Technology Program Administrator

Cindy Dixon
FRIT 7739
Georgia Southern University
Part A: Program Evaluation

Executive Summary

The Link is one of two Media Centers that serves Richmond Hill High School in the
Bryan County School System in Richmond Hill, GA. The Link operates under the supervision of
the school principal and the county instructional technology coordinator (appendix A).The LInk is
technological hub of Richmond Hill High School that serves the 1944 students and 105 teachers
of the school. The technology resource teacher Levi Sybert and one of schools two media
specialists, Mrs. Robin Thompson, work in The Link. It is a digital media center designed
specifically for the integration of technology and digital media into the curriculum. All resources
are digital. For example, students can check out ebooks through Overdrive onto their own
devices. The more traditional media center which is run by media specialist, Mrs. Annie Keine,
houses the schools fiction and reference collection and a video collection and includes 20
desktop computers, an ipad cart that houses 37 ipads, and a cart of 37 chromebooks for
students to use and check out while they are visiting the center. The Link serves as an addition
to the school that enhances the activities of the media center. The Link is funded by the state
and the local school county budget.
The Link is designed physically more like a learning commons or learning lab with
smaller areas for small groups. The furniture which is mostly on wheels can be moved easily for
larger groups. The use of chromebooks and ipads make this type of mobility possible. The
space is used by students and faculty alike as a place to work, learn, and collaborate.

Methods
For this evaluation several sources were used to gather data. Observations of the
activities in The Link were conducted during my hours of practicum served there. The media
specialist was interviewed, and the teachers were asked to fill out a questionnaire survey.

Center Context and Goals

Mission Statement:
The mission of the Richmond Hill High School Link and Media Center is to teach students to be
effective users of information and to encourage and prepare students to be lifelong learners. This
mission is accomplished by:

providing instruction in information literacy

providing access to informational materials in a variety of formats and media

stimulating interest in reading and in finding and using information and ideas

promoting the use of the media center by students and faculty

promoting the use of technology

working with teachers to develop educational strategies to meet the information needs of
students and to augment teaching

supporting the school's curriculum

The Link was added to Richmond Hill High School in 2012 after the high school took
over the middle school building adjacent to it. Bryan County built a new middle school in another
location to accommodate the growth in the county. This former media center for the middle

school would be the perfect space to design a new learning space called The LInk which would
help to serve the student population which had more than doubled in the past ten years. It is
designed as a digital learning commons for teacher and student use. The LInks main objective
and goal is to provide digital access and information to students and to support teachers in
integrating digital media and technology into their lessons. The stakeholders in this center are
the teachers and administrators who use the media center and its resources to further the
learning experiences of their students.
The Link is staffed with one full time media specialist and one technology resource
teacher. They both are responsible for making purchasing decisions. Both work together to help
teachers integrate technology into their lessons by meeting with individual teachers who request
help. The media specialist oversees the reservations of the schools technology resources
which includes three windows labs with 36 computers each,1 chrome lab with 35 units, two
ipad boxes for teacher check out with 6 ipads each. The available technology within The Link
includes, 12 chrome desktop units, 5 windows units, and ipad cart with 36 ipads, 36
chromebooks. Teachers can sign up to reserve The Link for their classes to come and use the
technology resources ( Appendix B). The technology resource teacher manages the labs and
the chrome carts. The technology resource teacher trains classroom teachers in an online
course for use of a chrome cart in the classroom. Currently there are 14 chrome carts
distributed to teachers with 37 chromebooks each. Some of the carts are shared between two
teachers. These chromebooks are three years old. The Link was not established to replace the
traditional media center, but to enhance it and to divide the responsibilities and management for
the media specialists and technology resource teacher who serve close to 2000 students and
105

teachers. While the use of online databases such as Follet books, and Galileo are handled more
in the traditional media center, they are still available and used in The LInk. Digital citizenship is
a focus in both centers and is taught at teacher request to classes by both media specialists.

