Technology
Technology For Learning
Saint Peter Public Schools 1:1 Initiative
To better serve our students and the community, Saint Peter Public Schools has made devices available to all students from the Early Childhood Programs through 12th Grade. Depending on the grade or program, iPads are issued to students in classroom sets or available to take home in early childhood programs through grade 4. Chromebooks are available in classroom sets or available to take home in grades 5 through 8. iPads are issued to all students to take home in grades 9-12. See below the documents below for more information and forms to participate in the program.
SPPS 1:1 Device Agreement & Request Form
SPPS 1:1 Device Repair Request Form
SPPS 1:1 Device Handbook
SPPS 1:1 Device Maintenance Program
SPPS 1:1 Agreement
Device Maintenance Program (Middle School and High School Only)
The device maintenance program is available for $25 per student per year and can be purchased through the Infinite Campus Parent Portal for each school or by requesting a payment envelope from each school's office. The maintenance program is provided at no cost to families that have suffered financial hardship due to Covid-19 or qualify for free and reduced lunch benefits - complete the form below to opt in to the maintenance program if you qualify for free coverage.
Free Coverage Opt-In Form
Parent Portal Link to Purchase Coverage
Parent Guide to the Infinite Campus Store
IPad cords and chargers can also be purchased from the Infinite Campus Store and picked up in the media center at your child's school.
2021-2022 1:1 Device Handbook
- Overview
- Student Responsibilities
- Parent Expectations
- Terms and Conditions
- General Care Instructions
- Damage, Theft, Repair
Overview
Through the Saints Digital Learning Initiative, Saint Peter Public Schools continues its commitment to offering students and teachers access to best-practice strategies and modern equipment to improve the classroom experience. The Saints Digital Learning Initiative will provide students and teachers modern technology tools to enhance teaching and engage students in the skills necessary for them to achieve success in the 21st Century.
The Saints Digital Learning Initiative will provide modern tools to assist teachers to enhance our high-quality instruction and rigorous learning experiences for students in ways that cannot be achieved using traditional tools and materials. By utilizing mobile devices, such as iPads and Chromebooks, teachers are enabled to more effectively engage different types of students, because the resources for learning are in the hands of the learner. Face-to-face learning experiences will be enhanced by mobile devices through increased student engagement and new opportunities that empower students to become self-motivated learners and develop positive digital citizenship skills.
All students will be issued a mobile device through a 1-to-1 digital learning program that will provide each student a personal learning tool that can be adapted to various courses and learning experiences. Our 1-to-1 digital learning program will provide students new opportunities for authentic experiences to develop the skills and strategies for using emerging digital tools that they will need to be prepared to achieve success in college and careers after high school.
This is an exciting time for our school, and we look forward to working with our students and families to further enhance the educational experience at Saint Peter High School. Please contact us if you have any questions. We are here to help.
Bill Gronseth
Superintendent
Chris Ovrebo
Director of Technology
Student Responsibilities
- Students are expected to use the mobile device appropriately for educational purposes and follow all classroom procedures set by their individual teachers.
- Students are expected to have their mobile device in school each day with a fully charged battery. Forgetting the mobile device or having a dead battery are not acceptable reasons for failing to complete work or turn in assignments. Charging stations are available in the media center or and some classrooms for students who need a recharge during the school day or for students who do not bring their mobile device home. Repeated failure to bring the mobile device to school or failing to charge the battery may result in the loss of home privileges.
- Students are responsible to download to the mobile device any necessary documents, assignments, apps, and/or materials from their teachers. If a family does not have wireless access at home, students must do this before school, during the school day, or after school.
- Students may load photos and videos on their mobile device as long as all content complies with the District’s Internet Acceptable Use and Safety Policy. The use of music on the mobile device during instructional time is at the discretion of the classroom teacher. The presence of inappropriate music, photos, or videos may result in the loss of the mobile device and/or other disciplinary actions.
- If non-conforming apps or software are discovered on the mobile device, the mobile device will be restored to the school set of software and disciplinary actions may be enacted. Technology staff is not responsible for saving, restoring, or backing up documents, music, videos, or photos that students store on the mobile device.
