Frontline Education has acquired Perennial EdTech. Read More →
Digital Schools Blog
NOVEMBER 2019
Digital Schools User Conference 2019
We want to thank everyone who attended the 2019 UC. It was wonderful to see and interact with so many clients, both new and old. With the upcoming release of the new User Interface (UI), this year’s conference had sessions that explored more new features and functionality than ever. While some attendees had already done a preview with the DS staff and spent time in the sandbox, others were seeing much of the information for the first time. The reaction to the new User Interface was overwhelmingly positive and we are excited for all users to experience the power of the new Digital Schools Suite+.
It was also great to have senior members of Frontline Education in attendance to discuss the recent acquisition of Digital Schools, other Frontline solutions and potential future product integrations. Part of the introduction to Frontline included a presentation by Wes Matthews that highlighted Frontline’s products, services, and company mission.
Other highlights of the conference included; Mark and Jamie broke down the new reporting possibilities via the grid within new User Interface. These new options give Digital Schools Suite+ users more access to their data, with many more ways to manipulate and display the results.
The introduction of the new UI, which was the first time many attendees had seen it, broke down some of the changes made to the application and highlighted the overall abilities of the new interface. Chris and Mark described why certain product and release timeline decisions were made, and what this means for Digital Schools’ clients going forward. Hopefully, doing so in front of the beautiful view of Monterey Bay was not too distracting.
Finally, from the entire Digital Schools/Frontline team, we want to thank all attendees again for another successful User Conference. We hope to see you next year!
New Suite+ Interface
As mentioned in previous newsletters and at the conference, the DS staff is performing individual Suite+ previews for each of our clients. Some of these previews have already begun, others are currently being planned. If your district hasn’t scheduled a preview yet and is interested in a specific date, please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com).
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Register in advance for these webinars by clicking on the links below. After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month.
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have comments or suggestions for the next issue or suggestions for future webinars, please contact info@digital-schools.com.
OCTOBER 2019
New Suite+ Interface
As of Monday, October 21st, a few more screens have been added to the Suite+ Sandbox for preview. Included in the new release is a new Position Control Dashboard that provides exceptional visibility to all positions (filled and vacant), including visibility to all related compensation and funding. Additionally, there are significant enhancements to the Payroll: Substitute Audit screen to facilitate auditing and streamline the process for applying rates to subs with multiple substitute assignments. Lastly, we've enhanced the Authorization Setup screen to add reporting on all authorization rules.
Digital Schools User Conference 2019
Registration for this year’s conference is now closed. The Digital Schools team is in final preparation mode for the event and are looking forward to seeing everyone that is attending.
If you want to take a look at the conference information or get a preview of the sessions, you can do so at the following link, https://www.eventsquid.com/event/7085.
See you in Monterey in two weeks!
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Register in advance for these webinars by clicking on the links below. After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Suite+ Sandbox Preview – Release #3
Wednesday, October 30th @10am
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_O89RovVcS_6RUgzDPH2xFg
Thursday, October 31st @ 10 am
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_atRf1EvqQmSF_etZds_www
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month.
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have comments or suggestions for the next issue or suggestions for future webinars, please contact info@digital-schools.com.
SEPTEMBER 2019
9/30/19
Onsite Preview of the new Suite+
During the week of October 16th, Chris Beyne and Mark Bedford visited all seven of our San Diego county clients to preview the functionality of the new Digital Schools Suite+. We enjoyed spending time with each one of our clients and were thankful for the feedback we received. The response was overwhelmingly positive, and users are already taking advantage of their sandbox to view data and create reports.
Digital Schools staff will be performing individual previews of the new interface with every client over the next two months. If your district is interested in scheduling a preview in the coming weeks, please contac Sue Pankow.
San Diego Collaboration Day
On Monday, September 23rd, Sue Pankow, Machelle Andrews, and Andrew Chaney were at Escondido Union Elementary for the second San Diego Collaboration Day. With over fifty staff members from San Diego districts in attendance for the event, it was the largest collaboration day yet.
