Hapeville Charter Schools has selected Ericom AccessNow to provide access to computing resources and online learning management systems from Google Chromebooks and other mobile devices. The integration of AccessNow with Google Chromebooks results in a mobile solution that expands computer accessibility by 400 percent.
Located in South Atlanta, the public charter school has both a middle school and a high school with 1,200 students in grades six through 12. Because of the rise of Web-based courseware and online testing requirements, teachers demanded more computing time, while Hapeville’s IT department had inadequate space, budget constraints and an insufficient number of computer labs to accommodate the needs of its student base.
Justin Ross, IT Administrator at the Hapeville Charter Schools, explained: “We don’t have enough room for everything in our building, especially the school’s technology resources. With limited space and funds, we needed to find a creative solution for our high school students to optimize computer accessibility beyond the lab.”
After a brief, successful trial, Ross and his team deployed two hundred-plus Chromebooks and used AccessNow to facilitate browser-based access to desktops, applications and online curriculum, including End of Course Standardized Testing (EOCT), Criteria Reference Competency Tests (CRCT), and other Windows-based, Web based, and native Windows software.
“Ericom’s reputation consistently stuck out during my research of RDP solutions for Chromebooks,” explained Ross. “As a clientless solution, AccessNow was easy to deploy and provides flexibility as well as centralized management and control, all which are important to me given our limited IT resources.”
Ericom AccessNow allows students to access Windows-based and online learning management systems on Chromebooks and other mobile devices from standard Web browsers. Cross-platform compatibility enables teachers and students to work on different devices and operating systems, while students have mobile access to desktops and applications from anywhere on campus, including outside of the computer lab.
Hapeville is considering several projects to expand the use of AccessNow. The first will allow teachers to access the county’s student information system for attendance management. The other will further expand browser-based access to accommodate the needs of all students.
“The use of Chromebooks and Ericom AccessNow in schools creates new opportunities to teach, learn, extend the traditional classroom environment and optimize IT resources and budgets,” said Joshua Behar, President of Ericom Software.