- Students are encouraged to store documents, worksheets, notes and other files on their mobile device, and are responsible for backing up or saving all work. Students are encouraged to either email documents to themselves as a backup or using their school Google Drive account.
- Students attempting to hack or jailbreak the mobile device will be subject to disciplinary action.
- Students are not allowed to personalize the case provided by the school. If students wish to provide their own case and personalize it, the case must be approved by technology staff and the case provided by the school must be returned.
- Student mobile devices are not configured to print. Students are encouraged to use email and cloud-storage solutions to transfer documents to their instructors.
- Students will use their Saint Peter Schools managed AppleID and school issued Google account on district owned devices.
Receiving Your Mobile Device
Mobile devices that are taken home will be distributed to students once their families have reviewed the Mobile Device Loan Agreement and have accepted the terms of the Mobile Device Loan Agreement available through the District website. In addition to accepting the Mobile Device Loan Agreement, families will determine if they will opt for the District Mobile Device Maintenance Plan or take full responsibility for the repair/replacement of the mobile device if damaged, requires non-warranty repair, is lost, or stolen.
Under normal school conditions, students in grades EC - 12 may have take home privileges and their devices will be stored at the school (determined by each building).
- If devices are kept at school: The families will not be responsible for device maintenance or repairs, unless the student intentionally damages the mobile device.
- If devices are sent home with students: Students with take home privileges will need to sign the Mobile Device Loan Agreement and decide if they will opt in to the Device Maintenance Plan. Students will receive their devices during the first week of classes.
Under distance or hybrid learning conditions, all students will have take home privileges. All families will have to agree to the Device Loan Agreement and decide if they will opt in to the Mobile Device Maintenance Plan before the device is issued to the family. Each building or program will communicate with families how and when devices will be distributed.
Mobile Device Returns / Fines
Individual school mobile devices and accessories must be returned to the designated location within your child’s school at time of collection. Students who graduate early, withdraw, are suspended or expelled, or terminate enrollment with Saint Peter Public Schools for any other reason must return on the date of withdrawal their individually issued school mobile device, district provided case (if applicable), cord, and charger in damage-free, working condition.
If a student fails to return the mobile device and accessories (case, cable, power adapter charging brick, etc.) at the end of the school year or upon termination of enrollment within Saint Peter Public Schools, the student’s Infinite Campus account will be charged the replacement cost of the mobile device and any related accessories. District mobile device serial numbers have been registered with Apple’s Device Enrollment Program servers or Google Management Console and may only be activated with a valid Saint Peter username and password.
Furthermore, students will be responsible for any damage to the mobile device, consistent with the District’s Mobile Device Maintenance Plan and must return the mobile device and accessories to the designated location within your child’s school in satisfactory condition upon the end of the school year.
Using Your Mobile Device at School
Mobile Devices Left at Home
If students leave their mobile device at home, they are responsible for getting the coursework completed as if they had their mobile device present.
Mobile Device Undergoing Repair
When a mobile device is damaged and returned to the school for repair, following the payment of any damage repair or replacement fees, during the regular school year a replacement mobile device will be issued in its place. Mobile Devices that are fully functional but may have cosmetic damage such as bends, dents and scratches may not be immediately repaired.
Charging Your Mobile Device’s Battery
Mobile devices must be brought to school each day adequately charged to work throughout the school day. Students need to charge their mobile device each evening by plugging them into an electrical wall outlet only. Lay the mobile device flat while charging and avoid locations that may create trip hazards. Do not charge the mobile devices from a computer port.
Sound, Music, Games, or Programs
Sound must be muted at all times unless permission is obtained from the teacher for instructional purposes. Apps installed on mobile devices must be approved and installed by a member of the Saint Peter Public Schools Technology Department or building designee.
Home Internet Access
Students are allowed to set up wireless networks on their mobile device. This will assist them with mobile device use while at home. However, the District Acceptable Use Policy (ISD 508 Policy 005.83) must be followed while at home, using a district owned device.
