WELCOME TO mLISD AND CPMS!
We understand you will have a lot of questions concerning mLISD and your child. We have created this page to try to summarize the best we can for you.
5th Grade Questions and Answers
1. What is MLISD? - You can read all about it here on the mLISD District Page
2. WHEN can I pay for my 5th grader to have a computer for their 6th grade year? Answer: April 1st of your 5th grade year.
3. WHERE can I pay for my 5th grader to have a computer for their 6th grade year? Answer: Online here at MySchoolBucks you will need their student ID.
4. How much is the non-refundable security deposit for the year? Answer: $40.00
Free and Reduced Lunch recipients will still login and sign up, but the fee will automatically be $0.00. For other hardship situations, please contact the school's grade level counselor for a scholarship application.
5. When will my 5th grader get their computer if I pay any time prior to the first day of school? Answer: Your child will need to go through "modules". These are instructions, and training on expectations that CPMS has about care and treatment of the computer. This includes rules and digital citizenship. This will occur the first couple weeks of school through their classes. They will all be issued computers at the same time after completing these modules.
6. Do you filter at school? Answer: Yes, stringently. LISD has implementing school-like filtering applied to all machines even when the device is off our network. It is your responsibility to set time limits and boundaries at home. Students are very smart and can utilize ways to circumvent the filter. You can read more about the filter here: LISD FILTER
7. What happens if my child loses their computer? Answer: Please look at the tabs on the left for Lost and Damaged Computers. All the answers for everyone appear there.
8. Are these brand new computers that my child is getting? Answer: Yes.
All 6th graders will be issued a Lenovo 500e Chromebook for the 2024/2025 school year. At the end of their 8th grade year they will be issued a Windows laptop. Chromebooks and Windows laptops are quite different. We have found at the middle school level that a Chromebook is powerful enough for what we are doing in classes. We are in a cycle of use of about 4 years. Currently we expect to refresh computers at the end of every 4th year. Right now, 6th graders and 9th graders receive a new computer. If repairs need to occur for your student, they will be issued a loaner computer so their learning is uninterrupted.
9. How will my child get troubleshooting help? Answer: Students will be trained on how to put in a Technology Help Request with a link (all teachers can direct them to the link or they can access it HERE). The Help Request goes to Ms. Cooper, the Campus Technologist, who will call the student out of his/her class to assess and repair the computer at school. The student will receive a loaner during the repair process.
10. But my child doesn't know where the Tech office is, and the school is too big, and adults are scary and I am just going to bring them in with their computer and talk to everyone for them!!!
Answer: Please don't. :) Your child is learning as they go. No one will yell at them for finding their way. We will all help them find where they need to go. Part of learning to be a middle schooler is learning to articulate what they need to other students, teachers and adults. We want them to learn how to find help for their technical needs.
11. Can I install _____________ on the school issued computer? Answer: No. All installation of software that is allowed by the district is housed in a shortcut on their desktop called Software Center. Students can install anything from there. However, we don't allow parents to install anything on these computers. Likewise, kids can't install games, etc. Certainly they are able to download and run via a USB and they find other web-based games. But installation will always ask for an Admin username and password and that is where the process stops. Students have also learned they can share some games and run them from flash drives. This does increase the incidents of malware.
12. What about installing Drivers for home printers? Answer: Please see the tab on the left about Printing at Home.
13. How many kids at CPMS participate in mLISD? Answer: We average about 90% participation with the district computers. This helps our teachers make efficient instructions for lessons and seamless technology integration for lessons. District computers are the only computers that can be used for standardized testing.
14. Are there scholarships available for students who can't afford the non-refundable security deposit? Answer: For students in need of a scholarship, please send an email to mlisd@leanderisd.org Include the following in the email:
Student Name
Campus
Student ID Number
Parent Phone Number
15. My child seems too young/little/irresponsible/ to have an expensive computer! Answer: They will surprise you. They will take ownership of this machine and take pretty good care of it. They become very invested in THEIR computer. Your annual non-refundable maintenance fee covers all accidental damage and any repairs that might be needed. Read more about it here: MLISD Device support
16. When will we learn more about the mLISD program? You can explore this website and the district mLISD links above. You can read about it here: About MLISD
17. Why would I want to use a school-issued device when I could provide my child with their own laptop? Answer: You certainly have the option of doing that. However, as you can see from our participation numbers most parents find it more beneficial to use the school device. The main drawbacks right now are that any personal device is unable to print on our network right now, personal devices are not supported at school for troubleshooting (other than to gain access to our network), we do not supply loaners or troubleshooting for kids who do not participate in Mlisd, you pay for any damage to the computer and we do not supply any applications needed to your personal devices. Further, CPMS tech support is only for district-managed devices. We do not touch, resolve machine issues or change anything on a personal device.