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Post by title1parent on Sept 23, 2008 5:09:02 GMT -5
www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=236948&src=76Dist. 204 considers paperless meetings By Justin Kmitch | Daily Herald 9/23/2008 Indian Prairie Unit District 204 board members are studying new electronic systems that save both trees and Administrative Assistant Janel Buchner's arms. Chief Information Officer David Zolnier told board members Monday about two programs he is researching that would allow district meetings to be paperless, eliminating the need for Buchner to assemble and lug board packets to and from meetings. "Having an electronic meeting, basically means taking all of the grunt work, the compilation of materials and documents and putting it into an online form so that all submissions are done digitally," Zolnier said. "Then there are no handwritten notes or summaries being printed and given to (Buchner)." Buchner said being able to search and change documents at the last minute would also be easier with a new system. "Searching is a bit of a manual process, and it's huge with the Brach-Brodie situation and other documents for lawyers. We've had to disassemble board packets, and by that I mean paper copies as thick as your board packet is, to take that apart, recopy it and send that to lawyers," she said. "Currently we archive every single board packet on paper and when it becomes too large for us to house here, it is put on CD-ROM and then we store it like that." Each of the two programs would cost about $1,000 to set up and between $11,000 and $12,000 a year for the service. Board members were split, with some being ready to upload the program next week while others wanted to make sure the program could be customized to best suit individual needs. "Why don't we just do it at the next meeting and get it approved?" said board member John Stephens. "It's $12,000. We've approved $50 million in construction fees (for Metea Valley High School)." Board member Curt Bradshaw wants to make sure whichever program they choose provides a flawless transition and doesn't shift costs to other departments. "We need to maintain the usability of the materials," he said. "We need to make sure we're not just shifting the time from being in the community and doing other things." Neighboring Naperville Unit District 203 implemented one of the systems being studied by District 204 in August. According to Dist. 203's Web site, it is using electronic distribution to "replace the old method of compiling, printing, binding and distributing a limited number of paper Board of Education meeting documents." Zolnier and Buchner will continue their research before reporting back to the board within the next few board meetings
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Post by momto4 on Sept 24, 2008 10:34:23 GMT -5
Here is an LTE in today's Naperville Sun questioning the cost savings of District 203 board meetings going paperless.
Is School District 203 really saving money?
It was interesting to read the Sept. 16 article detailing how District 203 is changing its board packet distribution from paper to electronic. My first reaction was it is about time but upon additional thought and review I wonder how it is saving us money.
The district quotes manpower savings of $74,800, if the one or more staff members who, based on district info, spend their entire year making copies for the board are still working for the district, no manpower costs are being saved.
Next I see an initial cost of $11,000 plus an annual fee of $12,000 for the agenda management software. The district has previously used a Web based portal based on Microsoft Sharepoint. If that has been abandoned, what was purchased to replace it and why cannot existing computer applications be adapted by the district IT staff to perform the function of BoardDocs?
I also wonder about the $15,400 a year in paper and ink costs. This implies that approximately 40,000 copies are made for the board each month.
I have never seen a board meeting with each member having a packet with at least 1,000 pages in it (assuming 3,000 copies per member, three meetings a month). If this isn't the amount of copies made, I would have to question why are we paying so much for copies?
Finally I get to the utter audacity of the board, $8,400 for new laptops, each member gets a $1,200 laptop to use to essentially look at PDF documents (back at Christmas time there were offers for $400 laptops that would be adequate).
Plus, hold your breath, the board needed new tables with built-in electrical connections for a cost of $12,760. What was wrong with a few power strips mounted to the underside of the existing tables and a couple of extension cords?
Last, since they needed new tables and laptops, they had to spend $9,275 on new chairs. The only nice thing to say is that is extremely excessive costs for meeting chairs for the board members. Give me a break; this district doesn't know how to save taxpayer money.
