Delhi Schools Embrace Microsoft Cloud-Based Email over Google

Companies, organizations and educational institutions of all sizes, all around the world are making the move to cloud computing in order to take advantage of the immense benefits that it has to offer. In today’s post we hear from the Delhi Public Schools on why Microsoft was the best decision for their organization in their move to the cloud.

“We can offer our students and teachers a technology that is on par with the corporate world without charging any additional fees for it." Mr. M.I. Hussain Principal, Delhi Public Schools

Delhi Public Schools
Born at the cusp of India’s independence, Delhi Public School, a well-known institution, with the motto "Service Before Self", has been providing education for the last 56 years. There are presently as many as 130 schools under its banner both in and outside India and over 5,000 students and staff.

IT Challenges
With the flagship school, Delhi Public School (DPS), Mathura Road, turning 60 in 2009, the school management and academia wanted to bring the IT systems in the school at par with any other globally recognized institution. As a part of this endeavor, the school took on two key projects that would bring administration, students and faculty into a single cohesive, collaborative environment, providing a rich set of tools and technologies.

IT Solution
The school evaluated several solutions for messaging to bring more collaboration amongst the academician and administrators; encompassing open source technologies to Google Apps and Microsoft Live@edu.

DPS Mathura Road chose Microsoft Live@edu. “The cost of deploying a school wide messaging solution, which would cover over 5,017 students, 220 teachers, and 52 administrators would not have been feasible just from the sheer cost of acquisition and maintenance,” explains Mr. M.I.Hussain, Principal, DPS Mathura Road. “However, Live@edu brings the school at par with global institutions at no extra cost.”

Live@edu allows DPS to provide cloud based email services based on Microsoft Office Outlook® Live email solution, for students, faculty, and staff. The solution uses Hosted Microsoft Exchange Server. Implemented by I Marketing Advantage the solution is hosted at a data center, which ensures the school is able to use enterprise-class messaging solution, without the overheads in hardware and maintenance.

Live@edu provides features that most students are familiar with apart from email such as instant messaging, collaboration and online storage. Each student gets as much as 10GB of storage space. Launched in April 2009, almost 60 percent of the student community began using the emails almost immediately.

Benefits

Easier, Faster Intra-School Communication and Collaboration
A key benefit has been the ease with which the faculty and administration is able to communicate. While many teachers weren’t familiar with the email interface initially, they have been able to pick it up in no time at all, as the interface is familiar.  All planning for special events, lessons and assignments is completed over email and submitted to the heads of department/ Principal.

Improves Parent – Teacher Communication
Communication amongst the parents and teachers has improved dramatically, especially, when it comes to parents of kindergarten through grade 5 students, as parents access the email to get the latest updates, assignments or school notices. “Often the younger children either lose the circulars or would forget to share it with their parents. This is now eliminated, as parents get regular updates over email,” explains Mr. M.I.Hussain.

Easy Access from Any Device
Access to this email had to be over any PC or mobile device using any browser. This was to ensure that students can use their home computers to access the information and assignments. “As the usage grows, we envisage the students will begin to create notes and submit assignments using email as well. Hence anywhere, any device access was key,” says Mr. M.I.Hussain.

In the future, the school plans to implement the other components of Live@edu such as Windows Live SkyDrive to store, access and share files; and Microsoft Office Live Workspace to create and share a knowledge repository

Read the full case study here.