• End of School Year Technology Guide - Summer 2024

    Please share with your staff and review this important information as you prepare for the end of the school year and summer break.
    If you have any questions or to request technical support, please contact the OTIS Service Desk at , by emailing support@pps.net, or calling 503-916-3375. Please submit all requests as early as possible for the coming school year.

     

    Google Takeout for Schools and Departing Staff

    For high school seniors that are graduating, teachers who are taking a job at a new school district, or educators that are retiring after many years of service, you will want to transfer your ½ûÂþÌìÌà district Google data and take it with you. Google Takeout for Schools is a very simple and free tool that will copy the emails and Drive files from your school account over to either a personal Gmail account or another G Suite for Education account.

    Students and staff can start the process by going to .

    *HS seniors have from six months until after they graduate to access their data and staff have until their last day of employment to access theirs.*

    End Of The Year Canvas Practices

    Before heading off to your summer, take a few moments to review the End Of the Year Canvas Practices. Export grade and course content for safe keep!

    Securly Classroom Class Schedule Setting

    Before heading off to your summer, make sure you toggle OFF the Class Schedule setting in your Securly Classroom class settings which auto-starts your device monitoring session.

    Digital Toolkit Summer Access

    Schools may be interested in communicating to families about access to digital tools during the summer months. Please feel free to use the paragraphs below in your newsletters, personalizing as appropriate.

    Students will have access to most ½ûÂþÌìÌà Digital Toolkit applications during the summer. Students who enroll in summer school may notice changes in some applications once summer school begins. Most ½ûÂþÌìÌà Digital Toolkit applications will remain active throughout the summer. Applications may be temporarily unavailable at the beginning of August as ½ûÂþÌìÌà shifts to the 2024-25 school year.

    Please note that during the summer months, teachers are not active inside the digital tools and applications. Parents should be aware of what students are doing online. Parents may find the Securly application and digital and civic literacy resources helpful.

    Updates to the Digital Toolkit for 2024-25 were announced on May 21. Please find a .

    Minecraft: Education Edition Update for 2024-25 School Year

    There will be an upcoming change regarding access to Minecraft Education Edition (Minecraft: EE) for the next school year. Starting the 2024-25 school year, Minecraft: EE access for student use will require a formal request. This request will allow us to better manage our licensing, cause fewer classroom disruptions, and ensure continued access for educators who find Minecraft: EE a valuable educational tool. .

    Learning Tech & OTIS Summer Expo

    to save your spot for this back-to-school event on Monday, Aug. 12, 2024. To better prepare for this event on location and possible sessions.

    Technology Purchases

    All technology purchase orders for 2023-24 are to be submitted by May 1 for delivery by June 30. Equipment that is expected to arrive after June 30 will be shipped to the central warehouse and delivered to schools in August.

    VoIP Phones

    VoIP phones cannot be moved to a different room or site, unless directed by OTIS Telecom. Doing so will impact response to emergency calls or broadcasts from that phone. Please contact the OTIS Service Desk before moving any phone to another room.

    Voicemail

    ½ûÂþÌìÌà has two types of staff voicemail accounts, “Classroom/Office” and “Named”.  

    Classroom/Office voicemail accounts are assigned to the phone rather than to a named staff member in order to eliminate the time staff must wait for voicemail service at the start of the school year. This means that teachers/staff can set up their own voicemail name, greeting, and PIN, and no longer need to wait for their personal voicemail account to be assigned to their phone. Staff who don't have their name displayed on their phone will need to copy any voicemails that need to be saved on or before June 15th, as their voicemail accounts will be re-set after June 15th.  If your name is displayed on the phone, the voicemail account will not be re-set unless requested by a School secretary.

    New Classrooms

    If your school is adding new classrooms for the 2024-25 school year (not related to school modernization), please contact the OTIS Service Desk before June 14 indicating the room number and teacher name if known.

    School Construction and Moves

    If your school will be under construction or changing programs or locations during the summer, you will receive separate instructions on preparing to store or move your technology equipment.

    District Cell Phones

    Please contact our Mobile Devices team at  if a District cell phone will not be in use over the summer so that your school or program will not be charged for service during this time. More information about cell phones is available here.

