TECHNOLOGY EQUIPMENT SPECIFICATIONS 

Technology specifications are provided to guide district and campus administrators in their purchasing decisions regarding new technology. It is the responsibility of the Instructional Technology department and the Information Systems department to establish, review, update, and communicate specifications that provide guidance in the purchase of technology resources.

The current specifications may be found on the Instructional Technology web site. These specifications apply to any and all equipment that becomes a portion of the inventory of Knox County Schools during the fiscal year.

1. Responsibility – All Central Office staff members, site administrators, and Building Level Technology Contacts are expected to reference these specifications prior to purchasing additional technology resources. Questions regarding specifications should be addressed to the Instructional Technology department prior to initiating purchase.
2. Specification Review Procedure – Technology Equipment Specifications will be reviewed a minimum of twice annually. Typically, these reviews will be made prior to the beginning of a new school year and, again, prior to the beginning of the second semester. Adjustments may also be made to the specifications in conjunction with state or local bids that may impact performance or price of the equipment available to schools.
3. Feedback regarding Technology Equipment Specifications – The Instructional Technology department welcomes the opportunity to receive input or to answer questions regarding current or future specifications. Requests for information should be made via e-mail to the Supervisor of Instructional Technology. Feedback is welcomed from any community member; however, anonymous feedback cannot receive appropriate response and may not be considered as valid input.
4. Application of Technology Equipment Specifications – Any equipment, whether purchased with system funds, special project funds, school funds, PTA/PTO/PTSO funds, club-generated funds, new equipment to be donated to the school, etcetera, is required to meet specifications. It is the responsibility of the principal or departmental supervisor to ensure that equipment added to the school inventory meets the current technology equipment guidelines.
5. Exceptions – Exceptions may be sought for extraordinary circumstances. The following procedure should be adhered to when seeking to make purchases that are outside the current technology specifications: 
   1. Prior approval from the Supervisor of Instructional Technology for any purchase that does not meet specifications should be sought and received in writing prior to the purchase of equipment. 
   2. Written approval should be kept as a portion of the purchase record to insure the equipment will     be supported and serviced. 
   3. Unapproved equipment added to the inventory that does not meet Knox County specifications      will be considered expendable and therefore, will not be eligible for training, support, or repair. 
6. Technology Purchase Approval Process and Guidelines – Requests for the acquisition of technology resources must be approved prior to procurement in accordance with the following guidelines. 

DEFINITION OF TECHNOLOGY-RELATED PURCHASES 

Technology related purchases are defined as those components that provide a technology resource to a campus or a department. These include but are not limited to the following: 

1. Hardware
   1. Computers – Workstations, Laptops, Handheld Computers, Graphing Calculators, etc.
   2. Printing Devices – Laser, Inkjet, or Thermal Printers
   3. Storage Devices – Any type of device used to store data or apply data to removable media  
   4. Digital Capture Devices – Digital still cameras or digital camcorders, etc.
   5. Network Devices – Any server or client system that will be attached to the district network  
   6. Audio-Visual Equipment – Televisions, VCR's, presentation systems which will interface with a computer or attach to the district network 

1. Software 
   1. Administrative Applications 
   2. Productivity Applications
   3. Educational Applications 
2. Components 
   1. Replacement Parts 
   2. Maintenance Parts 
   3. System Upgrades 
3. Services
   1. Installation Services
   2. Network Services 
   3. Maintenance or Repair Service 

SCHOOL PURCHASE APPROVAL OF TECHNOLOGY-RELATED ITEMS 

In accordance with Board of Education policy, technology related purchases in excess of $2,000 must be submitted to the Board of Education for approval of expenditure. Proposals for technology related purchases must be reviewed and approved by the Supervisor of Instructional Technology prior to being placed on the agenda for Board of Education approval. 

