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NetDay
Task List
Q: I've heard that we have to have
a state-validated Local Education Technology Plan to be eligible
for NetDay.
Is this true?
A: No. The major advantage of having a Local Education
Technology Plan is that it represents a broad consensus about
your overall vision and strategy: What type of educational
process are you trying to create in your school(s); how does
educational technology contribute to the realization of those
goals; what are your priorities in terms of technology investment;
what are your plans for professional development and technical
support; where will the money come from; etc.?
Even though we don't require you to have a Local Education
Technology Plan, you will need to come up with answers to
these questions one way or another to ensure that the wiring
is put to good use. Therefore, if you are a public school,
we strongly recommend that you take advantage of the support
system that the Department of Education has created and create
a local plan.
Q: What does it mean to be a NetDay Associate?
A: We have designed NetDay to be inclusive, so that
every school can associate itself with the effort in a way
that fits their particular circumstances. Some schools may
only be ready to conduct a couple of training sessions for
their staff about the value and uses of education technology.
Some schools may need to focus on installing electrical power
outlets. Some schools may want to get online by simply connecting
one computer to one modem attached to one phone line. Some
schools may want to install a computer lab. These are all
positive steps and we welcome these schools to be come NetDay
Associates by registering on our web pages.
Associates are able to attend the NetDay professional development
events that are being scheduled over the 1996/97 school year.
They can take advantage of the discounted products and services
that will be publicized through our web site. They can use
our "how-to" guides to set up a NetDay committee
and recruit local volunteers.
When schools register as Associates, we expect them to tell
us what they hope to accomplish by October 26. And at the
end of the day we expect them to get in touch with the NetDay
office and let us know if they've succeeded. We expect between
several hundred to 1,000 schools will participate in NetDay
as Associates. Becoming an Associate for October 26, 1996
is hopefully a stepping stone to becoming a Partner for the
next NetDay that will be held on April 5, 1997.
Q: You have an application form to apply for Partner
status; how do I indicate that I want to work on an Associate
basis?
A: Our Web site will soon (or may already) have a
page for self-registration as an Associate.
Q: How is Partner status different from Associate?
A: While every step forward is valuable, achieving
the vision of fully integrating network technology into the
curriculum requires a more demanding goal -- functioning Local
Area Networks connecting most of the rooms in a building (and,
eventually, Wide Area Networks connecting all parts of the
community). Schools that have the resources and desire to
commit to building LANs between now and October 26th are eligible
to apply for state-level Partner status.
In addition to everything available to Associates, state-level
Partner schools will get more deeply discounted (or free)
equipment and services as well as various kinds of training
and technical assistance from participating businesses. MassNetworks
will also channel volunteers to Partner schools. However,
one of the Partner commitments is to provide funds to cover
any costs that MassNetworks cannot provide.
We expect that between 50 to 100 schools will choose to apply
for state-level Partner status for October 26, and a larger
number will apply for the second NetDay to be held on April
5, 1997. MassNetworks is committed to ensuring that inner-city,
rural, western, Cape, as well as suburban schools are all
represented in the Partner program.
Q: Is it too late to apply for the October 26, 1996
NetDay?
A: It is too late to apply to be a Partner school.
However, it is never too late to self-register for Associate
status. And in the fall of 1996 we will accept another round
of applications for Partner status for the April 5, 1997 NetDay.
Q: We are not ready to apply for Partner status, however,
a business has offered to partner with us to help us make
a big leap forward from where we are. Where do we fit in?
A: You should register as an Associate with NetDay.
However, we congratulate you on being part of what we are
calling a "Local Partnership." Hopefully, through
your joint efforts you will be in a position to make significant
advances and perhaps apply for state-level Partner status
for the April 5, 1997 NetDay.
Q: Who will select and purchase the discounted equipment
that comes to us?
A: You will. Every wiring effort is a custom job.
MassNetworks will prepare generic plans showing various networking
options, and provide generic lists of the types of equipment
you will need to implement each option under generic circumstances.
But those guidelines will have to be adapted to your particular
circumstances.
MassNetworks is helping solicit and publicize the existence
of special educational discounts. However, we are not middle-men.
We will not take orders or deliver equipment. All arrangements
must be made directly between the school (or district) and
the participating company. Each school or district is responsible
for its own purchases.
MassNetworks is urging firms to work together with their
own business partners so that they can provide coherent solutions
to schools and save schools the huge task of trying to assemble
the entire package from all the parts.
