Information Technology (IT)

Technology's Pandemic Response Strategy

When Westerville City Schools transitioned to remote instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic, Information Technology (IT) staff were required to take on numerous unplanned projects to meet the needs of students and staff alike. In 2020 they loaned more than 7,000 Chromebooks and 400 Internet hotspots for students’ use at home. They also expanded WiFi signal strength to the outside of school buildings so students and families could park nearby to access online services for learning if necessary. IT leadership secured a $1.7M grant for emergency connectivity, which allowed them to purchase and loan another 4,000 chromebooks and 500 hotspots to families so more students had technology available for learning. 

Despite these challenges posed by COVID, the team also remained on task to complete numerous planned projects at schools and buildings across the district. These included Audio-Visual technology upgrades at 10 elementary, middle and high schools; Desktop Computer upgrades at five middle and high schools; the installation of necessary technology for the new Minerva France Elementary School and Minerva Park Middle School; a districtwide VoIP Phone System refresh and support for eFax; and a districtwide infrastructure refresh that included upgraded WiFi, battery backups, network switching, firewalls, and building Wide Area Network Circuits.

With increasingly sophisticated outside threats to business’s computer networks, the IT team enhanced the district’s security posture through enhanced districtwide virus protection, disk encryption, multi-factor authentication, and email filtering; updated password policies; and a unified image for technology equipment.