Bibb County Schools Spending Millions on Technology Upgrades

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Schools across Bibb County are getting a major technology upgrade. It’s all part of the Macon Miracle and bringing the classrooms into the 21st century.

Forget the pencils, paper and textbooks—it’s all about computers, tablets, and smart boards.

“They love being plugged in and using technology,” Northeast High School science teacher Chiquita Dinkins.

Dinkins uses technology in her classroom to give students hands-on experience and get them interested in school.

“This is the way that they learn best, to receive the information through technology,” she said. “They seem to get more involved when they have technology.”

Which is why the Bibb County School District is spending 50 million dollars on technology upgrades for all of its schools. The first on the list is Northeast High School.

“This is the oldest designs for technology,” executive director of technology for Bibb County Schools Tom Tourand said. “This school was built before technology was really there, so its not built for it.”

But not any longer. For the last month,crews have been working overnight to take this old school and bring it into the 21st century.

“We’re building the infrastructure to the level it needs to be to handle the bandwidth and demands of a modern technological school,” Tourand said.

Technicians are installing 57 miles of wiring throughout the school. Plus new computers, TVs, and wireless access—it is everything you need for a smart school.

“The students are embracing it naturally and the teachers are looking forward to it,” Tourand said.

Crews should finish all the tech upgrades at Northeast High School before students leave for Christmas break. The next schools on the list are Central and Southwest high schools.

District officials say it should take about 2 years to fully upgrade all the schools in the county.