IT Technical Support Service Technicians are Key to 1:1 Chromebooks

With the push for every National Heritage Academies (NHA) student to have a Chromebook, there are twists and turns to make the process run smoothly. Fortunately, there is a team of highly trained and passionate individuals troubleshooting to ensure each student is equipped with a device.

Meet Brenda Steinmeier and Michelle Reinhold, two IT technical support service technicians at NHA. Steinmeier has been with NHA for 12 years, 10.5 of which were at Excel Charter Academy. She made the move to the Service Center at NHA and has been in her new role for over a year now and feels that the time she spent in a school setting helped her form a good foundation for supporting staff and students. Reinhold has been with NHA for 15 years, most of which were also at Excel. She has been in her current role for nearly six months now.

Before the pandemic, the duo’s goal was to support school staff and Service Center employees through technical issues. However, like many, their roles shifted to support the incoming needs as a result of the pandemic. During this time, NHA took on providing each student with a Chromebook, which has meant a massive uptick in the number of Chromebooks coming in that need fixing, support, and troubleshooting. Their Service Center colleagues supported them during the transition by volunteering to help scan labels, package devices, and update spreadsheets.

How does your work impact NHA scholars and families?

Reinhold: “I hope we give them a sense of ‘we’ve got you covered’ in our attitude and response as we provide help to their teachers and other staff members. As we walk farther down these new paths together with 1:1 devices and virtual, hybrid, and in-person learning models, having someone to reach out to can make all the difference. It can be the difference between getting your lesson done that day, or not. We work hard each day, behind the scenes, to provide the best support we can so scholars and families can be successful, connected, and feel heard.”

Steinmeier: “I provide technical support for both hardware and software that keeps things running for teachers, staff and students. It directly impacts the families and students if they are unable to access their apps, programs, or Chromebook. Providing reliable and efficient service is important to me.”

What is your favorite part of your job?

Reinhold: “I’m a newbie on the team, so while I haven’t been doing this for long, I do love that sense of accomplishment, that feeling of ‘hey, I think I helped that person.’”

Steinmeier: “I love serving and problem solving! Helping others, who often call us in a frustrated state, by solving their issues and putting a smile on their face by the end of the call brings me great joy.”

What are you most passionate about at work?

Reinhold: “I’m my best self when I can walk alongside someone, playing detective together as we figure out the issue and get it resolved.”

Steinmeier: “Support and helping others get to the information they need.”

What’s the most common Chromebook issue you run into?

Reinhold: “A lot of things can be resolved by a factory reset – it solves a multitude of issues. So when we get a ticket about a Chromebook, often that’s the first thing we suggest they try. Anything that is resolved with the factory reset is my favorite problem to fix because it’s relatively simple and fast, and immediate.”

Steinmeier: “Students often will pick the keyboard keys off. We replace a lot of keyboards, unfortunately.

What is one fun fact about each other?

Reinhold: “Brenda has this lovely heart for people. She just cares, and cares, and cares. You can hear it in every call she’s on, and I’d guess every ticket she communicates in. And, she is the creator of fun things for our team – always encouraging us, and thinking of fun ways for us to interact and connect.”

Steinmeier: “She not only enjoys editing but writing, too. She has been in writing club for about four years. All of the members are either current or former Excel staff.”

Keep up the incredible work Brenda and Michelle!