
					Rod R. Blagojevich, Governor

K-12 Success Stories

	Aledo Community Unit School District
	Bismark-Henning High School
	Chester Community Schools
	Greenfield School District
	Harrisburg Community Unit School District
	Hutsonville Community Unit School District
	Manteno
	Montmorency School District
	Sandburg Educational Network
	Taylorville School District
	Whiteside Area Vocational Center
	Wilmington Community School District

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	Aledo Community Unit School District utilized their ICN connection to tap into the Classroom Connect Resources which allows teachers access to state educational standards. The school also utilizes the 'Big Chalk " Education Network, which provides feature-rich resource materials for both teachers and students."
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	Bismark-Henning High School is now able to connect to the ICN utilizing the same T1 that they had previously dedicated to video education. Combining the services, with the help of the ICN Regional Technology Staff, has allowed them to experience increased bandwidth at a lower cost.
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	Chester Community Schools is among many of the K-12 schools benefiting by the ICN through high-speed connectivity at low cost. As a result, the school has participated in several curricular programs requiring Internet connectivity such as the Federal Lites grant, a state Scientific Literacy Grant (SMARTI), and a technology literacy challenge fund grant (CARTEL). Additionally, the ICN allows the school to access professional development and training through Star-Online.
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	Connected to the ICN through participation in a community network, the Greenfield School District has more than tripled their Internet bandwidth from 56k to 2 Mb without increasing their costs. Elementary schools previously denied access to the Internet due to costs are now able to afford participating in this ICN connection.
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	Harrisburg Community Unit School District located in Southeastern, Illinois has increased their access to the Internet six-fold while cutting their costs in half. As a result of the cost savings, the school district now has all five of their buildings connected to the Internet. The ICN has not only provided affordable, robust connectivity, but has also provided technical consultation to the school as they developed a plan to upgrade their internal network to take full advantage of the speed of the ICN.
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	The ICN has assisted Hutsonville Community Unit School District in establishing an engaged learning environment at district schools. The success of the technology related curricula has been outstanding. The advanced media class has been able to work with the chamber of commerce to promote the town and learn many skills that will enable them to be employed in an increasingly technological society. In addition, the professional development and resources available to teachers via the Internet has improved classroom instruction and student achievement. Last year the entire district, P-12th, took part in a school wide engaged learning event entitled Medieval Fair. The teachers in this district are continually approaching teaching and learning in a new and exciting way thanks to technology and Internet availability through the ICN.
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	The Manteno schools have seen a significant increase in the use of the Internet to support classroom activities and projects. A local web site has been established to highlight web resources for the students. Students have used Internet resources to study whales, create social studies games, explore castles, learn about penguins, and research historical figures. The teachers have used the Internet to collaborate on projects and assignments.
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	Montmorency School District has found the ICN to be invaluable. Every day 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students gather the latest "Current Events" from the Internet. With 120 students doing this daily it would not be possible if they had to rely on each student accessing the local newspapers.
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	With a little help from their ICN connection, the Sandburg Educational Network is able to hold a Cyber Camp for K-12 teachers within their district. The two day technology camp will be packed with technology tools that teachers can use in their classrooms. The Sandburg Educational Network is a technology partnership between Carl Sandburg College and the twenty-six K-12 school districts within CSC CCD 518.
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	Through a community network, the Taylorville School District has connected all of their schools at less than half the cost. This robust connectivity resulted in a LITES grant that provides teacher training, computers in the classroom, and develops ongoing web-based curriculum that will be accessible to all schools.
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	The Whiteside Area Vocational Center in Sterling relies on a web-based curriculum for their Cisco Academy instruction. The center also participates in CyberSurfari, an education "scavenger hunt" designed to teach students how to research online for various informational "clues" within a time limit. Monetary prizes are granted to school programs for high scores. Thanks to the high-speed connection from the ICN, the Center has earned more than $6,000 over the past several years.
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	Wilmington Community School District is enjoying their ICN Internet connection and the help, moral support, and "understanding ear" that Susan Bowen and the RTC IV staff have provided. Their service to the school district has been described as "way beyond "tech support."