AUGUSTA – Maine high school officials have about a week left to decide whether or not to plug in to the recently expanded state laptop program.

Gov. John Baldacci announced in March that the Department of Education had negotiated a deal with Apple Inc. to lease more computers within the existing state budget so high schools could offer the same access to laptops that seventh- and eighth-graders have had since 2002.

The program is voluntary. Some area high schools have decided to take the state up on its offer; others are looking at alternatives to expand computer access, but feel it’s too expensive to provide individual laptops to everyone.

“For us it means accessing probably about 1,450 computers at a cost of about $344,000 a year for four years; we’re not prepared to go that route,” said Leon Levesque, Lewiston’s superintendent of schools. “We have a group working on a hybrid proposal to offer an increased number of computers but not one-to-one.”

The state will provide no additional funding for the high schools to participate, but is able to extend the option to schools at the cost of about $243 per laptop per year. The cost includes the actual laptop, 24-hour technical support, service warranties, extensive educational software and professional development to help teachers. Schools currently receive about $275 per student in state funding for technology use.

“When we did a survey, 77 percent of kids had access to computers at home,” he said. “We may have to create a pool of computers for those kids without access. As we look at the funding, which is uncertain, we didn’t want to add any increased burden on local taxpayers.”

Mark Eastman, superintendent of the Oxford Hills School District headquartered in Oxford, agreed it is a good program, but he isn’t willing to commit the necessary funding during uncertain economic times.

“The timing is really poor,” he said, adding that he was also looking into cheaper alternatives.

Patricia Doyle, principal of Oak Hill High School in Wales, said her school plans on leasing about 250 more computers, in addition to the 150 it has for the past five years.

“Students’ attention spans are longer when working with computers, more than when a teacher is just lecturing,” she said. “It’s the best way to reach them.”

Poland Regional High School is also planning to lease enough computers for each student, Principal Cari Medd said.

“Our analysis convinces us that the state value is the best we could get, because of the professional development and tech support that comes with it,” she said. “Teachers here are tech-savvy and interested in what’s best for kids.”

George Reuter, principal of Buckfield Junior-Senior High School, said his regional school unit has budgeted to provide each student with a laptop via the state program, but he understands why the deal might not work for every high school.

“The state has negotiated a complete solution, but an individual school may have a piece of that solution already in-house, like a strong information technology staff,” he said.

A representative from Dirigo High School in Dixfield said they hadn’t made a final decision yet, and other local high schools did not respond to Sun Journal inquiries by Thursday evening.