Indianapolis' HDTV experiment.

If you've ever looked longingly at a high-definition television in an electronics store, the nagging question in your mind is probably, "Does anybody really own one of these?" Well, you might be surprised to find out that there's a bunch of public high school students in Indianapolis, Ind., who not only watch HDTV, but also create it.

"Being in education doesn't mean we should have low-end equipment," says Earl Harris, telecommunications manager in the district's instructional media department.

The Indianapolis Public Schools has a long history of helping students create TV programming. It built a state-of-the-art television studio back in 1969. It went to HDTV three years ago when it bought a Panasonic VariCam HD Cinema camera and DVCPRO HD production recorder. The 41,000-student district upgraded because it regularly broadcasts live meetings, two magazine-style shows and uses a bevy of distance learning resources.

Harris worked with Indianapolis' media director Dorothy Crenshaw to take the HD leap. Using borrowed equipment, Harris compiled a seven-minute HD production on foreign language distance learning. Senior administrators liked what they saw and agreed to purchase $106,000 of equipment to get started. One selling point: VariCam can produce sharp time-lapse and slow-motion images, which are particularly handy for science programming, says Marc Wellington, former chief engineer in the telecommunications department.

The purchases also fit long-term district goals. Crenshaw hopes to provide 24/7 access to content via CD and the Internet. Another use is more practical: "We'll be getting students ready so they can work in the field, Harris says. www.ips.k12.in.us/telecom/