domains, maintain class modules, and update the web sites as needed. I will also work with her to get the appropriate training and education to further her knowledge in web technologies.

2.5.10 Implement Student Management Software

Over the course of the school year, the Junior Academy has expressed the need and desire to implement a new way of tracking student performance, classroom behavior and educational needs, as well as manage employee’s payroll, benefits, etc. After much research and testing of different open source ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software, I have come to learn there are many products available to test, configure and implement. However, many will have configurability issues if they are to be installed within our system due to the fact that we are a Windows-based organization. To take full advantage of the open-source technologies that are currently available, RYSS will need to consider migrating over to or incorporating server technologies that will support the free open-source technologies.

Since the cost of building or acquiring a new server would possibly be an issue, there are a number of ways to keep the project cost-effective and still provide new services to staff and administrators. This can be done by configuring Apache or Java Server technologies on an existing server then downloading, installing, configuring and deploying the Enterprise level software. Because Apache and Sun Java are free server technologies there would be no expense incurred.

The significant advantage to incorporating the open-source technologies is that they open the door to testing and trying new software that could possibly be incorporated into the system. As an upcoming organization, we would be able to find the appropriate software that everyone will use. Additionally because open-source is almost always free, the only expense the organization would incur will be the actual time spent by staff members to install, configure and deploy the software as well as train staff. These expenses are a ‘given’ when implementing new software technologies.

As a solution to issues the Junior Academy is currently managing, I would like to implement open-source EAMs (Enterprise Asset Management) or ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software that would eventually be configured to support the entire organization. When the software is configured, it will have a database that will be compatible with existing technologies and be able to share data with other applications throughout the organization. It will also have a web interface and be accessible internally via web browser.

2.5.11 Document all electronic equipment

Another aspect of employing an Enterprise Asset Management system is that the software can be configured to support multiple assets. Just as employees and students are considered to be assets to the organization, so are the equipment and furniture owned by the organization. While every organization has a responsibility to keep an active and current inventory, this has not been a top priority with the IT Department. Much of this is due to the fact that the inventorying methods used by the previous Director were ineffective and too costly to maintain. Additionally, the lack of bar coding equipment is another factor that has made managing the inventory nearly impossible.

As part of my Plan of Action I will work to improve the inventorying system the IT department currently has in place. I will seek bar coding technologies that will work with our current Help Desk system. This will allow data collected to be uploaded to the help desk database and allow the IT department to effectively manage all equipment. The IT Department will then be able to track issues related to aging equipment, monitor equipment age and monitor TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) including e-waste disposal fees.

2.5.12 E-Waste Recycling Program

Electronic waste is a major concern of many environmentalists, governments, corporations and schools. With that said, our organization is just as concerned with the proper disposal of aged electronic equipment. As a means of removing any and all electronic waste the organization produces, I plan to work with Bass Computers as well as other vendors to set up a program to have electronic waste removed periodically so as to keep the amount that has to be recycled to a minimum.

Because Bass Computers as well as other local companies will pay cash for obsolete electronics, including computers, motherboards, peripherals, printers, phone systems, LCD monitors, servers, hard drives, memory and more while taking the burden of disposal off our company, we will be able to generate a small amount of revenue from the recycled equipment. Additionally, the recycler will ensure equipment is disposed of in an EPA approved and environmentally sound manner. They will also pick up our old equipment and provide GPS Truck Tracking from our location to their secure location.

The significant advantage to this program is that the Tejano Center will have a local recycler available to remove all outdated equipment. Additionally, the Center will also have the opportunity to recuperate some of the cost of the computers.

2.5.13 Digital Library for Brownsville and Houston Campuses

Several months ago, I flew to Brownsville to work on a special project I was managing at the time. While I was there, I took a brief tour of the campus and noticed the school actually had a small library available to the children. To my dismay, I realized that none of the academies in at the Houston campus had a library available to students. When I returned from Brownsville, I spoke with Mr. Gallegos regarding this matter to see if we could find a solution for the problem. After much research, Mr. Gallegos was able to derive a source for digital media and I was able to find a source for an application to manage that media. In turn, Mr. Gallegos and I were able to put together a library that will contain digital media and be available for students, teachers and other staff to access through a web browser.

Since the Houston campus does not have a physical library, Albert and I will be using the software to manage the digital media the school either owns or borrows from other organizations. In addition, we will also incorporate the software into the Brownsville campus and configure it to support both physical and electronic libraries. As an element to the digital library, the software will have an integration that will allow movies, movie clips, or other interactive videos to play through an internet browser. The library will also be available to students and teachers from both school and home.

