Mandan Public School District - Audio Visual Solutions
Company Overview
Mandan Public School District is located in Mandan, North Dakota. The district includes six elementary schools, one middle school and two high schools. Its mission is to provide students with rigorous and personalized learning experiences and to help them develop the social and emotional skills to become productive citizens.
Mandan Public School District in Mandan, North Dakota, had hit the end of the road with its aging intercom system. Jeff Rerick, the district’s Chief Technology Engineer, said a new system had been on the wish list for awhile. Components stopped working, new parts were no longer available and the system also didn’t allow for integration with the district’s fire and emergency lock down system.
The district chose Marco for the new audio visual solutions for a number of reasons. “I already had a great working relationship with Marco, and I knew Marco had a great working relationship with Audio Enhancement,” said Rerick. “We wanted to leverage the strengths of both of those companies for our classroom systems.” The school district purchased the solutions through a pre-bid state CPC/NDESC 17.3 ITS Contract. Rerick said that made the process of vetting and purchasing the solutions much quicker and it ensured the district was getting a competitive price.
Marco Provides Audio Visual Solutions
The district purchased Audio Enhancement’s intercom solution with classroom audio. The solution equips teachers with microphones that are connected to speakers in the ceiling, delivering high-quality sound throughout the classroom. The solution also includes paging and intercom features that connect to the school’s fire and emergency system.
Rerick said because the solution is internet -based, it’s easier for IT and administrators to access the system from anywhere. He also likes how customizable the solution is. Administrators can customize their call or ring groups by grade level, classroom or hallway. “That classroom breakdown is critical for us because we have multiple elementary schools with multiple grade levels. We can also customize the alerts that are tied into our fire system emergency lock down system, so if that button or fire alarm is hit, the system will give instructions to the school based on the incident,” he said. The teachers also like the system because it allows them to save their voices by amplifying and equalizing the sound levels throughout the classroom, and they can alert the office if there are emergencies in the classroom via call buttons installed in each room.
“They were always looking out for us. If they caught something and thought it might be a problem, they would let us know. Not only were they looking out for us during the process, but they were actively engaged prior to it as well. They alleviate a lot of the stress because of their project planning and implementation."
Rerick said the ultimate winners are the students. “There is proven science that AV systems like this help students better retain what they hear. This solution provides all students a better experience, from students with diagnosed disorders, like Central Auditory Processing (CAP) to students who struggle to maintain focus,” he said.
