by Mary Rupert
Students at Bonner Springs High School are starting the year with Chromebooks.
“We have a one-to-one initiative at the high school, where all students receive Chromebooks,” said Superintendent Dan Brungardt.
The technology, a laptop that uses Google’s Chrome operating system, costs less than the average laptop computer, and can go home with students, he said.
He said it’s an affordable way for the district to introduce technology, at a cost of about $240 each. Students can link to the Internet at school, do word processing, data processing and PowerPoint.
The students can save work at school on their Chromebooks, so they can take it home and work on it without having to have access to the Internet at home, he added.
The new technology received the approval of the school board, and it was encouraged by teachers and staff, he said.
“When kids leave school, they are more than likely to be working on a computer somewhere,” Brungardt said. “As we teach, it’s good to have technology in hand so we’re working on the same things.”
Another change with the opening of the school year is a new principal at Bonner Springs High School, he said. Richard Moulin, a long-time Bonner Springs resident, who has been with the district for 20 years, was named principal. He formerly was principal at Clark Middle School.
Tammy De La Rosa, formerly principal at Edwardsville Elementary, became the principal at the middle school, and Tracy Copeland became the principal at Edwardsville Elementary.
“All the students are excited to come back,” Brungardt said. “Sure, they had a good summer, but they like coming back to school, and so do the teachers.”