Kevin Hausman
Naperville
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Post by title1parent on Nov 11, 2008 7:51:26 GMT -5
www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=249721&src=76Dist. 204 going paperless, saving trees - and armsBy Justin Kmitch | Daily Herald 11/11/2008 Seizing the opportunity to provide taxpayers more transparency and save a few trees, Indian Prairie Unit District 204 board members Monday went paperless. Board members unanimously agreed to subscribe to BoardDocs Electronic School Board Document Management Solutions, meaning within about three months, members will no longer have to lug inches-thick packets to and from meetings. All of that information will instantly be available to them, and everyone else, on their laptops, PDAs and other electronic communication tools. "Obviously I've had a little bit of reluctance moving into the 21st century, but I think the most amazing aspect of this proposal is the transparency aspect," said board member Curt Bradshaw. "This is a tremendous opportunity to provide transparency to our taxpayers and provide them the opportunity to provide us input and advice in advance of the meeting regarding things on the agenda and be able to follow along better during the meeting as well." Chief Information Officer David Zolnier told board members Monday he would contact the company and begin working out specific details regarding any hardware the district needs and would work to get the district up and running electronically in the next two to three months. Zolnier estimated the program will cost about $1,000 to set up and about $11,000 annually for the service. Along with all meeting information being made digital and accessible, district staff have supported the program as well, saying an electronic format will make it easier and faster to make last-minute changes to a large number of documents in a shorter period of time. "I think there's several advantages, not only in transparency but also from a historical perspective," Superintendent Stephen Daeschner said. "People will be able to get into those documents, and it will give our public more opportunity to hold us accountable and I appreciate that." Neighboring Naperville Unit District 203 implemented the same system in August. According to Dist. 203's Web site, it is using electronic distribution to "replace the old method of compiling, printing, binding and distributing a limited number of paper Board of Education meeting documents."
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Post by chicoryowl on Nov 11, 2008 10:47:44 GMT -5
Here is an LTE in today's Naperville Sun questioning the cost savings of District 203 board meetings going paperless. Is School District 203 really saving money? It was interesting to read the Sept. 16 article detailing how District 203 is changing its board packet distribution from paper to electronic. My first reaction was it is about time but upon additional thought and review I wonder how it is saving us money. The district quotes manpower savings of $74,800, if the one or more staff members who, based on district info, spend their entire year making copies for the board are still working for the district, no manpower costs are being saved. Next I see an initial cost of $11,000 plus an annual fee of $12,000 for the agenda management software. The district has previously used a Web based portal based on Microsoft Sharepoint. If that has been abandoned, what was purchased to replace it and why cannot existing computer applications be adapted by the district IT staff to perform the function of BoardDocs? I also wonder about the $15,400 a year in paper and ink costs. This implies that approximately 40,000 copies are made for the board each month. I have never seen a board meeting with each member having a packet with at least 1,000 pages in it (assuming 3,000 copies per member, three meetings a month). If this isn't the amount of copies made, I would have to question why are we paying so much for copies? Finally I get to the utter audacity of the board, $8,400 for new laptops, each member gets a $1,200 laptop to use to essentially look at PDF documents (back at Christmas time there were offers for $400 laptops that would be adequate). Plus, hold your breath, the board needed new tables with built-in electrical connections for a cost of $12,760. What was wrong with a few power strips mounted to the underside of the existing tables and a couple of extension cords? Last, since they needed new tables and laptops, they had to spend $9,275 on new chairs. The only nice thing to say is that is extremely excessive costs for meeting chairs for the board members. Give me a break; this district doesn't know how to save taxpayer money. Kevin Hausman Naperville I don't know if $1,200 for a laptop was necessary, but please point me to a $400 laptop.
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Post by asmodeus on Nov 12, 2008 9:08:36 GMT -5
You can EASILY find quality laptops for $400. My staff uses IBM Thinkpads that are just off of corporate lease.
