School Board Approves More than $1M in Technology Purchases

The Edina Board of Education unanimously approved the purchase of a number of new pieces of technology Monday, June 25, for a total cost of more than $1 million.

The purchases were made possible by the last fall. The new levy collects approximately $4.5 million annually for the next 10 years.

Steve Buettner, director of media & technology services for the district, said the purchases represent "an exciting time for the district."

"Part of the technology plan was to develop a district standard for classrooms on digital devices," Buettner said. "We wanted to provide options for teachers."

Buettner said more than 260 applications came in for access to the new technology, with the approved devices providing new instructional avenues for district educators.

The approved purchases included the following:

• A video distribution system for $45,661.16
• 210 Google Chromebooks for $99,840
• 27 Apple computers, 190 iPads, 10 iPods and 16 Apple TVs for $130,435
• 35 Lenovo All-in-One computers for $30,625
• A one-year Cisco SMARTnet service contract for $32,944.67
• A one-year subscription to Microsoft Enrollment for Education Solutions for $55,164.20
• The purchase of supplies for Project Lead the Way's Design Engineering course for $22,570.37

The board also approved the purchase of network hardware, video conferencing equipment, wifi network gear and security software at a cost of $589,860 over the course of a five-year period.

"After these approved purchases, we'll have close to 1,000 new devices," Buettner said. "25 percent of our inventory will be either refreshed or new from the technology levy."

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