Re-elected trustees Michael Hickey, Don Moody and Shelle Thomas
and newly-elected trustee Bart Fisher are sworn in
Morgan Hill – Morgan Hill Unified School District officials scheduled a surprise Thursday afternoon meeting to approve the purchase of a Voice over Internet Protocol System from VIP Tone and 3-Com.
Board of Education President Michael Hickey said the meeting was critical for the technology deal that would allow schools to route telephone conversations over the Internet through their Internet Protocol-based network.
“We’ve been looking for quite some time for a way to get telephones in all of our classrooms, to put up security cameras at Live Oak, to get those safety features in place,” Hickey said Wednesday. “This was something with these companies that came up, but we had to decide before the end of the year, and the representatives couldn’t be at our Tuesday meeting, so we decided it was important enough for the district to take this step.”
The companies, VIP Tone and 3-Com, are apparently teaming up to offer the VoIP system, Hickey said, a package that they could offer other districts, and are looking for a “model” district.
The cost, he added, would depend on what features the board votes to include. For example, a part of the package could be wireless Internet for the high schools.
Deputy Superintendent Bonnie Tognazzini said the money will come out of the general fund, but it is a restricted part of the general fund that cannot be used for salaries, for example, but only specific uses.
The district is required to set aside 3 percent of the fund for routine maintenance and repair, and usually some of that money carries over each year, she said.
This would be a one-time expense, Tognazzini added.
The meeting Thursday began at 5:30pm, after presstime, so the board’s decision was not available.
Hickey said he thinks it is a good opportunity for the district, since one of the concerns of the community and district employees is school safety.
“Half of our schools, the classrooms don’t have a phone, and what if there is an injury to a student or a teacher, what if there is an emergency?” he asked. “You just need telephones in every classroom.”
Trustee-elect Bart Fisher attended Thursday’s meeting, though Amina Khemici, who was not re-elected to a second term in November, did not, even though traditionally the new board is seated during the first regular meeting in December.
According to district policy, trustee terms run until the end of November. Hickey said Fisher and the three incumbents, himself, Don Moody and Shelle Thomas would be sworn in at the beginning of Thursday’s special meeting.
There will still be a ceremony during Tuesday’s regular meeting, Hickey said.
Marilyn Dubil covers education and law enforcement for The Times. Reach her at (408) 779-4106 Ext. 202 or at
md****@*************es.com.
