The Mahomet-Seymour School District plans to raise school enrollment fees beginning in the 2018-2019 school year.
The district-wide increase will help cover the cost of a 1-to-1 Chromebook initiative in grades 6-12.
District fees have not been raised since 2012.
During the 2017-2018 school year, school enrollment fees were $85 for grades K-8 and $120 for grades 9-12.
The fee increase will include an additional $25 for grades K-5, bringing the registration total to $110. The junior high and high school registration will increase by $50, bringing the total for grades 6-8 to $135 and for high school to $170.
These fees do not include additional fees for extra-curricular programs or athletics.
“The justification for that dipping down to the elementary schools is that we’ve put a lot of infrastructure in in terms of dark fiber and switches and such throughout the district over 4 or 5 years. So we thought it was appropriate to increase the fees down to the kindergarten level.”
To cover the cost of purchasing 1465 Chromebooks at $199 each for students at the junior high and high school for the 2018-2019 school year, the district will finance $301,932 at 2.25 percent for four years.
The district has 530 Chromebooks to reach their goal of providing a tablet for 250 students per grade.
Alongside the Chromebooks, the district will also purchase cases for each student that are estimated to cost $23 each. Google also requires school districts to purchase a $24.50 license for each student.
Presenters, Chief School Business Official Trent Nuxoll, Instructional Technology Coordinator Chris Forman and District Network Specialist Jared Lynn, did not address additional app or fees that are associated with grade-level programs classrooms may use.
The district plans to pay 3 teachers at the junior high and 4 teachers at the high school $300 for becoming a technology facilitator for their colleagues. District-wide, 100 teachers will receive a $180 stipend as they become versed in using the Chromebook.
Federal grant and title fund money have been budgeted for the teacher training.
Students will receive a new Chromebook as a sixth-grade student and a freshman. The Chromebooks will be turned into the district each summer for maintenance. Students will be expected to take the device home each night.
The recycled Chromebooks will go back into the elementary schools. According to Forman, Lincoln Trail has 750 Chromebooks and Sangamon has 250 Chromebooks that stay at the school.
Lynn said the life expectancy of a Chromebook is 5 years.
“That’s how long it is supported by Google and that’s how long the battery life is,” Lynn said.
After the four-year $75,483 per year payment period, the district will use funds from the operating funds.
“Knowing that is the plan three years out, we can plan for that,” Nuxoll said.
Nuxoll, Forman and Lynn talked about the proposed fee increased during a November board meeting.
Nuxoll is scheduled to present to the board about the Chromebook implementation at the Mahomet-Seymour Board meeting on March 12.
