Video of school board meetings will be available via the Internet

Within the next month, anyone interested in watching Churchill County School District board meetings can do so from the comfort of their home.

The district will be podcasting live streaming video of the sessions via the Internet.

Dan Slentz, vice president of Oasis Online, said Thursday high school students in Chip Rutledge's video class will run the video cameras during board meetings.

Parents who want to watch the meeting can log on to the school district's Web site and see it as it happens. The sessions will be archived and available on the site.

"If someone does not catch it live they can go back and watch it later," Slentz said.

Superintendent Carolyn Ross said the idea of offering live school board meetings has been in the works for about three years.

Bill Slentz of Oasis Online said streamlining video was tested at a January board meeting with a few testers watching from home.

"We believe this is a very valuable tool to be used in he district's continuing effort to keep our community involved in the education of our students," Bill Slentz stated in an e-mail.

Oasis Online serves as the technology consultant for the school district.

Dan Slentz said the technology of podcasting is not new.

"Podcast is really just a buzzword for something that has been going on for years and years," he said.

Some television stations now offer streaming video of their programs through the Internet, and also allow viewers to see archived shows they missed.

He said the board room where trustees meet could be enhanced to make better use of technology. Microphones will likely be added to ensure adequate audio quality of board meetings.

"There's the potential for other interactive type of things," he said. "Technology is rapidly changing."

There will be a link on the school district's Web site under school board meetings where a user can gain access to the videotaped meetings.

A demonstration of the process will be presented to the board at its Feb. 8 meeting, Ross said.