Technology supervisor title questioned
By Audra Quinn
C & G Staff Writer
At the Aug. 29 special meeting of the Madison School Board, questions arose concerning the role of the “Technology Supervisor,” a new position that was approved by the board earlier in the month.
According to the job description provided by the district’s Human Resource department, the Technology Supervisor will be a part of central administration, answering to the director of human resources. The 52-week position will pay approximately $35,000 per year, commensurate with experience, plus benefits.
The responsibilities of this position include both hardware and software support. The hardware aspect will entail maintaining the network and equipment that is in place in classrooms and computer labs throughout the district. In the 2003-2006 technology plan for Madison District, it states that there are 373 desktop computers, 80 laptop computers, 187 printers, and 13 scanners throughout the district’s six buildings.
In terms of software support, the employee will be responsible for maintaining the technology plan, as required by the state of Michigan; the cable station; and Web site for the district. Beyond the technology plan, he or she will also produce required reports for the district, local, state and federal governments. Also required will be the management of the district’s e-mail system, databases, classroom software, voice, video and data programs for the district, as well as training staff members on these skills. He or she will also train students and create a “work assistance program” in which students will help with these functions. The technology supervisor will also develop and implement new databases, develop strategies for future technology purchases, and write grants to assist in their funding.
School Board Secretary Cindy Holder expressed her concerns over the title of the position, worrying that residents will think that they are hiring another administrator. “I’d like to redefine the position, not necessarily change the parameters. ‘Supervisor’ to me implies an administrative job of some sort and indeed this person is only going to be responsible for and to themselves,” she said.
“I didn’t think of it necessarily as an administrative job, but I didn’t really see it as a teaching job either. I don’t think the pay reflects really an administrative job. I’m not caught up in the semantics of it; I’m just making sure that what I had painted as the vision was going to be supported by the board,” said Superintendent William Harrison.
Harrison introduced his vision for a technologically enhanced district at the Aug. 8 meeting, expressing that he’d like to see a database in place from which teachers and administrators could track the progress of a student.
“I think our system is antiquated and we need to improve it,” Harrison said.
In the past, the district has employed two different contract employees — one for hardware, or equipment maintenance needs, and one for software.
Tom Dajnowicz started doing work for the district in 1999 and was a contract employee from 2002 until Nov. 2, 2004, when he says he received a letter from Harrison telling him his relationship with the district was terminated the following day due to the district’s financial hardship.
Dajnowicz said days after his termination, the district’s Web site and cable station went the wayside. “At the time, I did the Web site and got the cable into the district. That was the communication between the district and the community and it was working very well. At the time they let me go, I made recommendations of how they could train somebody and have them do it, but they chose not to do it,” he said.
Dajnowicz says he takes issue with the district for saying that the work he did was “at a premium.” “When I was at Detroit Edison, the rate for this type of work was $60 to $120 an hour. I wasn’t in the business to soak the district. I wanted to do some work, so I put the bid in for $30 an hour. No expenses, everything I covered myself,” he said.
Dajnowicz also takes issue with the superintendent’s vision to have students maintain the Web site and cable station. “You just can’t have students do the work. Basically, their job is to learn and to study. If they’re in a directed study for an hour to do something like that, that’s fine, but if you take them out of class for days on end to do maintenance? That’s not recommended,” he said. He also predicts problems with security.
“The Web site is the portal into the district. [What] if a student puts something in there? You can put very honest kids into it, but if they are coerced or they [might] accidentally put the password out,” he said.
Among the board, opinions differed on whether the name should be changed. Human Resources Director Georgia Nadius said that the title is not as significant as the role the employee will fill. “I don’t care if you call them anything you want,” she said.
“I don’t know if we’re going to change that title or not. To us [administrators] it’s minor point,” Nadius said. Interviews for the position have been completed, but officials declined submitting the name of the successful candidate before board approval.