    Printer/Copier Moves

    If you need to have your copier(s) moved over the summer, please contact the OTIS Service Desk as soon as possible, no later than June 30. We'll also help determine whether or not the new location has sufficient electricity and network connectivity.

    Staff Accounts/New Staff

    All active ½ûÂþÌìÌà employees will have continued access to ½ûÂþÌìÌà systems, including email, GSuite, PeopleSoft Employee Self-Service, Pepper, Aesop, and Synergy over the summer.  If you haven’t already signed up for Two-factor authentication, now is a good time to do so to provide continuous access to Employee Self-Service over the summer.

    New employees will receive their accounts once they are added to the HR system and assigned an employee ID number.  Account changes for employees changing positions should also take effect once the change is reflected in the HR system. 

    Non-employee/contractor accounts expire at the end of the contract term and the ½ûÂþÌìÌà contract manager will renew the account if appropriate. 

    Password Recovery 

    Remember to register with the ½ûÂþÌìÌà Password Recovery tool by visiting   You will then be able to easily reset your own password if needed when you return after summer break.

    Student Accounts

    Student accounts remain active during the summer. Seniors' accounts will stay active for six months after graduation. 

    Storage of Technology

    • All mobile devices, including Chromebooks, iPads, and laptops, must be stored in a secure area of the school when not in use.  Mobile device carts are to be unplugged, locked, and placed in a secure central area that is not subject to constant high temperatures with no ventilation.

    • Mobile devices that are taken home over the summer are the responsibility of the person to whom they are assigned.  It is the responsibility of each administrator to make sure that all equipment is checked-out and returned for school startup.

    • If you are transferring to a new location, please store files you need in your Google drive before you move.  Teachers - your chromebook will go with you to your new school. Other staff - your mobile device stays at the current location.

    • All tech bundle components are to remain secured to the cart and the cart placed in a secure area.  The cart is to be placed away from windows, especially if the room is on the first floor. 

    File Storage

    Please be SURE to save any data you want to retain from your local hard drive to your Google drive. If you need assistance with backing up your data to Google Drive, please visit our Solution Articles to guide you through the process: H and .

    PowerSaving

    To save on computer wear and tear and power consumption, please turn off the computers at your school as you leave for the summer. Should some systems be missed, OTIS will attempt to shut them down remotely starting at 5:00 pm on Friday, June 21, 2023.  All systems will start back up normally by simply pressing the power button.

    eWaste Recycling

    Pickup and recycling of obsolete computer equipment can be requested here.  If you are unsure whether older equipment is still usable, minimum standards are available here or you can contact the OTIS Service Desk.

    OTIS Maintenance Schedule

    ½ûÂþÌìÌà OTIS systems will be down for regular maintenance during the summer weekends in July and August. Please watch for emails about maintenance weekends. 

    Computer Labs Updates and Moves

    If your lab computers are in need of maintenance, please submit a detailed request to the OTIS Service Desk. Please include the location of the lab, how many computers are in the lab, and the work you would like to occur, such as cable cleanup, re-imaging, or hardware repairs. An OTIS Service Desk representative will contact you before summer break with any questions about your request.

    If you are considering moving or creating a computer lab or adding/moving electrical outlets or data drops, you must first contact Facilities to have this work planned and implemented. Please fill out and submit a Facilities Project Development Request and someone from Facilities will be in touch with you to discuss next steps.

    Synergy

    Refer to the and watch for emails concerning year-end Synergy processes for enrollment, final grading, graduation, and scheduling.

    School Web pages

    Consider posting your 2024-2025 School Supply Lists now. Families often look for them prior to the start of the year when admins and assistants return to school. 

    Please review and update your building's "School News & Announcements", "Message from the Principal", "Staff Contact", and Calendar pages to ensure they will be relevant for the 2024-2025 school year.

    Remind

    The Remind communication platform will remain accessible over the summer. Users have the option to , which hides them from view. Additionally, users can for their own records. Next year, classes will sync automatically in August along with the other Classlink applications.

    Back-to-School Tech Visits

    Technical Support Representatives still plan to visit schools during the summer to check on technology in the classrooms.