Pottsgrove Squabbles Over Using Grant for iPads

A Pottsgrove School Board meeting Tuesday night devoted largely to the impacts the coronavirus pandemic is having on the district's education efforts veered off into a sometimes heated discussion about iPads, who uses them and why school board members can't seem to get their questions answered.

Despite the increasing number of cases throughout the state, including new cases in all three townships that comprise the district, the rate of new infections still remains below 5 percent.

That means, Superintendent William Shirk told the board, that Pottsgrove's plans to shift to a hybrid model can continue to move toward the November board vote.

"There has been an uptick, but we're still below 5 percent," Shirk said. "We feel we're still in the ballpark for a hybrid start if that's what the board deems." 

He informed the board that about 85 percent of Pottsgrove families have indicated whether they will send their children to in-person classes two days a week. About 67 percent of the students are expected to return for hybrid classes with the rest remaining in all on-line instruction.

Another impact of the pandemic was a CARES grant from Montgomery county for nearly $624,000, which must be spent by Dec. 31.

Superintendent William Shirk, right, reviews the 

latest COVID-19 figures Tuesday night.

It was when Shirk presented the administration's plan for how to that money could be spent that the
word "iPads" crept into the conversation. And from there, it was all downhill.

About $260,000 was proposed to pay off leases for iPads the district already has on hand; and another $238,000 was proposed to buy iPads for students in grades 1 and 2.

The administration brought in two teachers, one from elementary school and one from the middle school, to talk about how versatile their iPads are and how often they use them.

But it was the $57,000 to buy iPads for high school teachers that caused the snag. 

Board member Bill Parker reminded the administration that the board had previously rejected the proposal to shift to all iPads in the high school and he worried aloud that this might be an attempt to get them in the back door.

He said he has heard from many high school teachers, not a majority necessarily, who say they will not use iPads.

Ashley Custer, who heads up the board's curriculum and technology committee, said her committee had asked the administration about other equipment, such as cameras and screens, that might also be purchased "but I feel as though we were ignored."

Shirk said the functions the committee was asking about can all be performed by the iPads and board member Charles Nippert pointed out that sometimes people, teachers included, need to become familiar with new technology before they will adopt it.

As the discussion went around and around, School Board President Robert Lindgren became frustrated with the administration.

"We asked a simple question. How many people are getting computers? It's a simple question," he said through clenched teeth. "I've told you a number of times, I'm a data guy. I want to know what's going on, but I'm frustrated I can't get a simple, straightforward answer."

He continued, "we have a director of technology integration for crying out loud. There shouldn't be a single teacher who doesn't know how to use technology. We have staff development days that focus on different aspects, where is the strategic vision?"

Nippert reacted to the information that some of the district's paraprofessionals do not have district-issued equipment, that came out in the hour-long discussion.

"I'm shocked that we're asking people, at the modest salaries we're giving them, to use their own equipment," Nippert said I think it's time to bite the bullet. I think we need to come around and do this thing and get it over with. We're pushing 10 p.m. and we're not through the meeting!"

Ultimately, the plan for spending the grant passed, with Custer and Parker voting against the plan for high school iPads and not before both Vice President Al Leach and veteran board member Patti Grimm had urged other board members to "tone it down" and "take a breath" respectively.

"I think we need to do this. We've done it at the other two levels and it makes sense to do it here," said Lindgren. "I just wish we could have gotten here another way."

Click here to read the Tweets from the meeting.