By Rohan Anne, Webmaster

In September, the school board announced that it delayed the renovation plans it initially created in the summer to improve cell reception across select schools.

The district originally planned to work with FreCom Inc., a local communications dealer based in Chester County, over the summer to install cell signal boosters in Conestoga as well as Devon, Hillside and Beaumont elementary schools. These cell signal boosters would use a distributed antenna system that takes cell coverage from outside the building and distributes it back inside to areas where reception is weaker.

However, according to TESD Director of Educational Program Dr. Mike Szymendera, FreCom notified the district in the summer that it would not be able to complete the work in the summer due to supply chain disruptions.

“Last year, we had (FreCom) come in and identify a few areas throughout the district that could have potential improvement in cell coverage inside the buildings,” Szymendera said. “Unfortunately, over the summer, (FreCom) informed us that they were no longer able to complete the work over the summer. I hope that we can still work with FreCom on this job, but it couldn’t happen in the summer.”

After FreCom notified the district, TESD began looking for another vendor to complete the installation of the signal boosters over the summer. The district had a vendor evaluate the building and put together a plan and a quote for the work to be completed. However, the prices the company put forward were significantly higher than what the district had allocated for the project.

Michele Burger, school board facilities committee chair, said the district had to consider many factors when reviewing the bids.

“The bid process we use is designed to allow multiple companies to have the opportunity to create a proposal and complete the work under certain conditions,” Burger said. “The facilities committee and the full (school board) had the responsibility to review the received bids and determine if the bid was a good value or if it should be modified.”

At the regular school board meeting on Sept. 26, the board rejected the proposal and delay ed the installation of the boosters. According to Szymendera, the district will work with another company to come up with a new plan.

“We decided we needed to get another quote to see what the overall trend was or to see if the first price was too low of a price for the work or if the second price was an unrealistic price,” Szymendera said. “We’re working with a third vendor to try and get a price, and we’ll evaluate what comes out of that.”

Despite the roadblocks, the district remains committed to carrying out the installation of the signal boosters and improving cell reception. Junior Sunil Aiyar hopes that cell reception can become consistent throughout all of Conestoga.

“I think the inconsistency of reception is really annoying. Sometimes you are able to get service in certain parts of the school, but the reception in the science hallways is almost always awful,” Aiyar said. “If we could improve it, it would be pretty helpful for me, especially when I need to use my phone between classes or review material right before a test.”

Rohan Anne can be reached at [email protected].