Bond funding is bringing a modern, digital phone system to Spring Branch ISD where callers can leave voice messages for teachers and principals. It’s also generating increased staff and cost efficiencies.
“We started with the police department and athletic complex because they were brand new facilities, said Chief Information Officer Venu Rao who is overseeing the phone system upgrade. “It didn’t make sense to put an old technology phone system in new buildings.”
In addition to a fragmented phone system where calls don’t transfer between different district facilities, Spring Branch found it increasingly difficult to locate repair parts for its 15-year-old, analog phone system.
The three-phase project implementation, scheduled for completion in December 2009, will add 5,000 new phones to 51 campuses and district facilities at a cost of $3.7 million. SBISD elected to delay, until July 1, installation at the final 23 campuses to take advantage of E-Rate funding which saves the district $1 million for a net cost of $2.7 million. E-Rate is a government program that helps schools obtain affordable telecommunications and Internet access using the Universal Service surcharge fees paid by all users of U.S. cellular and land lines.
The new Shoretel digital telephone system provides district employees with numerous features to enhance productivity and communication, including:
- Unified messaging that allows voice mail access from any phone and receipt of voice mail messages to employees’ e-mail inboxes
- Call forwarding to a different phone, either inside or outside SBISD
- Voice mail message forwarding
- Four-digit, in-district dialing by name or number, from SBISD computer or phone
- Microsoft Outlook synchronization to retrieve contacts and treat calls based on employee’s schedule (i.e. goes to voice mail if teaching or in meeting)
- Teleconferencing capabilities for up to 96 people to minimize employee travel across district
- Ability to add new user, in hours rather than days, with a click of the mouse, and have their information automatically updated in the centralized telephone directory.
Shawn Bird, Spring Forest Middle School principal, discovered the system’s benefits while he was on a teacher recruiting trip. Working on his laptop in the Chicago airport, he heard a beep. Accessing the Shortel Personal Call Manager software installed on his computer, he learned he had a new voice mail on his office phone.
“I didn’t want to play district business in the airport, so I used my cell phone to retrieve the message and return the call. The new phone system is fantastic because no matter where you are, if your computer is running, you can get your messages,” he said.
With the new system, teachers can make and take calls during their conference periods and more quickly connect with parents. Having direct dial also frees office staff from handwriting messages.
District Operator Maria Garza is amazed at how much faster she works now that she can type in an employee’s name or department and hit transfer. “It’s a lot easier for subs, too.”
Along with the increased productivity is cost savings realized through the elimination of monthly phone line charges. Rao estimates SBISD will use 75 percent fewer trunk lines generating an annual cost savings of $216,000.
As part of the upgrade, Spring Branch ISD gained its own three-digit prefix that includes a block of 10,000 numbers all beginning with 713-251.
“This gives us an ability to grow, plus flexibility with a common numbering system that uses two digits for each campus and another two digits for job function,” explains Rao.
Callers outside SBISD will not see any changes in the main phone numbers for schools and other district facilities.
Several locations within the district deemed critical have built-in N+1 redundancy so phones will continue to operate even if there is a power failure.