The advantage of this program is that the software will allow the organization to manage a fully stocked library in the future as well as manage acquisitions, cataloging, circulation, serials, and the OPAC (public interface for users). Additionally, each patron and item will have a unique ID in the database that allows the software to track its activity.

2.5.14 Student Technology Classes

As the organization continues to expand and grow over the next five years, it will be more capable of adding technology intensive programs to its curriculum each year. Due to this factor and the fact that it is the organization’s goal to become the top ranking technology-oriented charter school in the nation, it is important for RYSS to consider adding programs to the curriculum that will propel students into technology. Many companies such as Microsoft, Adobe, Oracle, Intel, AMD, and Cisco provide educational curriculum to schools for little or no cost. These companies also offer software and hardware to the participating organizations at highly discounted prices and in some cases, software for training students is free of charge.

As an element of my Plan of Action, I will work with principals and other stakeholders to incorporate technology training classes into the school curriculum. The advantage to this program is that students can become software certified prior to graduation and have a better opportunity to land higher paying jobs immediately after high school. Instead of a student working for just a little more than minimum wage, they will be able to pursue jobs that pay $30,000 to $80,000 with the right certifications.

2.5.15 Panther Photography Club

One of the most disappointing moments I have had since my tenure began here at RYSS was the day I learned the students in the school did not have a regular photographer employed to take Fall and Spring photos as well as photos for a year book. Nevertheless, over the course of the past month, I have begun to work with Mr. Ellis, who is the Art teacher at the College Prep, to resolve this situation. As a solution for providing photography service for the students here at RYSS and funding the Art department’s technology needs, upon approval, Mr. Ellis will incorporate the new Panther Photography Club into his curriculum in the upcoming school year. Participants of the Panther Photography Club will receive a grade for their work with the students, and will gain hands-on experience as a professional photographer. They will also have the opportunity to build sets, work with Adobe imaging software and possibly gain enough knowledge over the course of the year to be able to take a certification course in Adobe prior to graduation. Since Adobe offers a K-12 curriculum that can be integrated into Mr. Ellis’ curriculum, possibilities exist for students to learn more than one of the Adobe technologies and leave the school with one or more certifications.

The programs works as follows: Flyers are distributed to each classroom two weeks prior to ‘Picture Day’. All students at RYSS will be eligible for photos taken twice per year. Families can bring siblings for additional sitting cost. Students place orders with teachers, who collect order forms and money. Orders are given to Mr. Ellis as each class arrives to take their picture. Mr. Ellis will give the teacher an approximate date of delivery that will average 6-8 weeks. Members of the Panther Photography Club would be responsible for developing, printing and creating all packages. Once the assignment is complete, the students will receive a grade for completing a semester project and the photo packages will be delivered to each classroom.

The money RYSS receives from each photo order will pay for the cost of materials as well as the initial cost of the new art equipment. As the program continues throughout the year, it will further grow to provide photography sessions for seniors as well as be available for the ‘Photos with Santa’ and the Junior/Senior Prom. This will help to generate more funding to support further projects in the Art Department as well as provide stable revenue to support the Technology Department. For example, each package will cost at a minimum of $30. If 300 students purchase the minimum package the total revenue for the first setting will be $9000.00. A minimum of $7000.00 of these funds would be used to purchase supplies to develop and print the photos as well as purchase at least two high-end PCs with Adobe software and a high-end printer. The remainder would be set aside to purchase more equipment and supplies as the next photo opportunity arose.

2.5.16 The Panther Tech Club - Computers to Community Program

Several months ago, I was asked by Mr. Farias to prepare six laptops for distribution into the community. At the time we could not fulfill his request as we did not have any laptops on hand that we could remove from service. Therefore to resolve this problem, I worked with Mr. Albert Gallegos to acquisition 30 laptops from the state and set up a regular occurrence in which we would order additional equipment. Once the laptops are ready, they will be given to Mr. Farias to distribute to low-income families. As an element of my Plan of Action, I will continue to work to ensure the program will provide a minimum of six laptops per month. I will also work to improve the program in that I will try to find other sources to donate equipment and volunteers to donate time and expertise.

In addition, I am going to work with Mr. Rodriguez to start an extracurricular activity during Power Time that could possibly develop into a future basic computing class. The program will entail enlisting the services of at least six high school students, who will test and evaluate each laptop then prepare it to be distributed to the community. The advantage to program is that RYSS will be able to teach students how to give back to their communities. Students will also receive an education in laptop maintenance and repair. Additionally at the end of the school year, each student would receive a laptop as well as hours for community service.