Saving to the iPad/Home Directory/Submitting Work
Email and Productivity apps: Most mobile device productivity apps support the ability to open and edit email, word processing, documents, presentations, spreadsheets, PDFs, images, or other common file types. Students and teachers can exchange course-related files through their district- provided email and our learning management system accounts.
Cloud-Based Services: Students also have a school provided Google Drive account to store files and back up work.
Network Connectivity
Saint Peter Public Schools makes no guarantee that their network will be up and running 100% of the time. In the rare case that the network is down, the District will not be responsible for lost or missing data.
Settings and Operation
Circumvention of Managed Settings
All student mobile devices are provisioned by the Technology Department for the purposes of initializing and managing all mobile devices in a secure and organized fashion. Any attempts by students to circumvent any district management settings through software restoration, Chrome or iOS setting manipulation, remote proxy settings or jailbreaking will result in the confiscation of the mobile device and/or disciplinary action.
Inspection
Students may be selected at random, at any time, to provide their mobile device for inspection.
Procedure for Re-Loading Software
If technical difficulties occur, the mobile device will be restored to factory settings. This approach minimizes the “down time” for use of the device during the instructional day. The school does not accept responsibility for the loss of any software or documents deleted due to a re-format and re-image. It is recommended to have all data backed up to Google Drive at all times. iCloud backup may be used for students with their managed Apple IDs. Students should be able to recover files they have saved to these cloud storage services. Apps remain associated with the student’s profile and may be downloaded from the Mosyle Manager app on the iPad or Chrome Web Store on Chromebooks. In addition, depending upon the nature of the issues, potential consequences for issues caused intentionally to one’s own or another’s issued iPad may result in confiscation of the iPad with usage allowed only during the school day.
Acceptable Use
The use of Saint Peter Public Schools technology resources is a privilege, not a right. The privilege of using the technology resources provided by the district is not transferrable or extendable by students to people or groups outside the district and terminates when a student is no longer enrolled in Saint Peter Public Schools. This Mobile Device Handbook and ISD 508 Policy 005.83 are provided to make all users aware of the responsibilities associated with efficient, ethical, and lawful use of technology resources. If a person violates any of the User Terms and Conditions named in this document or the Acceptable Use of District Technology (ISD 508 Policy 005.83), privileges may be terminated, access to the school district technology resources may be denied, and the appropriate disciplinary action shall be applied. The Saint Peter Public Schools’ Student Discipline policy (ISD 508 Policy 007.2) shall be applied to all student infractions. Violations may result in disciplinary action up to and including suspension/expulsion for students. When applicable, law enforcement agencies may be involved.
Parent Expectations
- Parents are required to sign the Saint Peter Public Schools 1:1 Guidelines and Agreement Form found at the end of this handbook or agree to terms through on online approval form. Parent signatures allow students to take mobile devices off campus. Parents are not required to sign for student issued a mobile device that does not leave school.
- Parents are asked to support the acceptable use of mobile devices by communicating with their student about the standards of appropriate content and helping to monitor the use of the mobile device at home.
- Parents are asked to assist their student in communicating report theft or damage.
- Parents are encouraged to become familiar with the mobile device and use it to track their student’s progress. The mobile device allows parents and students to view class assignments, calendars, homework and monitor progress in classes.
- Parents are asked to ensure that only the student and parents use the school-assigned mobile device.
Additional things to review with your child:
- Anything they do or post online creates a digital record, often called a "Digital Footprint." Nothing online is totally private, even if it is intended to be. Once digitized, it can be saved, sent and reposted elsewhere, even without permission or knowledge.
- A good rule of thumb: If you don’t want a parent, teacher, principal, future employer or college admissions office to know something, don’t post it online. Set up some sort of test question to frequently ask your child, such as “Would Grandma approve?”
- "Friends" aren’t always who they say they are. Encourage your child to only be friends online with friends they know in person. Never give access to personal information to people met online.
- Never post personally identifiable information online. This includes: full name, address, phone number, email, where you are meeting friends or where you hang out. Discuss with your child how easy it is for someone to find you based on what you post online.
