Library installation of San Antonio ISD
San Antonio ISD
The Independent School Districts of San Antonio switched their library software and gave a major overhaul of their library network in the summer of 1999. (Every school was given a new machine to run the software and house their newly created database.) The new software, Alexandria, allowed internet access to the libraries from the general population and inter-district library communication over a central server. I led the teams who: converted their data, installed the software, and trained the staff on using it.
The Scope
- San Antonio ISD has 90 schools and 55,000 students
My role
- Project Manager
There was a team of about 30 people from Companion Corporation and 10 to 15 people on San Antonio ISD's technical support group with which I interfaced with regularly throughout the process. My teams of trainers conducted training sessions on a regular basis and I managed the technical support teams which provided the district with continuous support.
What would I have done differently?
This project was the first time we had done a library installation using a district wide interconnected database system and so we were still learning the best way to go about it. We should have done the central server first and worked our way out. This way we could have tested as we went and not have had to go back to a few schools.
Similar projects included; Jackson County Schools, Ottawa District, and many others. However, Houston and San Antonio were the first districts with the new software. They required I personally attend the installations. The others were done under my remote supervision