2.5.17 Establish Employee Purchase Program

While photography and tech clubs area a good source of generating revenue for the technology department, the programs alone will not be enough to sustain all of the changes the department will need to incur to become more resilient and viable. Therefore as another incentive to generate more income for the technology department, I would find vendors who work with non-profit organizations to generate extra revenue though employee purchase programs. Companies, such as HLS Computing have programs in place that benefit both organization and employee. In some cases, the organization would be able to generate a15% revenue from each transaction made by employees. These monies could be divided with 10% going to the technology department to refurbish new systems and the other 5% going to accounting to cover administrative costs.

The advantage to this program is that the Tejano Center will be able to lock into a certain cost percentage with the companies they work with and the employee will be able to purchase medium to high-end electronics and other equipment at lower-than-market prices. The organization will also benefit in that it will generate constant revenue that can be used to fund programs in the organization or begin new technology-based projects.

2.5.18 Corporate Sponsorship Program

Due the recent acquisition of several domains, the Tejano Center has now opened up an avenue for supporting corporate advertisement as a means of generating a funding source for the technology department as well as the rest of the organization. In order to develop and implement an effective sponsorship program RYSS will need to consider the following:

· Develop a sponsorship program for RYSS

· Develop a sponsorship program for TCCC

· Develop a sponsorship program for the Emergency Shelter

· Develop a sponsorship program for the Housing

· Develop pamphlets that describe each program

· Develop a movie that shows the different programs offered by each organization

· Develop flyers and other program materials that can be given out to corporate sponsors

· Develop a process for building logos for companies or receiving logos from company sponsors

· Monitor current advertizing rates and adjust sponsorship program accordingly

· Incorporate ‘Flash’ files into web site that will promote corporate sponsors

· Offer a link exchange as part of the program

· Charge sponsors to develop new logos specifically for the Center’s web site

The significant advantage to this program is that it allows sponsors to host links to our web site as well as advertise from our web site. Their business has the opportunity to show the public how they are giving back to their community. We, on the other hand, as an organization will receive the benefit of free advertisement as well as generate revenue that can be filtered to support the technology department.

3 Plan Summary

The following is a brief summary of the recommendations I have made that will ultimately lead to a better IT department. In addition to the previously discussed recommendations, I have also included many others in every area the IT Department supports.

3.1.1 Increase Technology Management Capacity

Establish an effective Table of Organization
Create IT management team.
Document Procedures and Policies
Improve network server and file security.

· Evaluate need for regular systems administration.

Establish a formal technology budget.
Create training plan.
Secure lab computers.
Document all software and hardware

3.1.2 Strengthen Existing Computing & Network Infrastructure

· Resolve Internet connectivity problems at all campuses and remote facilities.

· Improve network performance at the Houston Campus.

· Implement an organization-wide backup system.

· Implement comprehensive server-based virus protection.

· Replace old workstations at all locations.

· Replace the network server for the Houston Campus.

· Migrate all workstations at Shelter and housing to log into domain.

· Standardize network resource names.

· Connect offices to create a unified network among the three sites.

· Replace Sonic Wall

· Establish a formal Help Desk

· Implement Classroom Management Software

· Implement Remote Desktop Software

· Implement a Disaster Recovery Program

· Implement a Data Recovery Program

3.1.3 Improve Data Management Applications

Standardize organization on latest version of Microsoft Office.
Implement Microsoft Exchange Server for email and groupware.

· Establish a student tracking database (Open ERP).

· Implement Grant Monitoring and Fund Raising software

3.1.4 Improve Internet Communications

Migrate email to a single Internet domain.
Review and improve website functionality
Build individual web sites with classroom modules to host online classes for remaining academies

3.1.5 Establish Technology Funding

· Establish a Corporate Sponsorship Program

· Establish a Student Photo/Yearbook Program

· Establish employee purchase programs with local vendors that produce revenue that can be filtered back into the IT department.

· Sell old equipment to recyclers

· Write grants and proposals that will provide long-term funding solutions for the IT Department

3.1.6 Establish Technology Related Student Clubs

· Establish the Panther Photography Club

· Establish the Panther Computer Club for both Junior and College Prep academies

· Establish the Junior Panther Press to produce quarterly newsletters for the Junior Academy

3.1.7 Integrate Technology Courses into Curriculum

· Adobe K-12 Educational Curriculum

· Oracle Academy

· Microsoft IT Academy Program

· MSDN Academic Alliance

· Cisco Networking Academy

· IBM Academic Initiative

· Dell Training and Certification

· HP Certified Professional Program

In conclusion, the Tejano Center for Community Concerns and the Raul Yzaguirre School for Success needs a strong, creative, open-minded and knowledgeable person as the Director of Technology. The person that is chosen should have an intimate relationship with existing systems as well as understand the necessary steps that are needed to make the transition into the 21^st century.

Sunday, June 22, 2014

RYSS–Plan of Action 2009

3.1.1 Increase Technology Management Capacity