Center Activities

Google Apps for Education Training

The Link is host to many trainings throughout the year. In the past three years as the school has
adopted the use of Google Apps for Education and purchased chromebooks, there have been
many offerings of online trainings for teachers as well as face to face trainings. Most of the
training happens organically as teachers talk with the media specialist about what they can do
with Google Apps in their classrooms. Examples are use of Flubaroo, Google Classroom, basic
use of Docs, Drive, Slides, and Sheets.

Training on Making Movies with iPads and iMovies

Many teachers request that students make movies and video podcasts for assignments and
reserve The Link to have the media specialist train the students and help the students with their
productions.

Training on iPad apps

The technology resource teacher trains teachers who would like the use of an ipad in their
classrooms. He holds workshops each year and teachers who complete the workshop get the
full use of an ipad. The media specialist will also recommend apps for teacher and student use
to enhance learning. For example, Sub Text is an excellent app for sharing public domain
pieces of literature and annotating them as a class with the app. If teachers find an app they
would like to try, they can request it be added to their ipad and to the cart of ipads.

Help Desk

As it serves as the hub of the technology on campus, it is appropriate that The Link serve as a
help desk to faculty and students who need to troubleshoot any device or application. Both the
media specialist and the technology resource teacher serve in this capacity.

Student Use of The Link

If a teacher has not reserved it, students may sign in at a computer station at the door and use
The Link as a space to study during their lunch. They may also come thirty minutes before and
after school. Any technology that is not in use is available for them to sign out as long as they

stay in The Link. Teachers may also send small groups of students to work on projects during
class time by submitting an online form as long as capacity permits( Appendix C)

Evaluation

Because it is a type of annex to the traditional media center at Richmond Hill HIgh
School,The Link serves its stakeholders quite well. The division of responsibilities helps to
facilitate a more focused emphasis on technology integration and digital literacy for the nearly
2000 member student body it serves. Because of the open door policy for teachers, many find
working with the media specialist a positive and helpful experience and most of the technology
integration happens organically(Appendix D). The teachers feel that The Link is an integral part
of facilitating the learning program at the school. They also feel comfortable collaborating with
the staff. This is a commendable achievement, as it promotes engagement and buy in from
teachers thus creating engaging learning activities for students. It is keeping up with the pace of
the growing role of technology in the classroom. The trainings with students and teachers has
helped to make them more and more independent in using technology.

Recommendations

While The Link runs smoothly in serving the students and teachers at this time, there are a few
recommendations that could enhance its offerings. A student run help desk that could be
staffed through the schools work based learning program could help free the media specialist

and technology resource teacher to work more with teachers and whole class groups. This help
desk could help during the times that the technology resource teacher is heavily involved in
state-

mandated testing. The Link space has the capacity to house a makerspace that could enhance
the curriculum in targeted subject areas. It is recommended that the technology resource
teacher work with various course instructors to investigate the advantages of a makerspace in
The LInk.
Lessons in Digital Citizenship are only taught at the request of the classroom teachers. Because
of the ever evolving and increasing issues that arise in todays culture, it is recommended that
the The Link either compose or subscribe to an online digital citizenship course where students
earn badges upon completion. Each student could be required to earn a badge for internet
privileges on campus. The course could be updated periodically to reflect the changes that
occur in the area of digital citizenship.

Appendix A
Organizational Chart

Appendix B
Online Whole Class Lab and Link/Media Center Reservation Sheet

Appendix C
Google Form Reservation Sheet

Appendix D
Faculty Survey Results

The Link is an integral part of the schools instructional program.

On a scale of 1-5 1 not at all 2-4 somewhat 5 most definitely

The Link has up to date technology.

On a scale of 1-5 1 not at all 2-4 somewhat 5 most definitely

Students and staff feel welcomed in The Link.

On a scale of 1-5 1 not at all 2-4 somewhat 5 most definitely

I feel comfortable asking for asking for assistance from The Link Staff.

On a scale of 1-5 1 not at all

2-4 somewhat 5 most definitely

I feel comfortable collaborating with the media specialist and the technology resource teacher.
On a scale of 1-5 1 not at all 2-4 somewhat 5 most definitely