Comparison of computer system, man-eating plant strikes chord

By Emily Richmond

Monday, Nov. 24, 2008 | 2 a.m.

The Clark County School District doesn’t have to look far for one of the harshest critics of its new computer system, which is only partially operational after four years and nearly $40 million.

Phil Brody, the district’s chief technology officer, wrote an essay in October 2007 outlining his fears and frustrations with the Enterprise Resource Planning project. Published in a trade journal for technology educators, the essay compares the district’s system to the man-eating plant from outer space in the cult classic “Little Shop of Horrors.”

Like “Audrey II,” the district’s ERP project is insatiable, Brody wrote.

The number of employees needed on the project soared from the vendor’s original estimate of 23-26 to 62, along with more than 30 high-priced consultants.

“‘Feed me!’” Brody wrote. “Is Audrey satisfied yet? I don’t think so.”

As reported by the Sun, the district currently has 18.5 consultants working on the project, at a cost of $508,000 per month. District officials announced Thursday that all consultants will be off the job by the end of the fiscal year.

Brody offered his fellow CTO’s some advice. When it comes to how many people it will take to do the job, take whatever the software salesmen promise, “With a grain — better make it a pound — of salt,” Brody wrote. “Understand that sooner or later you will need to throw more people into the fray.”

Brody told the Sun on Friday that he has received positive responses to his essay since it first appeared, and it has been quoted several times in other trade journals.

“I wrote it with a humorous angle and people responded to that,” Brody said. “But it’s all true.”

•••

People arriving at Chaparral High School for Wednesday’s town hall meeting on the district’s proposed budget cuts received a packet containing an outline of proposed cuts, along with two small slips of paper.

The blue slip was for attendees to write down their first choice for a program or service they wanted to keep. The yellow slip was for listing what they were willing to lose to trim an estimated $120 million from the budget.

District employees watched over ballot boxes on a table underneath a basketball hoop. But as the 90-minute meeting drew to a close, several people were spotted improving the odds for their favorites.

One woman moved swiftly through each bleacher row, collecting discarded slips. She was later seen feverishly filling them out and depositing them in the ballot box.

So much for one person, one vote.

•••

There’s a laundry list of budget cut options, from charging students to participate in sports to firing staff.

But there are also a few things that can’t happen, despite the pleas and angry demands of the public at this week’s town hall meetings.

• The district can’t stop testing students or complying with the federal No Child Left Behind law, even if many people believe compliance is an expensive waste of time.

• The school day can’t be shortened to four longer instructional days, which would save on everything from facilities costs to transportation. The district has already asked the state if it might be allowed, and the Nevada Education Department said no.

• And getting rid of every central office administrator — a familiar battle cry — isn’t realistic, either, and wouldn’t make much of a dent in the deficit.

At the Chaparral town hall, teachers explained why they need their paid prep time every day to meet with parents, prepare classroom activities and correct assignments. The cost of the daily periods for all teachers tops $100 million annually.

Another alternative suggested is dropping paid prep periods for department chairs at the high schools. When that suggestion was made at Wednesday’s meeting, a lone female “boo” rang out.

“Wanna bet she’s a department chair?” asked one wag, drawing chuckles from those seated nearby.