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August 9 marks the start of a new school year for students in Bullitt County, Kentucky. Like many schools around the country, BCPS has a Chromebook pilot program with the long-term goal of 1:1 access for all of its students from 6th grade all the way to Senior year.
The 2017-2018 school year begins the third year of the initiative administrators have dubbed “Access 24.” This phase of the four-year plan began with parents and students attending”Chromebook launch parties” at each of the three high schools to receive their new devices.
WLKY’s Gianna Caserta was live at Bullitt East H.S. Monday as students lined up for the launch party.
Parents are required to pay a $35 enrollment fee per device to cover the cost of maintaining the over 7000 Chromebooks purchased by the school system. Students are permitted to bring their own Chromebooks but will be required to download the necessary applications for the classroom.
By 2019, the Access 24 initiative aims to equip all Bullitt County students grades 6-12 with Chromebooks. The principal of Bullitt East HS share that the Chromebooks have already proven their worth by reducing the cost of other supplies in the classroom.
We were able to, last year, not spend as much money on paper because it (Chromebooks) cut back on the number of copies that teachers made.
Chris Mason, Principal Bullitt East
Learn more about the BCPS Access 24 initiative from the District Technology Director Jim Jackson as he shares the digital vision for Bullitt County schools.
It’s so awesome to see school districts close to home utilizing Chrome OS devices in the classroom. Combined with Google Classroom and educators equipped with 21st-century tools, students have a world of knowledge at their fingertips.