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Post by wvhsparent on Nov 12, 2008 16:28:29 GMT -5
Here is an LTE in today's Naperville Sun questioning the cost savings of District 203 board meetings going paperless. Is School District 203 really saving money? It was interesting to read the Sept. 16 article detailing how District 203 is changing its board packet distribution from paper to electronic. My first reaction was it is about time but upon additional thought and review I wonder how it is saving us money. The district quotes manpower savings of $74,800, if the one or more staff members who, based on district info, spend their entire year making copies for the board are still working for the district, no manpower costs are being saved. Next I see an initial cost of $11,000 plus an annual fee of $12,000 for the agenda management software. The district has previously used a Web based portal based on Microsoft Sharepoint. If that has been abandoned, what was purchased to replace it and why cannot existing computer applications be adapted by the district IT staff to perform the function of BoardDocs? I also wonder about the $15,400 a year in paper and ink costs. This implies that approximately 40,000 copies are made for the board each month. I have never seen a board meeting with each member having a packet with at least 1,000 pages in it (assuming 3,000 copies per member, three meetings a month). If this isn't the amount of copies made, I would have to question why are we paying so much for copies? Finally I get to the utter audacity of the board, $8,400 for new laptops, each member gets a $1,200 laptop to use to essentially look at PDF documents (back at Christmas time there were offers for $400 laptops that would be adequate). Plus, hold your breath, the board needed new tables with built-in electrical connections for a cost of $12,760. What was wrong with a few power strips mounted to the underside of the existing tables and a couple of extension cords? Last, since they needed new tables and laptops, they had to spend $9,275 on new chairs. The only nice thing to say is that is extremely excessive costs for meeting chairs for the board members. Give me a break; this district doesn't know how to save taxpayer money. Kevin Hausman Naperville I don't know if $1,200 for a laptop was necessary, but please point me to a $400 laptop. www.tigerdirect.com/applications/category/category_slc.asp?Lprice=200&Hprice=499.99&CatId=17
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Post by WeNeed3 on Nov 13, 2008 8:51:33 GMT -5
D204 shifts to electronic meeting managerBy TIM WALDORF twaldorf@scn1.com 11/13/08 www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/1277077,6_1_NA13_D204BRD_S1.article Indian Prairie School District 204's board is going paperless. The board voted Monday to subscribe to BoardDocs online meeting manager. BoardDocs will allow the district to create, update, distribute and archive board meeting agendas, information packets and minutes online, thereby relieving the district of the sizable task of assembling, printing, distributing and cataloging these items. "The principal reason that we are doing this is the time and money benefit we get from organizing the materials in this fashion," said board President Mark Metzger. "But there are some board members who prefer to interact with these materials in this way." However, the BoardDocs program is also expected to improve transparency and communication, as the program will make all of the materials discussed in the public portion of the board's meetings available to and searchable by the public on the district's Web site. Also, board packets as currently produced cannot be distributed to board members until every document to be contained in them is completed. The new system will allow documents to be published to the online agenda as they become available - and subsequently updated as necessary - thereby extending access to the information by several days. David Zolnier, District 204's chief information officer, said the district hopes to have the program up and running within two or three months, but he said that timeline could change depending on the outcome of discussions he has with BoardDocs over the next few weeks. It may take more time to work out technical problems and train staff to use the program, he said. An annual subscription to BoardDocs will cost the district $11,000. Zolnier said the district has yet to do a "deep analysis" of savings it is expected to bring the district, but, he said, "we know it is there" because the current approach to producing and archiving board packets is "a very laborious, tedious type of process." "By nature, I think it makes us more efficient, more nimble in how we do our board packets," he said. Earlier this fall, Naperville School District 203 began using BoardDocs. The decision cost District 203 $42,000, $30,000 of which went toward purchasing a new board set-up that included laptops for board members, new tables with electronic outlets, and new chairs. However, District 203 calculated it was spending $15,400 a year on ink and paper to produce its board packets, and it also identified $74,800 a year of labor costs associated with printing those packets. While District 204's saving may prove to be similar, its initial costs could be less. Zolnier noted that District 204 board members are already outfitted with laptops, and Metzger noted that the dais in the district's board room was built to accommodate this kind of technology.
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Post by WeNeed3 on Nov 13, 2008 8:57:38 GMT -5
Wow, if we spend anywhere near what 203 spends that will be quite a savings for us.
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Post by title1parent on Nov 17, 2008 6:25:32 GMT -5
www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/opinions/1281440,2_4_AU17_THUMBS_S1.article That's one for the trees 11/17/08 Beacon Opinion The Indian Prairie School District announced last week it will go to a paperless school board meeting. This is an environmentally friendly idea whose time has come. If you've ever seen a public body gathered for a meeting, you know how much paperwork is involved. That the mounds will be eliminated is a good thing. We give a THUMBS UP to the effort, which in its own way encourages open government. A new computer program will make all of the materials discussed in the public portion of the board's meetings available to and searchable by the public on the district's Web site.
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Post by chicoryowl on Nov 17, 2008 10:23:52 GMT -5
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