WiFi on HCS School Buses Aaron King, M.Ed. July 10, 2012

WIFI ON THE BUSES In School Year 11-12 HCS had 114 Buses with ~5,000 riders Currently the WiFi option is being bid Top Contenders for the service include: Sprint AT&T Verizon T-Mobile Market costs are roughly $45 / bus / month. Assuming this price the cost to the district is roughly $61,500 annually. This cost is E-Rate reimbursable once the district can apply again.

EDUCATIONAL BENEFITS All students in grades 3 through 12, including those who ride the bus, will be provided with a laptop (or Netbooks in 3rd grade) for school use instead of textbooks. These devices have the ability to interact with a wireless network, at home, in school, and now on the bus. In conjunction with the Pearson curriculum we have a powerful educational tool at the fingertips of our students.

EDUCATIONAL BENEFITS Some bus routes last up to 90 minutes. If a student utilizes their laptop just 15 minutes per day on either route to do school related work then we have essentially added 6 full school days to the calendar. 15 minutes × 180 days ÷ 60 minutes ÷ 7.5 hours = 6 days Additionally, it is expected that this will curtail discipline issues on the buses and help keep our students “connected” from the time they leave home until their safe arrival back.