Q: When will we have some idea of what sponsoring
companies will be able to assist us with?
A: This is an evolving process. By the end of June
(or before) we hope to put up a database containing information
about special NetDay discounts for products and services (ranging
from equipment to connectivity to technical assistance to
training) provided by various companies. The database will
be accessible through our Web page and other methods. We intend
to continue soliciting these discounts all through the 1996/97
school year, so this database will start off being very incomplete
compared with what will be available later on in the fall
and as we approach the next NetDay on April 5, 1997.
Firms are, in general, providing two levels of offerings:
a general discount that will be available to Associate schools
and a deep discount (or outright donation) for Partner schools.
In addition, some of the products and services that will be
provided to Partners will not be listed on the database at
all, but will be announced/distributed in other ways.
Q: Should our school apply on its own or as part of
a district effort?
A: Networks are created one building at a time. However,
network planning and administration are large scale tasks,
most cost effectively done for many buildings. In addition,
the long term commitment needed to make a network stay operational
and to provide the professional development needed for teachers
to fully integrate it into the curriculum requires district
level involvement. Therefore, we always urge local schools
to get their Superintendent's support before applying for
NetDay Partner status.
Furthermore, if more than one school in a district is going
to be wiring their building, it makes sense that they take
advantage of all possible economies of scale. Finally, it
is vital that no one school in a district installs anything
that is incompatible with what is being (or is being planned
to be) done at the other schools. Therefore, in all cases
where more than one school in a district is applying for NetDay
Partner status, we insist that there be one central district-level
liaison. This also allows us at MassNetworks to avoid getting
caught within district politics and allows us to get the most
leverage from the technical assistance we can provide.
However, if you are the only school in your district that
is networking their building this year, and assuming that
you have the support of your central administration and that
you are working within the framework of the district's strategic
plan for education technology, you should feel free to relate
to us as an individual school.
Q: Will we be purchasing kits, as they did in California?
A: If you want. We are working to firms to put together
kits and packages for several different circumstances ranging
from a small-scale starter kit to a full LAN assembly. We
will probably also give schools the ability to mix and match
items listed in our database so they can buy and assemble
their own packages. Remember: every wiring installation is
a custom job, so we can provide generic plans and kits but
they will each have to be adapted to your schools particular
circumstances.
Q: Many schools have few computers; how will NetDay
address this problem?
A: NetDay's focus is on creating the invisible but
indispensable electronic network infrastructure that allows
computers to be used to their full potential. But that is
not enough. Even from a narrow equipment standpoint, NetDay
only makes sense in the context of the large number of complementary
initiatives that are also occurring in this state. Many schools
are beginning to include a technology line-item in their annual
operating and capital budgets. The $86 million Education Technology
Bond Bill includes $30 million of matching money for local
schools to purchase education technology. Some businesses
are offering to help schools purchase or otherwise obtain
computers within the context of NetDay. The federal government
is sponsoring a "Net-a-thon" as a way to support
equipment purchases around the country. Ultimately, however,
communities are going to have to shoulder the major burden
of creating schools capable of adequately preparing our children
for the 21st century.
Q: Should local NetDay committees have their own name,
i.e. OurTown NetDay Committee?
A: Yes. Over the long run, the most valuable result
of our state-wide activity will be facilitating the creation
of long-lasting local coalitions that bring together a broad
constituency (parents, local businesses, government officials,
residents, etc.) in support of the schools, of the ed. reform
process, and the use of technology as a tool for restructuring
the way education occurs (as well as a tool for enhancing
democracy, the provision of services, and local economic development).
To accomplish this, your group needs to be visible and have
its own identity. So we think it is a good idea to have a
name that is both local and yet ties you to the larger statewide
effort (e.g. OurTown NetDay Committee).
Q: If we have our own name, do we need to fill papers
with the Attorney General's Office to accept donations of
money, equipment, etc.?
A: No. In many cases, donations can be made directly
to the school so your NetDay committee's legal status is irrelevant.
Sometimes, donations have to be channeled via the town or
city government. But these indirect routes can sometimes run
into legal or bureaucratic hassles. In particular, cash donations
usually get dumped into the town (or occasionally the school
department's) general fund rather than go to the school. (This
comes from the legal need to go through a formal appropriation
process for cash expenditures.)
