The Saugus Union School District announced all classrooms in all 15 District schools will be outfitted with interactive touchscreen flat panel computers by November.

This rollout is the first of its kind for a whole district in California and marks the first appearance of this technology anywhere in the Santa Clarita Valley.

The IFPs, manufactured by Prowise, will be installed by ELB, an educational technology consultant out of Cypress. The first of these will be installed starting September 21 in the classrooms of Skyblue Mesa Elementary.

“The growth of technology in our classrooms has allowed us to change the way we teach and the way we ensure the growth of the entire District, from teachers to students,” said Dr. Joan Lucid, Superintendent of the Saugus Union School District. “Every student in every classroom in all of our schools will benefit from this technology.”

The program, which is being funded by Measure EE provides for flat panel integration into all classrooms, as well as extensive training from both ELB and from the District-based Ed Tech TOSAs (teachers on special assignment), who will be handling day-to-day issues, alongside the District’s IT Department.

“A project like this cannot be undertaken without highly skilled and professional training, which we have in our IT team as well as our TOSAs, and amazing support from our staff and the community at-large,” added Judy Umeck, President of the SUSD Governing Board. “This use of Measure EE funds allows us to bring our classrooms up-to-date and technologically ahead of any classroom in the SCV.”

While similar to existing technology used in the District, IFPs are far more advanced technology than the white boards (or Smart boards) and have a far longer shelf life. Utilizing an integrated flat panel screen and embedded Windows 10 enabled computer, the IFPs are likened to giant tablet computers with multi-user capability. The IFPs act as computers and have the ability to browse the Internet and show videos as well as store existing classroom lesson plans. Teachers are able to conduct an entire lesson at the screen, save the lesson, share it with students and their parents via Google Classroom and even send classroom discussion home to ill students.

“Being the only district in the state to implement this technology really shows our dedication to 21st century education,” added Lucid. “We recognize that a majority of the jobs that our students will be doing, 20 years down the road, haven’t even been created yet. This technology will aid in building to that future.”