- Regularly check your child’s privacy settings on all commonly used sites and networks. Ignoring privacy settings on social networking sites such as Facebook or Twitter means your child’s photos, contact information, interests, and possibly even cell phone GPS location could be shared with more than a half-billion people.
- Cyberbullying (threatening or harassing another individual through technology) is a growing concern. It takes many forms, such as forwarding a private email, photo, or text message for others to see, starting a rumor, or sending a threatening or aggressive message, often anonymously. Talk with your child about not partaking in this behavior and encourage her/him to report incidents of cyberbullying to an adult.
Terms and Conditions
- Mobile devices are distributed once the 1:1 Guidelines and Agreement Form has been signed and received by Saint Peter Public Schools.
- Legal ownership of the mobile device remains with the District. The use of the mobile device is a privilege extended to students and is conditioned upon compliance with the requirements of this handbook, the District’s Internet Acceptable Use and Safety Policy, and all other District policies.
- Mobile devices and accessories are checked in at the end of each school year. Students who graduate early, transfer, withdraw or are expelled are required to return the mobile device and accessories at the time of withdrawal. Students returning to school the following year are issued the same mobile device that was previously assigned to them.
- The District reserves the right to repossess the mobile device and accessories at any time if the student does not fully comply with the terms of this handbook. The District may also choose to limit and/or withdraw home use privileges for failure to comply.
- Failure to return the property in a timely fashion may result in the involvement of law enforcement.
- Due to the need to comply with licensing agreements, all software and apps are managed by the school district.
- Mobile devices are subject to routine monitoring by teacher, administrators, and/or technology staff. Users have no expectation of privacy when using District equipment or technology systems.
- If technical difficulties arise with a mobile device, or non-conforming content is discovered, the mobile device will be restored by technology staff. If the school is required to restore an mobile device, the school is not responsible for the loss of any content added to the mobile device by the student.
- Each mobile device has identifying labels, which must not be removed or altered. Students are not allowed to permanently mark the mobile device or case.
- The use of the mobile device during instructional times is governed by classroom teachers. Failure to follow the instructions of the teacher may result in disciplinary action.
- The mobile device may ONLY be used by the student to whom it is assigned or by the parents of the student. Students are not allowed to loan the mobile device to another student.
- Students are responsible for the security of the mobile device at all times. The mobile device should never be left unsecured. When not with the student, the mobile device should be secured or stored in a locked location out of view. During after-school activities and/or away events, students are still responsible for securing the mobile device.
- Students should keep personal information about themselves and others off of the mobile device. Password security for network systems should be maintained, as should the privacy of locker combinations. It is the responsibility of the student to keep his or her information secure.
General Care Instructions
- iPad screens are to be cleaned with a soft, clean cloth. Chemical cleaners or liquids, including water, should not be used on the iPads.
- Charging cables/cords are to be inserted and removed carefully to prevent damage. This is done by grasping the plugs rather than the cord. The charging cord should be plugged into the wall outlet before connection to the iPad. When disconnecting, remove the cable from the iPad before pulling the plug from the wall outlet.
- iPads must be kept in the protective cases at all times.
- iPads are not designed to have weight placed on top of it. Students should never stack items on top of iPad or wedge the device tightly into a backpack or case. The iPad cases should not be used as a folder to carry other items, including any sharp or pointed items such as pens or pencils.
- iPads are easily damaged by liquids, food and other debris. iPads should be closed in cases and put away during meal and snack times.
- iPads are not to be exposed to extreme temperatures. iPads are not to be left in any location where the temperature falls below freezing or exceeds 95 degrees Fahrenheit. If the iPad is cold, it must be warmed up to room temperature before use. iPads exposed to direct sunlight or high temperatures must cool down before use.
- Battery life is shortened by using Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a high screen brightness, and video. Students will learn management settings and apps to improve battery performance.
Where can students and parents learn more about the iPad?
- The Apple.com website is a great starting place to learn about the features and operation of an iPad.
