11/02/98 THIS HELP DESK TAKES TIME OFF FOR HOMEWORK

THIS HELP DESK TAKES TIME OFF FOR HOMEWORK

BILL HEISE IS ON A MISSION. He believes that computer help-desk tasks can be handled by high school students. He should know. For the past seven months, students in Pike County, Ky., have been manning the help desk for the school district. The county has 27 schools on a network with 6,000 devices, including PCs, servers, and routers. Says Heise: ''I wanted to prove students can do this with the proper guidance and training.''
They can. Heise has 33 students getting class credit and tech training. But they don't get a paycheck. ''The students are gaining business savvy and technical expertise,'' he says. ''How better to invest in our future?''
The investment is paying off. Thanks to help-desk experience, two students, Wes and Tyler Mullins, were able to spend the summer at tech jobs. Heise's program also is providing career direction. Says Wes Mullins: ''I guess this has let me know what I want to do.'' The state of Kentucky, hoping other kids will learn similar lessons, wants to expand the program. And school districts in Ohio and Washington are interested in starting something similar.
EDITED BY IRA SAGER