High School Smart Classroom Upgrades

This September, Penn Manor High School students and teachers will return to several new classroom technology upgrades. We are pleased to be finishing work on smart classroom additions to 99% of the building’s instructional spaces. The new smart classrooms are the result of a $550,000 data and electrical construction project, which was originally conceived in response to Penn Manor’s Classrooms for the Future grant allocation. Approximately $80,000 in additional equipment purchases were made via district general and capital reserve technology funds. Here is a list of the changes and upgrades:


Mounted data projectors and control units
– Classrooms have received ceiling mounted data projectors and Crestron control units. The projector/Crestron combination supports video from laptops, DVD/VCR units and other sources such as document cameras. Classrooms with Polyvision interactive boards will benefit from having a mounted data projector, which should dramatically reduce the need to recalibrate the boards.

Room audio systems – Classrooms have received ceiling mounted speakers. When used in combination with the Crestron control units, the speakers provide audio amplification for teacher laptops, DVD/VCR units and in-building cable channels.

Expanded wireless coverage – New Meru 802.11n access points will provide a significant boost to building Wi-FI coverage and wireless network performance.

Lab cabling updates – Computer lab spaces have received new CAT6 structured cabling. The cable upgrades will support higher speed data connections to district servers and network resources.

Server Room upgrades – The district server room, located at in the High School, has received both dedicated generator backup and dedicated cooling units. Both enhancements will help maintain and protect the critical servers and services utilized by both students and staff.

As the contractors and installers complete the construction phase, the Penn Manor IT Team will continue to make final connections and configurations to our new equipment. The team is thrilled to provide these extensive upgrades and we are especially excited to watch teachers take advantage of the building’s new classroom technology tools.


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