It’s been a good news/bad news story for technology upgrades this summer. While the technology intended for use by our school ministry is continually being expanded, these changes have impacted every other area of ministry!

On the “good news” side of the coin:

• Old thermostats in both the school and church buildings have been replaced by smart thermostats. Unused spaces will no longer be needlessly cooled or heated, decreasing our utility bills. They will also ensure that the church and classrooms are at a comfortable temperature by the time that folks arrive for an event or class. This upgrade not only saved St. John’s money but was also free to get and install. Take a look at the details.
• Jennifer Martinez and Pastor Albers are learning more about how to program our access control system. More and more automation should provide access at just the right times for just the right people. 
• We can now monitor the amount of printing and copying by individual teachers on our network printers. Default settings choose black and white versus the more costly color copies/printing. To offset the decreased printing, teachers can shift some assignments to a digital format for students to access on their Chromebooks. This upgrade will help to keep expenses down, and decrease waste. 
• In response to the theft of multiple downspouts from the church building, IP security cameras are being added to the computer network. Currently, only one camera is recording, but others will be installed in time. The recordings are only saved for four days, unless we pull the footage to review, it is automatically erased by new content. 

As changes have been made, a few problems have arisen too:

• Once our students returned to class we learned our network wasn’t large enough!  We ran out of addresses (like virtual driveways to the WIFI house) for the many student Chromebooks, faculty computers, and other devices connecting simultaneously. Our technology coordinator found a “workaround” and the issue was resolved within a few days. The network is now configured to keep the number of addresses to only those devices actively needing one.
• While expanding the network the engineers at Qubit Networks identified a speed bottleneck. Our component, the main network switch, is obsolete and hasn’t even been sold for 10 years. It is also 10 times slower than other network devices. A replacement will help download and upload speeds (like for live-streaming worship services).
• During our Family Reunion on Sunday, we were unable to livestream the outdoor service. There was no immediate way to extend the WIFI signal, and the limited WIFI strength in the parking lot wasn’t strong enough for us to go live.

Each year the computer network is improved to better meet the needs of the ministry at St. John’s. The input and efforts of both faculty and volunteers have made these changes possible and beneficial. More of the daily technology coordination is being managed by Emilie Gross, our Technology Coordinator, while Pastor Albers focuses on the ‘big picture.”