New Jersey Association of School Administrators

January 29 – 30, 2009 - Bally’s Atlantic City

TECHSPO 2009

Robert FogartyLAN/WAN Manager

Thomas AtkinsonSupervisor Technology

Microsoft SharePoints as Collaboration Tools in K-

12Environment

IntroductionIntroduction

SharePoint Collaboration Services

• SharePoint 2007 is Microsoft’s web-based collaboration and document management platform offered as part of the Microsoft Office family of products.   A SharePoint site is a web site that provides a central storage and collaboration space for documents, information, and ideas.  A SharePoint site is a tool for collaboration; helping groups of people share information and work together in a dynamic and interactive fashion.

• SharePoint gives people the ability to:– Publish documents of standard file formats– Manage documents with version control and workflow– Coordinate projects, calendars, and schedules– Control individual access to web sites using JHED credentials– Discuss ideas and review documents or proposals– Integrate with Office 2007 desktop applications, instant

messaging, and email.

SharePoint Technologies Overview

Microsoft SharePoint services and server constitute an excellent online, web-based collaboration tool for use among peers using Microsoft Office

2003+ and IE within an Active Directory network environment.

SharePoint Technologies Overview

Microsoft SharePoint services and server constitute an excellent

online, web-based collaboration tool for use among peers using

Microsoft Office 2003+ and IE within an Active Directory network

environment.

SharePoint Technical Implementation at BRRSD

• Number of Dedicated Servers - 2 ½ (virtual)

• Servers with only “Services” - 2• Nature of Installations

– Windows Server 2003– IIS

SharePoint Technical Implementation at BRRSD

(contd.)• SQL database, not expected

“file/folder” hierarchy– Files do not exist in places, but as records

in a database.– Cannot (in 2003) point within SharePoint to

individual-specific folders on the network. (See following slide on “Network File Access”.)

SharePoint Uses at BRRSD • District• Department• School/Building• Group• Ad Hoc

District• BOE

– Board Packets– Archived Correspondence From

Superintendent– BOE Sub-Committee Documents– BOE Minutes– Budget Build Process

BOE SITE (1)

BOE SITE (2)

BOE SITE (3)

District Special Budgetary Request

District Special Budgetary Request (contd)

General Settings: Special Budgetary Request

Travel Permission / Request• SharePoint Site created (District

Forms)• Document for “Travel Permission”

with all necessary fields/information• InfoPath to create form with data

validation rules• MS Access for Reports

Travel Permission Document on District Forms

SharePoint

Travel Permission (Contd)

MS Access & SharePoint• “Link” SharePoint Tables to Access

Database (MDB)• System Fields are Not Editable (AD

User Info, Table Edit Information)

Travel Permission: Access Reports Menu

Department• Technology

– How To’s (Directions)– SOP’s– Policies / Procedures– Rights

• AD Groups Unique to Site• Student Services

– IEP’s– Committee Notes

Technology Department SharePoint

Student Services SharePoint

Student Services SharePoint (2)

Student Services SharePoint (3)

Department – continued• HR

– District-Wide Secure

School/Building• Van Holten

– School Announcements– Presidential Election (i.e., SharePoint

Survey)• MS

– Documents

Van Holten Elementary School

Group• K-4 Technology Teachers

Ad Hoc• Surveys• Discussions• CLGs

SharePoint Server 2007

SharePoint Server 2007 (2)

Implementation Considerations• Alien Nature of “On-Line

Collaboration”• Training• Atomized / Federal / Decentralized

Culture– By centralizing and homogenizing joint

work efforts, you run counter to the spirit and practice of diverse schools, departments, and staff.

Macbeth:If it were done, when 'tis done, then 'twere wellIt were done quickly.

Technical Problems With SharePoint

• Bob …

Non-Optimal Uses of SharePoint Technologies

SharePoint is NOT the best tool, in general, for use with students, nor with highly confidential material that has a wider than very narrow circulation base, due to the relative coarseness of its security restrictions.– Confidential 1-on-1, Teacher-Student Interactions– Individual Teacher Interaction With Specific Classes of

Students– General Document Management, or Versioning Control

Where Edits from Multiple Users Must be Audited or Captured

BibliographyCurry, Ben. Microsoft SharePoint Products and Technologies. Stanek, William R., Series Editor. Microsoft Press, 2007.Londer, Olga, et al. Step by Step: Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services. Microsoft Press, 2005.

Hardware and Software Requirements for SharePoint Server 2007: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc262485.aspx.

• From: Atkinson, Tom [mailto:TAtkinson@brrsd.k12.nj.us] • Sent: Monday, January 12, 2009 12:39 PM• To: Beard, William• Subject: RE: Cheryl Dyer Email and Documents

• Bill, I would be interested in whether it is possible to do the same with network drives in SharePoint. If you have any ideas along that issue, please let me know, TA

• Thomas Atkinson• Supervisor K-12 Technology• Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District• Wade Administration Building• 836 Newmans Lane - P.O. Box 6030• Bridgewater, New Jersey 08807• P: 908-685-2777 x279 F: 908-231-8482• ___________________________________________________________________• From: Beard, William [wbeard@sjtp.net]• Sent: Monday, January 12, 2009 8:33 PM• To: Atkinson, Tom• Subject: RE: Cheryl Dyer Email and Documents

• Tom,• With sharepoint, the document libraries that are created actually have their documents stored in the SQL database(s) that the sharepoint server attaches

to. Sharepoint doesn’t have anything native within it that will allow you to connect to a portal and then gain access to remote file shares that I’m aware of without the use of a 3rd party web part. Some people have, in the past, copied their existing documents into the document repositories within sharepoint, but you end up with redundant data. The benefits of having the data stored within the SQL databases connected to the sharepoint server is that it allows you true document management capabilities like checking out files for updates, etc. Without that, you lose those capabilities.

• There are 3rd party products out there that do work and work pretty well for both Outlook Web Access and sharepoint. Here is a URL to one of the products that I’m talking about:

• http://www.everywherenetworks.com/owa-fileway.php

• This company makes a web part that will plug into sharepoint to give users access to remote file servers and offers integration with Outlook Web Access 2007, providing even more functionality to the existing interface. They offer a trial version of the software as well so you can actually see it in action. I have seen some free web parts that people have made up, but from reading, most people have problems getting them to work and there is no support out there for them if there is a problem. Let me know if you have any questions about this.

• Thanks,• William Beard• Senior Project Engineer• South Jersey Technology Partnership• 801 Preston Avenue• Somerdale, NJ 08083• Office: (856) 566-4183• Mobile: (856) 535-8434• Website: http://www.sjtp.net

Network File Access in SharePoint

William BeardSenior Project EngineerSouth Jersey Technology Partnership801 Preston AvenueSomerdale, NJ 08083Office: (856) 566-4183Mobile: (856) 535-8434Website: http://www.sjtp.net

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Robert FogartyLAN/WAN Manager

Thomas AtkinsonSupervisor Technology

Microsoft SharePoints as Collaboration Tools in K-

12EnvironmentThank You!!!!Thank You!!!!