Faster Network, New Technology Coming to Des Moines Region Schools

September 15, 2025

Des Moines Region Catholic Schools

This school year, all 12 Catholic schools in the Des Moines metro are being supported by a joint Region Business Office for the first time, which means all schools and staff get the same high-quality IT, HR, and financial services support while maintaining the cultures that make each school unique.

One of the Region Business Office’s primary projects over the summer was technology upgrades. It replaced outdated systems with a unified, secure, and high-performance infrastructure that will benefit students and staff for years to come.

A key part of this work has been a comprehensive overhaul of school technology. Previously, schools used a variety of different brands and systems, which often led to inconsistent performance and slow internet connections.

That’s all changing with a centralized network planned for all schools. Upgrades are already complete at Holy Family and St. Augustin, which now have enterprise-grade fiber internet and a consistent, reliable network. This means faster speeds, fewer outages, and a system that can handle modern learning tools.

All K-8 schools have also refreshed at least 25% of their student devices. Christ The King, St. Theresa, and Holy Family have refreshed their staff devices too, and Christ The King even installed new interactive displays in all classrooms.

To improve cybersecurity, the Region Business Office is implementing advanced security measures like Crowdstrike and email filters at Holy Family, Christ The King, and St. Theresa. By mid-September, these tools, along with vulnerability scanners, will be installed at all K-8 schools.

All schools will also be transitioned to a new content filter, Deledao, as their old contracts expire. Moving forward, the Region Business Office plans to upgrade all schools to paid Google Workspace environments and use Microsoft Entra ID and Intune for device management.

Beyond technology, the office has been busy on other fronts:

  • To ensure compensation and benefits are competitive, fair, and supportive of a great work environment, the HR team sent out an anonymous survey to all full-time employees to gather their input.
  • The finance team are in the final stages of a FY2025 audit, which is on schedule to complete it before the end of September.
  • A new committee is being formed to explore ways to use technology to improve classroom instruction. School staff are encouraged to participate.

By bringing schools together to complete strategic projects like these, we’ll continue building a stronger and more secure future for all Catholic schools in the Des Moines metro.