Technology News

StatusGator is a monitoring tool that shows the real-time status of the digital systems we use across the district. It tracks services like Google Workspace and other instructional apps, giving you one simple dashboard to check for outages or performance issues.

District status page

Purpose and Value

1. Students can quickly see if a tool is down or having issues, instead of wondering if it’s their device or internet. This helps reduce frustration and keeps learning on track.
2. Teachers and staff get a quick, clear view of system status. This makes it easier to adjust plans in real time—like shifting a lesson or delaying an online activity—without unnecessary troubleshooting.
3. Parents & Guardians can check the status of school tools at home and easily confirm if an issue is system-wide. This adds clarity and helps avoid confusion.

Why It Matters
StatusGator gives everyone one simple place to check the health of our digital tools, helping improve communication, save time, and create a smoother experience for all.

Schools are increasingly targeted by phishing emails—messages designed to trick you into clicking links or sharing information. Staying alert helps protect both you and the district.

Common signs of a phishing email:

1. Generic greeting (e.g., “Dear User”) or no greeting at all
2. Requests for personal information (passwords, account details, etc.)
3. Suspicious links or buttons — hover your mouse (don’t click) to preview the web address
4. Unexpected attachments you weren’t expecting
5. Unfamiliar sender address — the name may look right, but the email address doesn’t match (check by clicking the name, especially on your phone)
6. External email warning (yellow caution banner for messages outside the district)
7. Spelling or grammar mistakes

Examples:

1. “Your account will be locked—click here to verify now.”
2. “I need you to purchase gift cards—please respond quickly.”
3. “You’ve received a secure document—log in to view.”

If something doesn’t feel right:

1. Delete the email
2. Do not click any links
3. Do not reply or forward

When in doubt, it’s always safest to delete the message.

Central Valley School District will be upgrading its phone system this summer to improve communication across all schools and offices. This upgrade will include the installation of new desk phones along with updated technology designed to enhance call quality, reliability, and overall efficiency in day-to-day operations.

These improvements are intended to provide more streamlined, dependable, and secure communication tools for staff, students, and families as we prepare for the upcoming school year. More details will be shared soon, including an exact timeline, as we continue to develop and finalize the rollout plan.

All teachers and staff will receive new handsets as part of this upgrade.

This will be the last year Technology Services supports Smart Boards and Smart Notebook due to the following reasons:

1. The equipment is over 10 years old, and both the hardware and software are becoming difficult to maintain.
2. Replacement parts are no longer available.
3. The Smartboard tools no longer align well with current curriculum needs.
4. In addition, our new widescreen projectors are not compatible with the older Smart Boards, so the display does not fit correctly on the boards.

Over the summer, Technology Services will be busy replacing all Chromebooks in the district.   In the Fall, students will be using brand-new touchscreen devices that will be much faster and more powerful than the devices we will be replacing.  This purchase represents a substantial investment in our students, and we are very fortunate to be able to make this happen for all buildings in the district!

Technology Services has partnered with Learning and Teaching to develop a new Software Approval process.   All staff who would like to have a new piece of software, web application, or website made available for student use, purchased or installed will need to have the resource approved.  This includes all applications that use Google for single sign on (SSO) when students log into the resource using their CVSD Google cvsd356 accounts.  We are making a concentrated effort to ensure that all resources made available for student use are vetted and approved before staff use the resource with students.  The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) contains language providing rights to parents in relation to which resources district staff have shared student information with.  Having resources approved helps ensures compliance and transparency.

Software approvals should begin with a Helpdesk ticket.  If more information is needed by Learning and Teaching or CTE to process the request, a link to the software approval form will be provided. 

For more information on FERPA, please see:  FERPA | Protecting Student Privacy

Last summer, Technology Services updated our internal Wi-Fi to improve security. A result of this update resulted in this network now being available only to district (CVSD) devices.

If your iPhone was previously connected, it may still be trying to join that network, which can slow things down. To improve performance, please open your Wi-Fi settings and “forget” the CVSD network.

This quick configuration change should help your iPhone run more smoothly while at school.

A valuable resource available to CVSD staff is a function of GoGuardian called Teacher. With GoGuardian Teacher, you can create smart and effective digital learning environments that can be customized to meet the needs of the day – or each student.

Advantages

1. Interact with student screens
2. Personalize learning resources
3. View student progress in real-time
4. Manage digital distractions

It integrates with Google Classroom so using it with your students is seamless. You can find more information on using GoGuardian Teacher as well as other Technology Integration resources on the CVSD Teacher Hub.

Here are some additional resources to get you started using GoGuardian Teacher.

Submitting a Helpdesk ticket is the quickest and most efficient way to get technology support.

If possible, the person experiencing the issue should submit the ticket. This helps us communicate directly and resolve issues faster.

Why tickets matter:

1. Alerts Technology of issues quickly
2. Help us prioritize and stay organized
3. Ensure nothing gets missed
4. Improves communication both within Technology Services and with the staff member
5. Identify patterns or larger system issues

Remember, StatusGator will help keep everyone informed during district-wide issues.