Kiosks to offer interactive experience for MHS students

SkoolLive gives high school students an interactive experience between classes or in the lunch room.

SkoolLive showcased a kiosk for the Maricopa Unified School District Governing Board in their meeting on Wednesday.

With fully customizable features, the kiosk can be used as a digital message board, schedule of events, slide show or video of recent school activities, or even a way for students to sign up for college.

“There’s really three main things the kiosks do for the district,” SkoolLive representative Kyle Warren said. “The first one is on-campus communication. [The kiosk] replaces the need for posters and provides a more eco-friendly solution. The second is revenue generation. The district can make money off of the kiosk. And the third is cost savings. The district can save money on supplies and flyers.”

The kiosk would be provided to Maricopa High School at no charge. The company then checks with local businesses to see if anyone would like to advertise products. The advertisement money pays SkoolLive, but a portion of the profits go to the school as well (calculated to be between $200 and $500 per month, per kiosk).

“We take full responsible for the advertising,” Warren said, “We hope local businesses will be interested and hear about us through their kids, but the responsibility is all on us. Even if we can’t get a single advertiser, we still honor the life of the contract (three years).”

The school would be able to control each kiosk separately. They would have complete control over 50 percent of the screen on each individual kiosk. The top and bottom 25 percent of the screen are reserved for advertisements. The advertisements have to be approved by the school before they are displayed on the kiosk.

The initial plan for the kiosks was to put one in the lobby of the 200 building, the lobby of the 100 building, the cafeteria, the 800 building, and the office for parents to use.

However, the board had some concerns about the placement plan.

“I would rather see trying to put two or three into the cafeteria instead of the buildings,” MUSD Governing Board President Patti Coutre said. “This is where they have the time to actually pay attention to this stuff.”

Maricopa High School Assistant Principal Krista Barrett reassured the board the locations for the kiosks could be adjusted. The key element to a kiosk location is a power source. The kiosks have to be able to connect to an outlet and the school’s Internet.

Another concern raised by the board was a lack of parents having a chance to view the kiosks. Board member Torri Anderson stated that, as a parent, she would like to be involved in the conversation.

***ADVERTISEMENT***Barrett said a presentation could be set up for concerned parents if it was necessary. MUSD Superintendent Steve Chestnut recommended a YouTube video about SkoolLive be distributed to the parents. If parents have any questions or concerns, Barrett would be available to field the feedback.

“I’m all for this,” MHS senior class President Angel Moreno said. “This will help us get the word out (about tests or updates) much easier. We don’t have to worry about making posters anymore. It makes our work load a lot easier.”

The preliminary plan for any revenue generated from the kiosk will be funded back into the high school student council.