The School Board tonight recognized Dan Fisher, an employee in the Technology Department. He is pictured with Board Member Carol Barnes.
Superintendent Dr. Mike Slagle shared a story to illustrate the type of problem-solving and customer service that Dan provides.
High School Teacher Steve Hatfield reached out to Ryan Gooding, Director of Technology, to share his appreciation for Dan’s efforts to repair the CNC plasma cutter at the high school.
Here is the story, in the words of Mr. Hatfield:
“I want to give a huge shout out to Dan Fisher. As you know the CNC plasma cutter is an integral part of my classes, our department, and items we make for maintenance. The computer that runs everything is 12 years old and when it went down in mid-November, I immediately called Dan.
"He came over and tried several fixes, but to no avail. He then researched the memory and the processor components, and I ordered them from Amazon. When those came in, he installed them, and still nothing. He then suggested that I order a completely new motherboard as a last ditch effort - and he found an exact match. The motherboard came in - and he immediately came over and began switching everything out. After some fine tuning and working with the original manufacturer tech support, he had us back up and running. He then stayed late on that Friday to help me reassemble the entire unit.
"The total for all of the parts I ordered was around $80. A new CNC plasma cutter (which is sold as one large unit) is $18,000. Dan went way above and beyond what I ever expected. He obviously saved the district a large amount of money, but more importantly he got me up and running so students could cut out projects and items for Christmas. I was extremely impressed with his knowledge and 'stick to it-itive ness'. Never once did he complain or seem frustrated, but merely there was a problem, and he was going to stay and get it fixed. I cannot thank him enough. I wanted you to know how much this made a difference and how important this was to so many individuals.”
Dan Fisher has worked for the school district since 2006. He first worked in the Buildings and Ground Department, and was honored as a finalist for Support Staff Employee of the Year in both 2016 and 2017 when he was the lead custodian at Bridle Ridge Elementary School.
While serving in that role, his knowledge of computers became apparent - because he would often help staff members with technology-related questions. In 2018, he joined the Technology Department.