1. Rationale – The technology review of school purchases is performed to assure the Board of Education that:
   1. The purchase meets current technology resource specifications.
   2. All bids are for functionally equal items. 
   3. All technology resources that are deployed are consistent with the campus technology plan. 
   4. All technology resources proposed are consistent with the campus platform selection and can be supported in the most effective method. 
2. Process – All proposals must be submitted to the Assistant Superintendent of Finance on the appropriate form. Letters, faxes, bids, and other documentation may accompany the specified form. More information regarding the approval process may be found in the Purchasing and Approval Guidelines found elsewhere in the procedures manual. 
3. Equipment Standards – All proposals must meet the current equipment specifications unless accompanied by a written exception approval. 
4. Equipment on State or Local Bid – Proposals that meet current specifications and are available through local or state term bids do not need further accompanying documentation. 
5. Bid Proposal Approval – Proposals submitted for Board of Education approval that are not on current local, state or federal term bids must be accompanied by a minimum of (3) written bid proposals for functionally identical products. 
   1. All bid documents must be for items of essentially equal specifications. Please refer to the appropriate section of the equipment specification.
   2. The Department of Instructional Technology is available to answer questions or to clarify specifications
   3. All bids must clearly identify the equipment that is proposed, including brand name, model number, and a delineation of all major features included in the proposal.
   4. Bid documents may not include hand-written amendments.
   5. Purchase of refurbished equipment is strongly discouraged.
   6. All bids must include name, address, phone number, fax number, and contact name to facilitate requests for additional information in regard to the proposal. 
6. Sole Source – Items may be submitted for approval as “sole source” items. These are items that are available from only the publisher or the manufacturer of the product directly. 
   1. Items do not necessarily qualify as “sole source” if they have merely a limited distributorship agreement with the manufacturer. This may be viewed as a restrictive agreement that serves only to maintain a higher price for an item. 
   2.  A sole source form should accompany the Request for Board Approval.  
7. Schedule for Approvals – To ensure that an approved proposal reaches the Board of Education in a timely manner, it is strongly encouraged that proposals be sent to the Assistant Superintendent for Finance (ten) 10 working days prior to the Board of Education meeting. This gives all parties the opportunity to respond to concerns that arise without delaying the approval process. 

CENTRAL OFFICE PURCHASE APPROVAL OF TECHNOLOGY-RELATED ITEMS  

All purchase requisitions that include a technology related purchase as defined above must be reviewed and approved by the Supervisor of Instructional Technology prior to being forwarded to the Knox County Purchasing Department. Technology related purchases include any hardware, software, technologyrelated peripheral, or maintenance item. Requisitions should be left with the clerk in the Instructional Technology Office. Every effort will be made to review and approve requisitions within 24 hours. Emergency review may be available; please contact the office in advance. 

In accordance with current Finance Department regulations, purchases over $5,000 should be submitted for bid unless the proposed purchase is on a currently active term bid. Bid information should be included on purchase requisitions. 

CONTRACT BID ITEMS  

All personnel are encouraged to use current state or local term bids whenever possible. Please remember that most term bid items are issued to derive single unit pricing. Should an office or a site have need of a large quantity of a term bid item, you are encouraged to contact the contract vendor and request a quotation for the desired quantity purchase prior to submitting the requisition for approval.   

Purchases over $5000 that are not currently on term bid should be submitted for bid. The following items will be kept on term bid at all times:  

DONATION OF USED EQUIPMENT  

The policies and procedures outlined in the Board of Education Policies and Procedures Handbook regarding donated equipment apply to donations of technology resources.  

Further, used donated equipment should meet district minimum specifications that are posted on the Instructional Technology web site. Typically, this will indicate the equipment is not more than three or four years old and will remain useful in the classroom for some reasonable period of time. Equipment outside of this recommendation should not be accepted. New equipment must meet the current technology equipment specification.  

The Instructional Technology web site will contain information regarding the current threshold for acceptable donations of used computer workstations according to the Knox County Schools specifications. Schools are not obligated to accept donations that do not facilitate the school technology plan, are not compliant with the selected school computing platform, or that may cause the site and/or the district to incur additional costs to make the equipment viable. 

DOCUMENT AVAILABILITY 

It is expected that vendors, community organizations, or businesses will not attempt to sell, donate, or otherwise provide equipment that does not meet specifications to the school system. A copy of these specifications may be provided to any interested party. Should anyone express a question or concern regarding these specifications, they should be advised to contact the Instructional Technology department at 594-1726. 

These specifications will be posted on the Instructional Technology web site. The current version of this document will also be available from the Department of Instructional Technology in fax or e-mail form, if requested. 

QUESTIONS REGARDING THESE GUIDELINES

Questions, comments, or concerns regarding specifications should be addressed to the Instructional Technology Department of Knox County Schools (Voice 594-1726 or Fax 594-1325).