Allendale school board discusses technology upgrades

The Allendale Board of Education discussed current and upcoming projects on the buildings & grounds and technology front at its May 6 meeting.

Buildings and grounds

For the current school year, Hillside School and Brookside School are undergoing security and telecommunications upgrades. The district expects to save approximately $130,000 by working with Bergen County Special Services of the New Jersey Department of Education, after originally receiving a quote from Promedia Technology Services that was much higher.

"The original budget for this was $261,000," board member Todd Fliegel said. "The percentage of savings on the project is staggering, about 40 to 45 percent. A lot of that has to do with [Superintendent] Dr. Barcadapone working with individual vendors instead of one vendor in a general contract and saved us a lot of money."

The district will also go out for bids to complete HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) control upgrades in Hillside and Brookside. Board of Education President Melissa Duncan said the first part of this project involves boiler and pump replacements with the second phase being centralized control of heat in the building so that temperature throughout the school is regulated.

HVAC pipe covers in the fifth grade classrooms should be done soon.

As for the 2013-2014 school year budget, the exterior door replacement project will be done over the summer and "should not interfere with anybody or anything," Duncan said.

Carpet removal and tile replacement projects will also be competed over the summer, which may impact ALEOOP (Allendale Enrichment and Opportunity Program summer camp).

Technology

The district is preparing to implement the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) program, and should be set up by September for grades 6-8, board member Mark McAuliffe said.

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Allendale school board discusses technology upgrades