ADE Director's Communication Memo Form


Memo Number : COM-06-048

Date Created : 01/24/2006

Attention:

Superintendents
Co-op Directors
Secondary Principals
Elementary Principals
Middle School Principals
High School Principals

Type of Memo: Informational
Response Required: Optional
   
Section:   APSCN - Bill Goff, Director
Subject:
APSCN/COGNOS Additional Licenses

Regulatory Authority:
N/A

Contact Person:
Bill Goff

Phone Number:
501-682-4887

E-mail:
bgoff@arkedu.k12.ar.us

The Arkansas Department of Education (ADE) through the Arkansas Public School Computer Network (APSCN) has contracted with Cognos Corporation to provide a report generator and use of the Education Performance Management System (EPMS), which is a data warehouse for use by the public schools in Arkansas. The systems will allow access to “canned” reports, creation of ad-hoc reports, and provide access to multi-year data for analytical purposes. The data in the EPMS is not limited to one set of parameters, but can include student, as well as financial data to analyze the cost effectiveness of educational programs.

Due to the cost of implementing the system and purchasing user licenses, only a limited number of licenses have been purchased for the school districts. At this time, the system allows one consumer and one query license for financial users per district. Student users will be allowed one consumer license per building and one query license per district.

A consumer license gives access to all the pre-written reports that are posted to the COGNOS reporting web site. Keep in mind that APSCN personnel can create a report and post it to the web site for future use. The reports are templates only and populate with current information each time the report is run. To keep a report, it would have to be saved with a different file name or printed. A query license allows a person to create reports from the data tables.

The number of licenses purchased by APSCN will be enough for most districts, but not enough for some. APSCN is looking into implementing a process whereby districts could purchase additional licenses. However, the number of additional users who would access the system needs to be determined to ensure the computer servers have enough power to handle the additional load.

The exact cost per license has not been determined, but it is expected to be about $250 to $400 for a consumer license and $550 to $700 for a query license. Annual maintenance costs would be about 15 – 18% of that cost per year. NOTE – THESE FIGURES ARE APPROXIMATIONS ONLY. THE COST WILL BE FINALIZED AFTER THE NUMBER OF ADDITIONAL LICENSES NEEDED IS DETERMINED.

In order for APSCN to evaluate the adequacy of the servers, please indicate on the attached form the number of licenses that the district anticipates purchasing in addition to those provided by the state. Please fax the completed form to Danita Hyrkas at 501-682-5035.

Attachments:

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