Los Gatos Weekly-Times

Family Education Network will link parents to schools

LGUSD only school district in California selected to participate

By Michelle Alaimo

Parents in Los Gatos will soon be able to use World Wide Web to interact with the Los Gatos Union School District. The Family Education Network has selected the LGUSD as the only district in California, to participate in its "Lighthouse District" Web site program.

And the district was one of 12 chosen nationwide for the special program.

"We think this community will be very active," Joni Thomas, FEN's educational project manager said.

The district was recommended to participate in the program by Barry Waitte, a Daves Avenue School parent and Vice President of America on Line (AOL) who is working as an executive on loan to FEN.

As a member in the free one-year renewable program, the LGUSD along with FEN will develop an interactive Web site for the district using templates and professional web page designers.

The site will be tailored to the district and be developed based on input from the district, parents, and teachers, Bert Pearlman, superintendent on special assignment, said.

Earlier this month, the district agreed to provide feedback, hold one case study per school site in the district each year, and provide ideas for improving FEN's Web sites. Case studies are new interactive ideas that are floated on the district's Web site to gauge how the public will react to them. Designated webmasters with the district, along with Pearlman, will be responsible for updating the Web site, once the site is launched sometime in January.

Pearlman and the board do not think that updating the site will be an added burden to staff. The initial content will remain the same, Pearlman said, and templates will be used for information that needs to be updated regularly, such as school calendars. "These kind of things would not take a lot of maintenance once they're up," Pearlman said.

Thomas said getting the site up and running will be the hardest part and that FEN she will help build the Web site and put the initial content on it. She added that FEN will also "pump lots of dollars into promotions and publicity."

FEN is able to offer the Web site for free to districts because of alcohol, tobacco, and firearm free advertising placed on the sites by sponsors.

"It's very passive advertising," Thomas said. She added all ads are placed in the lefthand corner of the Web site and the company accepts ads only from companies that have an education interest.

LGUSD's agreement with FEN will end June 30, 1999. Those wishing to visit FEN's Web site can do so at http://www.familyeducation.com.

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