So some communities have set up School Foundations or used
other 501(C)(3) organizations to act as the accepting organization
for cash. The Foundation uses the cash to buy equipment or
supplies and then gives that directly to the school. The advantage
of flexibility is balanced by legalities: those foundations
have to incorporate, seek IRS status, and file regularly with
appropriate state offices.
We suggest that your NetDay committee start as a purely voluntary
organization, which means you don't have to file anything
with anyone; and that you have non-cash donations made directly
to the schools. In any case, you should talk with your Superintendent,
Town Manager or Mayor's Office, and a good lawyer.
Q: If we are to stay under the Mass NetDay umbrella,
can we accept local donations or do they have to be funneled
through the larger organization?
A: We urge you to reach out to your local community
and solicit local donations that are given directly to you
or to the school. We are trying to catalyze local action,
not restrain it. The state-wide campaign will provide what
help it can to both Associates and Partners. However, we are
only able to help those schools help themselves. MassNetworks
can only provide support to a local effort, it can not substitute
for local leadership or investment.
Q: Should we apply for tax exempt status to make the
receiving of donations easier?
A: See above--this is one strategy. It requires extra
legal and organizational effort and may be worthwhile as a
long term strategy, but is probably unnecessary for the short-haul.
Q: Once we have a committee in place, can we expect
businesses to lend us some help with the wiring plan, or should
we just be using our own resources?
A: Both the California NetDay and the Smart Valley/Smart
School initiatives found that schools seldom had the required
expertise on their staff to design network architecture or
create wiring plans. Schools sometimes also lacked the on-staff
skills needed to install backbone wiring.
In some cities, the city hall staff has the needed expertise
and is willing to take on this task. In Cambridge, for example,
the city MIS department has been a major source of assistance
to the school department's networking efforts.
In addition, local businesses that are experienced in network
design and/or installation might be willing to provide free
or low-cost technical assistance. Get in touch with them as
soon as possible.
It is possible that some of our state's major network design
and installation firms will be willing to provide technical
assistance of vary kinds, from how-to pamphlets to training
classes. However, it is unlikely that they will be able to
provide on-site, free technical assistance to every school
that wants it--although they may be willing to do some of
this within a larger partnership relationship.
Ultimately, in California, the Smart School people urged
schools to hire competent technical experts to create the
needed network architecture and wiring plans.
Q: Can we freely use the Mass NetDay logo in our own
publicity? Should we have our own logo?
A: We want to create an inclusive process in which
everyone community can find a way to associate itself with
the NetDay campaign and use it as a spur for its own efforts.
So....feel free to use our logo, but always make it clear
that you are doing your local work in supportive association
of the state-wide effort.
Q: Would Senator Kennedy or Governor Weld like to
visit local school districts who are trying to organize this
effort to lend his support?
A: Obviously, we can't speak for the Senator or the
Governor or anyone else. However, we're sure that lots of
eminent people will want to make local visits to help along
the process. You should feel free to invite anyone and everyone.
Just remember that one person can't be everywhere.
Q: Is MassNetworks modeled on the California Net Day?
A: We have learned a lot from the experience of those
who went first. However, we have adapted and expanded on the
California model to fit Massachusetts' own process of Education
Reform and to acknowledge the central importance of teacher
professional development for long-term success. We have also
significantly expanded the coalition involved in NetDay to
include educators, labor unions, and government agencies.
Q: Wires aren't enough. Don't schools really need....?
A: Schools have many needs. And wires aren't enough.
We recognize the need for educator professional development,
restructuring the curriculum, high standards, safety, adequate
physical facilities, a secure funding stream, and much more.
But we also think that it is vital for our children--and
our state--to help our education system get up to speed on
the new information and communication technologies that will
increasingly influence the way learning, government, business,
entertainment, shopping, and much else occurs. We think NetDay
is an important step in the right direction without having
the slightest pretension that it will solve everything.
Q: What will actually happen on NetDay?
A: Every school will be slightly different. But, in
the most general sense, we hope that concerned people from
all walks of life will come together, help complete some concrete
task that has been prepared for them by teachers and other
supportive people, and then congratulate themselves for a
job well done. We hope that this experience helps promote
the creation of on-going school support activities, a wider
understanding of what is actually going on in our schools,
and the establishment of sustainable public-private partnerships.
Q: What has been the response statewide participation
in the first NetDay?
A: It is clear that a lot of schools are already in
motion. We've gotten enthusiastic response from all across
the state, from the Cape to the Berkshires, from the inner-city
to the rural areas, and from suburbs both rich and not so.
