In March of 2000, the Harvard Business
Review asked, “Are CIOs Obsolete?” Experts
from the business world and academia responded to that
curious question, with almost all predicting a sweeping
expansion, not the gradual obsolescence, of the role. No
longer would CIOs be seen as simply the top technologists
of the organization, they said, but rather as business managers
and strategists who worked side by side with the CEO.
Four years later, K–12 school districts are coming to this same conclusion.
Sure, the scope of the district technology leader still varies dramatically—in
some locales, he or she is primarily a techie who deals with boxes and wires.
In others, that person is a senior administrator who focuses on big-picture
planning and budgeting.
There is today, however, a sense the job carries new weight. Until recently,
CIO was a practically nonexistent title in schools. While still novel (and usually
interchangeable with chief technology officer,
technology director, deputy superintendent
for technology, and a handful of other
monikers), the CIO name symbolizes the
shifting realities and mindsets about the
critical role technology plays in every aspect
of running a district. Not surprisingly, then,
we’re seeing more and more districts giving
their CIOs a much-deserved spot in the
superintendent’s cabinet—just as the Harvard
Business Review prophesied corporate CIOs
would work with their CEOs.
In making the parallels with business,
however, let’s not forget school CIOs are also
grappling with fundamentally unique issues.
How do you measure return on investment
when the “product” is something as complicated
and nuanced as human learning? How
can you compete with for-profits for first-rate
IT talent? And how do you operate in an
environment where it isn’t a given that everyone
has universal access to technology, or that
everyone knows how—or wants—to use it?
Add to this the complexities of No Child
Left Behind, with its data gathering, analysis,
and reporting requirements, and it’s no secret
that technology has become essential to the
business of schools. District IT staff are being
forced to figure out how to relate data from
various functional areas, from transportation
to human resources to instruction, with the
aim of improving student and school performance.
And they’re being asked to do all this
while simultaneously juggling security threats,
privacy concerns, and public expectations for
24/7 access to information.
If any of this sounds familiar, then this
newsletter is for you. Our mission is to provide
insight, resources, and strategies around
issues specific to district technology leaders,
whether it’s fresh research that will help you
justify an investment or, as we explore in
this issue, approaches to connecting legacy
systems. In addition to highlighting resources
applicable to your job, we also want to foster
an ongoing dialogue among peers about
effective tools and best practices. With these
goals in mind, we invite you to make these
pages your own by letting us know what
keeps you up at night, innovative approaches
you’re taking to the challenges facing your
schools, and topics you’d like to see
addressed here. Give us your scoop at
schoolcio@cmp.com.
Amy Poftak, Editorial Director
