CISD’s Private LTE

District info & Demographics

Castleberry ISD consists of:

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District info & Demographics

Castleberry ISD consists of:

• 7 Schools
• 3 Elementary schools
• 1 Middle School
• 1 High School
• 2 Alternative Schools
• ~7 square mile footprint

​

District info & Demographics

Castleberry ISD consists of:

• 7 Schools
• 3 Elementary schools
• 1 Middle School
• 1 High School
• 2 Alternative Schools
• ~7 square mile footprint
• Current enrollment: 3608

​

District info & Demographics

Castleberry ISD consists of:

• 7 Schools
• 3 Elementary schools
• 1 Middle School
• 1 High School
• 2 Alternative Schools
• ~7 square mile footprint
• Current enrollment: 3608
• 86% Economically Disadvantaged

​

District info & Demographics

Castleberry ISD consists of:

• 7 Schools
• 3 Elementary schools
• 1 Middle School
• 1 High School
• 2 Alternative Schools
• ~7 square mile footprint
• Current enrollment: 3608
• 86% Economically Disadvantaged
• Student Polling Information (2017):
• 36% stated they did not have access WiFi at home
• 21% stated they had limited access to WiFi at home (usually through parent’s phone hotspot)
• 9% stated they were unsure if they had WiFi at home (likely did not)

Why does connectivity matter to us? (Pre COVID-19)

For years CISD has been focused on integrating technology into all aspects of instruction.

• 2010 - CISD began the “Connected Learning Initiative” to provide devices for students to take home, and support for Teachers to build online course content
• 2011-2013 - By 2013 Castleberry High School was fully 1:1 and all students and teachers were participating in online learning through an LMS
• 2014 - Using funds from the Technology Lending Grant CISD provided devices and home connectivity to 93 students - not nearly enough!
• 2015 - By the end of 2015, all secondary students were provided a 1:1 device and we began to move the initiative into Elementary
• 2016-2020
• Over the course of 4 years we have slowly made our district 1:1 across all grade levels. Here are some things that has allowed us to do:
• Every student PK-12 has a 1:1 device
• Every student K-12 participates in online learning using an LMS (even before COVID-19)
• Computer Science is offered PK-12
• Successful Blended Learning classes
• Successful online Project Based Learning classes
• Many teachers have implemented flipped lessons
• Technology is integrated across all subject areas, and is used as an instructional tool and not a hindrance. This allows all of our Teachers to utilize innovative teaching practices with little to no entry cost

How can we make it better?

In 2016 as all of the work done over the past decade began to come to fruition, one of the issues we noticed early on was still there: How do we get connectivity to our students’ homes? If we expect students to participate in a modern learning environment, they all need to be on a level playing field. The cost of traditional LTE hotspots was too high, so we began to search for non-traditional solutions, including WiMax, private LTE, large-scale mesh networks, microwave P2MP, etc.

After a year of research, meetings, and rubrics, we decided to move forward with private LTE as our solution to provide home connectivity. It won in nearly every category, including cost, effectivity, and potential for growth.

The Solution - Private LTE

The Solution - Private LTE

More Information

For detailed information please contact Jacob Bowser:

Jacob Bowser

Director of Technology Operations

Office Phone: 817-252-2090

Email: bowserj@castleberryisd.net

Website: http://www.castleberryisd.net

Project website: https://digitalequity4all.cisd.net