Education grows stronger when students are invited to step into real roles that challenge them, support them, and allow them to discover who they want to become. This fall, McCaskey High School launched a program designed with that belief at its center. The Student IT Help Desk.
For years, the idea of a student run support team had been discussed between the high school and SDoL’s Information Technology Department. The timing was never quite right. Space was limited, staff capacity shifted, and the district was in the middle of major technology upgrades. This year, the pieces finally aligned. After construction work in the IT wing at McCaskey East and a reorganization of the department, the district had a space built specifically for students to learn alongside professionals.
AV Supervisor Sam Kochenberger shared how long the team had waited for this moment. “We had talked about creating a student help desk for a few years. The timing was not right before. We did not have the space. Now that we have a dedicated room, the right supports, and the right people in place, we decided to pull the trigger and make it happen.”
The help desk functions as an internship style class. Students earn credit, follow a daily attendance schedule, and build experience they can carry into college, trade school, or future employment. Some have already worked for the district’s paid summer tech program. Others are encountering IT work for the first time.
“We wanted to provide an opportunity for students to learn more about IT. They might be students who want a future in technology. They might be students who are unsure about their career path. They might just want a safe place to be during the day. This is for all of them.”
Students from JP McCaskey and McCaskey East were encouraged to apply. The process was structured, but welcoming. Every student who completed the form received an interview. There were no cuts. The goal was to open the experience to anyone willing to try.
Part of the onboarding process included a full tour of the IT department. Students were introduced to network engineers, mobile device management technicians, service desk staff, and AV specialists. They were shown how the teams operate, how requests move through the system, and what resources they can access when they need help.
The design is intentional. Students are not expected to know how to fix every issue. Instead, they are encouraged to lean on the experts around them.
“If a student helper gets stuck, they know they can walk through the back door and ask any of us a question,” Sam said. “Some of them already came to my office on day one. Every question becomes a chance for the student to learn something new while the person who brought the device still gets the support they need.”
The help desk currently supports students and staff at JP McCaskey and McCaskey East. SDoL plans to grow the program over time. The district has already expanded it once. A student from Milestones applied, and the team wanted to ensure that the opportunity was not limited by the building the student attends. They conducted the interview onsite and created a plan for the student to serve as a tech point person within Milestones.
“We are trying to be as inclusive as possible,” Sam said. “We want students in every part of the high school community to have access to this experience.”
Students who join the help desk do so for different reasons. Some want technical knowledge. Others want communication skills. Some want exposure to a field they are curious about. The diversity of intentions is part of what makes the program powerful.
Octavian Tucker, a senior, applied to strengthen his future. “I wanted to sharpen my resume before I start college,” he said. He grew up around STEM because his father is an IT manager. “I learned a lot about technology from him. It is cool to see how much everything is changing now from what I saw growing up. I want to learn troubleshooting and customer service. I could see myself going into digital forensics.”
Daniel Sandblade, a tenth grader, joined because he wanted to challenge himself. “I wanted to improve my problem solving skills and my communication with others,” he said. His long term goal is to become a process engineer. “Thinking quickly and under pressure is important in many careers, not just technology. I want to get better at that.”
Kylia Lehman, also in tenth grade, joined for exposure and possibility. “I like technology and I want to get more experience,” she said. She hopes to pursue computer science. She also pays close attention to what it means to participate in a field with fewer women. “It is interesting to see the differences in how we think. More women are coming into STEM and that is exciting. I want to learn what goes on behind the scenes.”
Every student helper brings a different story. Every person who walks into the help desk brings a new opportunity for learning. Teachers and counselors have already visited to understand how their students can join.
Sam has been moved by the interest and support from across the district. “We are very grateful for the opportunity to do this. The village truly came together. The IT staff, high school leadership, counselors, everyone pitched in. It already feels like it is making a huge impact. And we are only in week one.”
The Student IT Help Desk is becoming more than a technical support space. It’s becoming a doorway into futures that students may not have imagined for themselves.
Most of all, it is becoming a reminder of what happens when students are given room to explore, adults are willing to guide them, and a school community comes together to create something new.
McCaskey is proud to lead this work. SDoL is proud to support it. The students are already shaping where it goes next.