The Clear Creek School District Board of Trustees has picked the Dell Latitude 10 as the device the district would purchase if the 2013 Bond Referendum is approved by voters on May 11.
The board approval does not commit funds for the purchase of tablet computers, it merely designates their tablet of choice.
In January, Clear Creek ISD issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for tablet computers to meet the instructional needs for students and teachers. The RFP involved seven vendors. In the end, the district committee and CCISD students recommended the Dell Latitude 10 for its educational applications, compatibility with existing CCISD software, and cost efficiency compared to other tablet devices.
In addition to the Dell Latitude 10 tablet, the district would receive free teacher professional development and technical training from Dell, Microsoft and Intel. The Dell Latitude 10 could also serve as a desktop computer for teachers through a docking station. The Dell Latitude 10 uses Microsoft Office and Microsoft applications which are familiar products with CCISD staff. Under the Dell proposal, the Latitude 10 Standard is $514. A tablet case is $28.
In the 2013 Bond proposal, $17.5 million is identified for student tablet computers in grades 4 through 10. With the proposal from Dell, the same $17.5 million would allow for the tablets to reach additional students by including grades 11 and 12 district-wide.
Historically, CCISD purchased technology through bond funds. The last time the district sought and received voter authorization for technology was in 2004. With the 2004 bonds, the district purchased laptop computer carts. These carts with 20 laptops would be checked out by teachers to be used in the classroom.
The tablet computers proposed in the 2013 Bond would not only replace these computer carts but also initiate what is known as a 1:1 program, one computer per student.
If approved by voters, the bonds for technology would be paid off with short-term bonds of five years.
To learn more about the 2013 CCISD Bond Proposal, visit www.ccisd.net/2013Bond or email [email protected].
