New high schools going digital

North, South high schools to include digital award displays

The Willoughby-Eastlake School District recently outlined its plans to include physical trophy displays and digital kiosks in the new North and South high school buildings.

The district stated that every item from the current school buildings will be transported to the new buildings. Because of the items that have been earned throughout school history, the district has explained that the kiosks will allow them to place all items on display, including some of which that have not been visible to the public for years.

“When the district entered the design phase for the new schools, we held several visioning sessions,” Superintendent Steve Thompson stated in an email exchange. “Community members, staff members and students were invited to attend. At that time, we used their input to collaborate with our architects, Then Design to create the new spaces. Our architectural team actually

The district maintained that while some of the physical items are currently not visible or may not be after moving, each item will be brought to the new school buildings regardless.

introduced the district to the concept of creating a digital catalog through the use of digital monitors.”

In a recent video, the superintendent highlighted the various locations of the physical trophy cases in the two new high schools. There are also showcases designed in the new Longfellow Elementary School building.

He said that the interactive kiosks will look like flat screen TVs and will allow visitors to access photos,

articles and trophies in the system. The technology is designed by VitalSigns, a digital signage company based in Columbus.

“Anything we want to digitize, we can put on our new monitor system,” Thompson said in the video. “You’ll be able to access that system simply by touching it.”

The school district maintained that all of the current memorabilia will be brought to the new school buildings.

“The building will display items in the showcases that they decide to place in the physical cases,” Thompson stated. “The procedure

of displaying items will not change from our current schools to our new schools. The only thing that will change is the fact that we will also have a digital log of all items and community members will be able to see those items digitally.”

The superintendent also said that the kiosks can serve as a digital Wall of Fame.

“As visitors utilize the interactive Wall of Fame, it will allow the district to proudly showcase and pay tribute to our alumni, current student body and the history of Willoughby-Eastlake City Schools,” Thompson stated.