- Overview: https://www.apple.com/education/
- User guide: https://support.apple.com/guide/ipad/welcome/ios
- Student use many Google tools to collaborate and produce work
- Google Education: https://edu.google.com/
- Guide to digital safety/citizenship
- Common Sense Media: https://www.commonsensemedia.org
- Frequently asked questions can be found on the school website.
Damage, Theft, Repair
- Damage or hardware issues must be reported immediately to school personnel. For cases of hardware failure or accidental damage, a loaner will be provided for the student throughout the repair/replacement process.
- Students/parents are responsible for the full cost of any willful, negligent or intentional damage to the mobile device. Failure to pay for willful, negligent or intentional damage will be turned over to law enforcement.
- Students who leave Saint Peter Public Schools during the school year must return the mobile device, along with any other accessories, at the time they leave. The mobile device and all accessories should be returned to the Technology Department Staff.
- Theft must be reported immediately. Parents and/or students are required to complete a theft report through the local police department.
- Tracking software may be used to locate and recover missing iPads.
SPPS Mobile Device Maintenance Plan
Saint Peter Public Schools recognizes that with the implementation of our digital learning initiatives there is a need to protect the investment by both the District and the Family. The participation cost for those opting to enroll in the Mobile Device Maintenance Plan is $25.00 per student. The family must opt in to the maintenance plan before a student is issued a mobile device to get coverage. Enrollment in the Mobile Device Maintenance Plan coverage will be provided by the school district for families that qualify for free and reduced priced lunch.
The Mobile Device Maintenance Plan provides coverage for non-warranty repair, accidental damage (drops), cracked screens, power surges, theft (with filed police report), vandalism by others, fire, flood and other natural disasters. The $25.00 school year fee payment is nonrefundable. Students that enroll after 2nd semester will be charged $12.50 This annual coverage begins upon receipt of the payment and ends at the conclusion of the regular school year. The Mobile Device Protection Plan does not cover lost iPads, intentional damage –OR– stolen, lost or damaged charging cables, power adapter charging “bricks,” or cases.
INTENTIONAL DAMAGE
Students/parents are responsible for full payment of intentional damages to their mobile device or accessories, or intentional damage to the mobile device or accessories of others. The School District Mobile Device Maintenance Plan DOES NOT cover intentional damage to the mobile device or accessories. This includes any damage to the mobile device while the case is not appropriately on the mobile device, or while in a case that itself is damaged and not offering full protection to the device.
Comparison of Costs (estimated - damage fees are assessed on a case by case basis)
Damage Type | Maintenance Plan | No Maintenance Plan |
Cracked screen | $0 - First occurrence $40 - Additional occurrences | $40 |
Broken Digitizer (iPad) | $25 - First occurrence $80 - Additional occurrences | $80 |
Charging Cord | $5 - First replacement $10 - Additional replacements | $10 |
Charging Block | $5 First replacement $10 Additional replacements | $10 |
Keyboard Damage (Chromebook) | $10 First occurrence $40 Additional occurrences | $40 |
Lost Keyboard Case (IPad) | $50 - One-time | $100 |
Lost Device | $300 - IPad $250 - Chromebook | $300 - IPad $250 - Chromebook |
Complete replacement due to accidental damage | $200 - IPad $175 - Chromebook One-time | $300 - IPad $250 - Chromebook |
Intentional damage | Full repair/replacement cost | Full repair/replacement cost |
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I connect my device to WiFi?
Connecting a Chromebook to WiFi
What if I'm having problems logging in?
Please contact your student's homeroom or advisory teacher. They are able to access most student credentials and resolve most login issues. If they are unable to resolve the login issues, they will escalate the problem to the technology department, who will reach out and help resolve the issue.
What if my device isn't charging or is not turning on?
Please complete a Technology Repair Request and we will contact you to help resolve the problem.
Learn More
Contact Us
Chris Ovrebo
Director of Technology
507-934-5703 x1020
Gus Sorbo
Technology Coordinator
507-934-5703 x1013
Paul Johnson
Technology Support Specialist
507-934-5703 x1018
Kathy Wobbrock
Central Registrar
507-934-5703 x1016