Smith speaks highly of the relationship and the consistency of the staff . “One of the advantages of working with GovConnection is that we don’t get a new rep every few months. I have had two Account Managers in the seven years that I have been here. The nice thing about that is that they know exactly what my IT needs are at the end of each year and exactly what I need to get going for the upcoming year.”
WORRY-FREE DEVICE SELECTION
Choosing the right technology for Hershey Public School District’s needs took careful planning. The district needed to consider not only the performance of the notebooks, but also the TCO and durability—key factors for a notebook fl eet that sees demanding use. GovConnection off ered the product selection and expertise to help Hershey Public School District make the right selection for their unique environment.
“We chose Lenovo ThinkPad X131e notebooks with Windows 7 for a few reasons,” said Smith. “First, the durability and overall quality of the Lenovo notebooks was excellent for what we need in our educational environment; they hold up better to student use.”
Smith continued, “We have used Lenovo notebooks every year for seven years, and they stand up to student use very well. We have had a few notebooks that the students damaged quite a bit. But, the Lenovo warranty is great— basically I just send the damaged notebooks in and they come back fi xed. We have had notebooks that have been left on top of cars and damaged to the point where they were in pieces; I ship all of the pieces back to Lenovo and within a week I have a new notebook in my hands, no questions asked.”
PUTTING TECHNOLOGY IN EVERYONE’S HANDS
Hershey Public School District’s 1:1 Learning Initiative has brought more than powerful performance and increased mobility to the students and teachers.
“The biggest advantage is that the initiative connects the whole community,” said Smith. “We have a small population; our town only has about 600 people. These Lenovo notebooks with Windows 7 really help the parents, students, and faculty connect. Before we started the 1:1 Learning Initiative, the students very rarely logged in to check their grades. With the program, I believe approximately 95% of the kids log in to make sure they have all their assignments turned in and to check their grades. Parents can also log in, interact more, and know what their kids are doing.”
“WE HAVE USED LENOVO NOTEBOOKS
WITH WINDOWS 7 AND THEY STAND UP TO STUDENT USE VERY WELL.”
KORT SMITH, NETWORK ADMINISTRATOR, HERSHEY PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT
The success of the initiative relies on strong communication between Hershey Public School District, the community, and GovConnection. To keep the program running, the district formed a community committee. “We have some parents and some people from the town that might not necessarily have kids in the system involved. We also have teachers and students on this committee and we get their feedback about what we can do better and what new technology products to consider. We take that feedback and use it to plan our next refresh and to plan what we are going to do in the years to come.” Having a partner that listens to those concerns is key. “It has been great to work with GovConnection,” said Smith. “I don’t ever have to worry about where I am going to get my new technology. It’s awesome; I would give them an A+.”
CONNECTION/BUSINESS IT 2013.Q4
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