Recently upgraded PSD Web site.

The Technology Planning Committee of the Portsmouth School District (PSD) met last night to hear updates on current initiatives and discuss a proposed social media policy to be forwarded to the School Committee.

The committee, chaired by PSD Tech Director Rose Muller, comprises teachers, staff, and community representation, and meets several times during the school year to review progress and goals. Items on last night's agenda included the new School Information System (SIS), Upgrades and initiatives, and a proposed social media policy.

Muller updated the group on the migration to the new SIS, Aspen, which required significant data cleanup (the previous system suffered from significant denormalization). One important new feature is the attendance automation which integrates with an automatic call feature — parents are now automatically called if no absence is reported, and in a much more timely fashion.

The district has also finished upgrading all switches to gigabit speed to be ready to take advantage of the BTOP fiber ring currently being run through the state to connect educational institutions.

And if you haven't yet had the chance to check out the new look of the PSD Web site, you may want to go take a peek. The new design, rolled out over the holiday break, aimed to simplify the navigation and and refresh the look and feel.

The group also discussed the proposed social media policy, which will be forwarded to the school committee for review and action. The goal was to provide educators and students with a framework for the responsible use of these new communication tools within and related to school.

Full disclosure: I've been a parent volunteer on this committee for about four years now, and I think this is the first meeting I've reported on, since the content is typically pretty mundane. You may not think it accidental that tonight, the school committee will be voting on who to appoint to their "official" technology subcommittee; my letter of application is among those being considered.