Education: A Is For Access
The Bellmore School District is dedicated to providing
the most innovative and leading-edge instructional technologies
in order to foster the imagination, potential and interests of every
child. The Bellmore schools are proud of their many technological
deployments, including the use of voice over IP (VOIP) and multi-cast
video for virtual fieldtrips and distance learning opportunities
for its students. In addition, the Bellmore School District is noted
as being one of the first in New York to install a virtual private
network (VPN) and deploy wireless connectivity across the district,
giving teachers the flexibility to access their desktops and applications
from their laptops in any classroom or office.
 Great
Vision, Budgetary Constraints
Technological advances have created a paradigm shift in education.
With over 1,320 students, the K-6 Long Island district faces a growing
challenge to continually strive to enhance the teaching and learning
model using the latest technologies while maintaining equity in
education. The district needed to find a solution that would help
accomplish this within the framework of today’s budget constraints.
They wanted to be able expand the life of their existing hardware
and cut down on the long software upgrade cycles.
The issue of information access was of special interest to Bellmore
as the school looked at distance learning programs that would allow
students to overcome geographic boundaries and expand course opportunities.
Like most schools, Bellmore was faced with the question of how to
accommodate video conferencing and technology-hungry programs using
available resources to handle such technologies.
Virtual Equipment Upgrade
Tarantella reseller CSD presented a solution to address Bellmore’s
challenges. Immediately after implementing the Tarantella Enterprise
3 software, Bellmore was able to begin to centralize all applications
into one location providing students, teachers and administrators
immediate access to any of their applications from any device, from
anywhere in the world.
With over 450 desktops, wide-ranging in age, model and capability,
streamlining the ability of each machine and simplifying the upgrade
process was a must in order to cost-effectively adopt new technologies
as they emerged. All Bellmore’s machines are Windows-based,
varying between Windows 95, 98 and 2000 but all are able to access
centralized applications via Tarantella. Bellmore has plans to upgrade
the schools’ systems to Windows XP and Office 11, using Tarantella
as well.
When looking at remote access solution vendors, Bellmore Schools’
assistant superintendent for business and technology services, Richard
Daddio stated, “There is no comparison between the Citrix
and Tarantella solutions. Unlike Citrix, Tarantella had no desktop
overhead, which was crucial in our situation. Tarantella breaks
down the walls to what is possible for schools with limited resources
and a strong interest in emerging technologies.”
Expanding the Classroom
Bellmore School District understands the value of engaging the
family in a student’s education. By providing secure web-based
access into a student’s academic window, parents and students
can keep track of grades and assignments, out-of-area grandparents
are able to attend a real time musical presentation by their grandchildren,
and teachers are able to keep regulatory documents up to date on
line.
Although the Bellmore District places high emphasis on technology,
their goal is to make it transparent to the students and allow them
to travel to each “learning center” without thinking
about the technology that gets them there. Tarantella’s transparent
architecture provides the perfect solution. The security and management
tools in the product allow Bellmore to control how the computer
screen looks, the size of the screen, access levels, etc.—
all invisible to the user. Bellmore is providing a consistent yet
exciting educational experience for its students.
"Tarantella and Bellmore, we are a great
fit…."
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The Challenge
The Bellmore School District wanted to provide
its students with access to the latest and most innovative learning
technologies, using the current PCs on hand and working within the
available budget.
The Solution
By centralizing all applications needed by students,
faculty and administrators, Bellmore Schools was able to lower maintenance
costs, reduce time-intensive upgrades and extend the lives of available
computers. Even though their client hardware was divergent, with
the Tarantella solution they could all centrally access the latest
applications.
The Benefits
Teachers are able to access their applications
from any location within the district and also avail themselves
of the flexibility of working from home – even bridging the
Macintosh-Wintel gap. Students gain distance learning opportunities
and media-rich programs to which they would otherwise not have access.
Administrators are able to meet state reporting requirements in
a consistent manner. One-step centralized installation of applications
allows for instant use by students, teachers or administrators.
Customer Testimonial
"There is no comparison between the Citrix and
Tarantella solutions. Unlike Citrix, Tarantella had no desktop overhead,
which was crucial in our situation. Tarantella breaks down the walls
to what is possible for schools with limited resources and a strong
interest in emerging technologies."
- Richard Daddio, assistant
superintendent for business and technology services, Bellmore Schools
Executive Summary
The Bellmore K-6 School District, located on the
south shore of Long Island, New York, is recognized for providing
its students with the latest and most innovation educational technology
solutions. Bellmore utilizes technology to enhance the teaching
and learning model by promoting higher level problem solving skills,
original thinking and lifelong learning. www.bellmoreschools.org
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