District Resource Guide - Polk County School District

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We are working on Providing wireless access to High schools classrooms, this project will continue
throughout the year.
CompuTrace (Computer Locating Software) needs to be installed on the correct systems and verified that
it is working properly.
Sophos Antivirus needs to be installed on all computers
Depending on funding, there could be around 8,000 (6 year old) computers that would be replaced
during the 2011-2012 school year.
Information Services
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For Elementary group only - New Class Size Transfer process has the possibility of saving the district
million(s). For every 20 teachers we don’t have to hire will result in approximately $1,000,000 saving to the
district. We worked with Dr. Tonjes on developing a process which assist us in assigning some students
to schools where seats are available. School Terminal Operators and Assistant Principals will spear
head these efforts at the school level. The use of a New Class Size transfer form in Outlook along with
the use of a myPolkApps excel spreadsheet, which will be manually updated at the school level, will allow
Pupil Accounting and Transportation the ability to “find” available seats at possible near by schools. Will
this process cause us heartache and pain? Yes. Will it save our district money? Yes. Can this be
successful. Yes it can. Written Instructions for Terminal Operators and Assistant Principals will be
available as well as an optional workshop. All of us will need to work together in making this process a
success.
All Schools/All Groups - Information Services will continue to work with school based personnel in the
continuing enhancement of Genesis. It is our desire to make your job easier by improving the functionality
of Genesis as well as designing Genesis reports based on YOUR needs.
All Schools/All Groups - Emergency Cards vs DEM001 - Updating student/parent contacts in Genesis.
There is a new and better way.
myPolkApps (Google Apps for Education) www.mypolkschools.net/google
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myPolkApps (Google Apps) is now the District-recommended solution for student email, teacher
websites and online collaboration tools. Since the pilot last year was such a success, we have created
myPolkApps accounts for everyone, including District Office staff. Staff will not have Google email
services activated due to compliance requirements with state and federal public records laws, but will
otherwise have access to the full suite of products.
Schools are not required to use myPolkApps; rather it is a powerful tool that all staff have at their
disposal to use if, when, and how they wish. There is an online training course to help you become familiar
with the tools and implement them in your school. We recommend that staff participate in the training
course to ensure a successful implementation. This fall, there will be a second online course that will cover
some of the more advanced features and further classroom integration. For more information, visit the
Training & Videos section of our myPolkApps Welcome website.
The Student Google Apps Permission Form will still be required but principals will no longer need to
submit the “Consent Form for Principals”. Designated staff will still need to enter the consent data into
Genesis. The good news though is that once the consent data is entered, the data will roll with the student
from year to year and remains in effect until the parent revokes it in writing or the student is no longer
enrolled in Polk County Public Schools. We have also updated the permission form to include the line
“..you [parents] may access and review your child’s Google Apps account at any time via the Parent
Portal.” Schools that are planning a broad implementation of myPolkApps may want to include the
permission form in the “New Student Packet” sent home to parents. View or download the
permission form in three languages on the myPolkApps Welcome website.