Buffalo, Minnesota
5,800 Students
Located in Wright County, Minn., Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose (BHM) Schools serves more than 32,000 residents. Around 5,800 students attend six elementary schools, one middle school and one high school and one alternative high school. For more than 10 years, BHM used SASIxp for their student information system (SIS). The district had nine separate databases which created inconsistent data and was very time consuming to manage. BHM decided they needed a fully-integrated SIS to simplify data management, has Web-based functionality to streamline communication, and provides ongoing training for staff development.
Selection Process
Once the decision to switch SIS vendors was made, BHM formed a committee of key stakeholders to begin preliminary research. According to Carol Reis, BHM Information Services Coordinator, “Multiple SIS vendors were invited to give demos of their product. The committee also did site visits at school districts in the area. After a thorough review, Infinite Campus came out on top.”
Immediate Results
In 2008, BHM implemented Infinite Campus and saw instant benefits. The robust SIS was built on Web-based technology and products are completely integrated, so only one system is needed. Data is entered once and available immediately across the district. BHM saves huge amounts of time on data maintenance.
“Consolidating down to one system is huge,” stated Reis. “We were able to cleanse our school’s demographic data after the conversion. I’m confident our data is more accurate and consistent.”
Stakeholder Communication
In addition, BHM’s stakeholders have access to real-time information. Reis stated, “With the Web-based functionality, parents and students have easy access to grades, attendance, assignments, schedule information and much more via the Campus Portal. It keeps parents up-to-date on their student’s progress, and students are more proactive with their assignments.”
From any Apple® iOS or Android® device, the same information can be accessed through the Campus Mobile Portal, an intuitive and user-friendly app. Users can enable ‘push notifications’ that automatically send alerts for grade, assignment, attendance changes and more.
Ongoing Training
Infinite Campus University (ICU) plays an important role in BHM’s ongoing training for staff professional development.
“Attending a Lunch and Learn Session is an efficient way to review new product updates,” Reis explained. “The Campus Trainers are awesome. They are knowledgeable, patient and have great understanding of the product. If a staff member doesn’t understand, the trainers don’t hesitate to go back and review the steps.”
Included in an ICU subscription:
Lunch and Learn Sessions – Learn about new product enhancements and how they can improve your processes.
Core Course Webinars – Explore a variety of features including: Data Analysis, Scheduling, Posting of Grades and more.
One-on-One Training – Receive personal training that is customizable.
Fast Track to Training – Calls are immediately directed to a trainer as high priority and given personalized attention.
Training Bundles – Combine training when more than one session is necessary or multiple groups are involved.
Teacher Tuesdays – Designed with teachers in mind and include the newest instruction modules.
What’s Possible Wednesdays – Make sure your district is utilizing all the tools available with Infinite Campus.
Return on Investment
BHM has saved large amounts of time on daily tasks. According to Reis, “With the new year roll-over process we have saved more than 40 hours annually. Infinite Campus has eliminated numerous steps and now information is rolled forward correctly.”
BHM appreciates the continuous innovation of Infinite Campus. More than 130 in-house developers consistently work to add functionality, respond to changing educational needs, and overall improve its comprehensive SIS.
“Infinite Campus continues to enhance the product to meet the needs of the end user,” said Reis. “With our ICU subscription, the Campus Trainers are always available to help with any issues. Because of the monthly enhancements, we will always use the same ever-evolving system as when we first implemented. Both the product and company stability is invaluable.”