The Technology Plan

As mandated by North Carolina law GS115C-102.6, each local school district is required to submit an updated technology plan that is written to support and enhance the following defined priorities:

1. Globally competetive students
2. 21st Century professionals
3. Healthy and responsible students
4. Leadership that will guide innovation
5. 21st Century systems

The 2009 Technology Plan is written to address the five strategic priorities of the state and the goals of the district.

Summary of Guilford County’s 2009 Technology Plan (Coming Soon)
Guilford County’s 2009 Technology Plan
The North Carolina Educational Technology Plan
Summary of Guilford County’s 2005 Technology Plan
Accomplishments of the 2005 Technology Plan (Coming Soon)
Accomplishments of the 2000 Technology Plan

Guilford County’s 2009 Technology Plan

To view the entire technology plan, select the following link:

Guilford County’s 2009 Technology Plan

The North Carolina Educational Technology Plan

As mandated by North Carolina law GS115C-102.6, North Carolina has developed a state educational technology plan to enhance teaching and learning within all its schools. 
Further, each local school district is required to submit an updated technology plan that is consistent with the priorities of the statewide plan.

The North Carolina Educational Technology Plan was designed to reflect North Carolina’s Strategic Plan for Excellent Schools.  It was written to support and enhance the following defined priorities:

• Globally competitive students
• 21st Century professionals
• Healthy and responsible students
• leadership that will guide innovation
• 21st Century systems

To view North Carolina’s plan, select the following link:

North Carolina Educational Technology Plan

Summary of the 2005 Technology Plan

In 2005, Guilford County Schools revised their long-range technology plan according to the new format.  The plan was written to address the five strategic priorities of the state and the goals of the district. 

Recommendations of the 2005 Plan include:

• Implement assessment  tools aligned with the NC Standard Course of Study for reading and math
• Continue to support new district-initiatives and district-provided software that support the curriculum
• Provide instructional materials that support the new Computer Skills Test using NCDesk
• Replace computer equipment as outlined in the five-year replacement schedule
• Implement a higher-bandwidth, fiber-based wide area network solution (called Metro E) at all sites
• Update switches that do not have high-traffic and VLAN capabilities
• Continue to investigate and employ new security strategies such as installing intrusion prevention systems (IPS) and access control software
• Install wireless “hot spots” in middle and high schools
• Subdivide school networks into workgroups called Virtual Local Area Networks (VLANS) and create a “Guest Network” for Internet access only
• Continue to support the technology installations that are included in the Capital Improvement Plan (2003 Bond Referendum)
• Install networked voice (VOIP) solutions in schools designated for new telephone equipment
• Implement a new student information management system

Accomplishments of the 2000 Technology Plan

During the fall of 2000, a technology planning committee comprised of board members, principals, media specialists, teachers and technology staff revised Guilford County’s Long-Range Technology Plan. 

During the 2000 to 2005 timeframe, a consulting firm specializing in technology for education completed a strategic technology audit for the district and made several recommendations.  In addition, a business continuity planning group assisted the Technology Services Department with a Environment Assessment and a Disaster Recovery Plan.

Following are several of the major initiatives completed during the 2000 to 2005 timeframe:

• Developed online searchable lesson plans aligned to the North Carolina Standard Course of Study
• Purchased new software that supports and enhances the curriculum such as Orchard, SuccessMaker, SAT Coach
• Provided access to additional online resources such as NC WiseOwl, Kaleidoscope, SAS inSchool, NovaNet
• Supported the instructional technology teachers in preparing students for the Computer Skills Test and continued to improve our percentage of those passing the test
• Offered basic technology training courses online in addition to the wide range of traditional staff development opportunities

• Offered in-depth team immersion-type training programs for elementary and middle school teachers such as QTL and QUEST
• Expanded the Career and Technical Education program to include specialized instruction in technical fields and opportunities to receive industry-standard certifications
• Developed a five-year replacement schedule for all computers and moved to an all-Windows environment
• Networked the remaining classrooms for high-speed access to the Internet and email
• Employed new technology strategies such as active directory, DMZ, DNS, firewalls, Internet filtering appliances, virus protection, spam filtering, locked desktops, VPN access
• Implemented remote control software to enable technicians to resolve technical issues remotely
• Purchased deployment and patch management software to enable mass distribution of virus protection updates, new applications and patches to all desktops after hours
• Installed inventory management software to collect configuration information about all computers
• Gained service provider certification for in-house computer repair and warranty work
• Wrote a Technology Policies, Procedure and Standards Manual to provide guidelines for a standard and controllable network environment for the district
• Developed a Disaster Recovery Plan, replicated major systems, purchased generators and UPS devices and created alternate paths for network access
• Improved the district web site and created an Intranet for protected applications
• Purchased SchoolCenter, software that enables schools and teachers to create web pages easily
• Supported the technology installations that were included in the Capital Improvement Plan (2000 Bond Referendum)
• Improved the management systems of the district, implementing a data warehouse for student information, web-based professional development software, telephone notification system for parents, document workflow system and web-based help desk system.