The private sector is also stepping forward. Private firms
and non-profit organizations, big and small, have pledged
their support and are formulating their plans for various
kinds of involvement.
Q: Will the NetDay Web site have links to schools
that are participating?
A: Yes. Contact the Web group to be linked.
Q: What kind of organizational structure should the
local NetDay committees use?
A: The exact composition of local NetDay Organizing
Committees will vary. In some cases, the committee will be
based in a particular school, in some cases it will be a district-wide
committee, and in some cases it might be regional -- perhaps
based in a collaborative of some kind. In fact, it might be
useful to have committees at each of these levels.
(Since the most technical network administration can be done
remotely, and since the people and the equipment needed for
network administration are expensive, we strongly urge schools
and smaller districts to think about aggregating their resources
to share the cost of a shared, regional network administration
office. If you think big, you could use the same collaborative
structure to spread the cost of professional development,
training labs, and technical support.)
NetDay Task List
The tasks you take on will also help determine the structure
and strategy of your Organizing Committee. Schools that seek
Associate status will be under less pressure than schools
that make the commitment to create complete local area networks
under the Partner program. Here is a list of tasks based on
our Partner School commitments:
- Form a NetDay Organizing Committee. This group will inspect
the schools, adopt a Technical Plan, form partnerships with
volunteers and businesses, make long-term plans for using
the technology, and coordinate volunteers on NetDay. The
group should actively solicit participation by all sectors
of the community, including teachers, students, parents,
and business people. The NetDay Organizing Committee can
be started from scratch or be based on an existing Education
Technology Planning Committee.
- Appoint or Hire a NetDay Manager and Technical Advisor.
The Manager will be responsible for overall coordination
and communication with MassNetworks. The Technical Advisor
will help with system integration issues. This expertise
may be available in your community. The MassNetworks Web
site also has a list of companies that may be able to help
you. Some of the Technical tasks you must complete are:
Network Design, Wiring Plan, External Connection (e.g. phone
lines and/or cable), Internet Access/Account Provider, Equipment
Procurement, Pre-NetDay Backbone Wiring & Equipment
Set-up, and Testing.
- Form an Education Leadership Team. This should include
the Superintendent, appropriate Principals, district information-system
director, building department director, curriculum director,
and others. This team provides the district/school leadership
for the larger NetDay Organizing Committee and ensures that
all work follows the strategic guidelines of your district's
Education Technology Plan.
- Create and Follow a Schedule. Given the amount of work
involved, preliminary planning should start before school
lets out in June. Building inspections, creation of a technical
plan, and other preliminaries should continue through the
summer, with a final push in the fall to install everything
except the final classroom termination wiring prior to Oct.
26. A suggested schedule of critical benchmarks is available
on the MassNetworks Web site, or from the MassNetworks office.
- Prepare a Technical Plan. This includes both system architecture
and detailed wiring diagrams. Since this requires specialized
expertise that you probably do not have on staff, you will
need to get an expert volunteer or hire someone for this
task. Nonetheless, creating this plan will still require
considerable staff input. For public schools, the technical
plan should be based on the district's Education Technology
Plan, if it is available. That plan contains overall goals
and a strategy for integrating computer networks into curriculum
and administrative functions.
- Budget or Raise Funds to Cover Non-contributed Expenses.
You will need networking equipment, wires, software, connections,
Internet accounts, and installation. Our preliminary estimate
is that connecting five classrooms that already have computers
to the Internet will cost about $2,000 in equipment. Much
of this will be donated or discounted through MassNetworks.
But you will need to come up with some of the cost yourself.
After NetDay, funds will continue to be needed for service
fees, staff development, equipment maintenance and upgrading.
- Appoint Someone as Volunteer Coordinator. On NetDay, your
school will need at least five volunteers to pull the classroom
termination wiring and do other tasks. Makes sure someone
is given responsibility for recruiting the volunteers, coordinating
their activity, and generally making them feel appreciated.
- Appoint a Technical Support Person for Post-NetDay Follow-up.
Your new networks will need management and maintenance.
This is a job of its own and can not be added to teachers'
responsibilities. Your Technical Advisor may be willing
to help with this.
- Plan for On-going Technical and Curriculum Integration
Training for Teachers. All staff need to learn both how
to use the equipment and how to integrate it into a restructured
curriculum. This training should start even before the network
is installed. One of the first steps should be the creation
of policies and procedures describing who gets to use the
networked computers for what purposes within what limits
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