During the day the Digital Schools team covered a multitude of topics and were able to break into groups based on job function, ensuring that everyone was part of meaningful discussions. These Collaboration Days are incredibly helpful to our clients, as they foster great discussion about best practices. Additionally, these events provide valuable insights to the Digital Schools staff on how our product is being used and where gaps in knowledge reside. We also received great feedback from attendees about features and functionality that they would like to see in future versions of Digital Schools Suite+.
If you’re interested in scheduling a Collaboration Day with districts in your area and a Digital Schools representative, please contact Sue Pankow.
New Suite+ Interface
In the next two weeks, the next sandbox release will be available to Digital Schools clients. Details about the release and corresponding webinar will be available later this week. We’re continually posting new content in the online Knowledge Base, with highlights of changes, enhancements, screenshots, and short videos. Click on the Blue Book icon on any page in the existing Digital Schools Suite|Plus, and click on the New User Interface link on the menu tree.
Digital Schools User Conference 2019
Registration for this year’s conference is still open through October 15. You can register at the following link, https://www.eventsquid.com/event/7085. If you have any trouble with the registration site, please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com).
We hope to see you all in Monterey this November!
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Register in advance for these webinars by clicking on the links below. After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Suite+ Sandbox Preview – Release #3
Coming soon!
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month.
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have comments or suggestions for the next issue or suggestions for future webinars, please contact info@digital-schools.com.
9/9/19
New Suite+ Interface
After internal meetings, and speaking with several clients, it was decided that the release of the new Digital Schools Suite+ would be pushed back to February 10th. There were a number of factors that went into making this decision, including optimal timing for training site users, and ensuring adequate time to complete thorough internal testing. While it’s anticipated that the development will be completed well in advance of February 10th, this will give clients plenty of lead up time for staff training.
Over the coming months, there will continue to be regularly scheduled webinars, individual district previews, and the Walkthrough Wednesday emails. The 2019 User Conference will also heavily feature previews of, and training on, the new Suite+ interface.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding the proposed launch date of the new Suite+, please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com).
Digital Schools User Conference 2019
Early bird deadline September 15th! Prices are set to increase next week, so finalize your registration in advance to save money. You can register at the following link, https://www.eventsquid.com/event/7085. If you have any trouble with the registration site, please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com).
We hope to see you all in Monterey this November!
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Register in advance for these webinars by clicking on the links below. After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
ACA Reporting Compliance with American Fidelity
September 24. Invitations will come through American Fidelity to those clients that have registered for the service this year.
Suite+ Sandbox Preview – Release #3
Coming soon!
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month.
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have comments or suggestions for the next issue or suggestions for future webinars, please contact info@digital-schools.com.
AUGUST 2019
8/22/19
2019 ACA Reporting Compliance
There are less than 10 days left to inform us whether your district will be utilizing ACA reporting compliance for the 2019 tax year. As soon as notification is provided, a contractual addendum will be provided. If you do not notify us by August 30, you risk being unable to sign up.
Important Dates
- AUGUST 30th FINAL DATE TO ADVISE IF YOU WILL BE CONTRACTING FOR THIS SERVICE. Please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com) if your district is using the service this year.
- September, Exact Dates TBD: American Fidelity/Digital Schools Joint ACA Webinars: Focused on preparing Digital Schools’ clients for the upcoming ACA reporting period. Invitations will be sent by American Fidelity.
- SEPTEMBER 30th SIGNED CONTRACTUAL ADDENDUMS DUE
- OCTOBER LAUNCH (More information on dates and timing to be provided with contractual addendum)
New Suite+ Interface
On Monday, August 26th the second sandbox release focused on time management will be available. This release includes the Timesheet Management screen, along with the various iterations of the Timesheet screens for recording and displaying attendance, EWA (Hourly, Daily, and Stipend EWAs), and substitute activity. The Leave Summary, Payroll Status (Time Management view), and EWA/SBA Management screens are also included, along with the updated Authorization Dashboard screen. More information regarding this release can be found on the Suite+ New User Interface Knowledge Base page beginning on Friday, August 23rd. It is important that Application Managers and Tier 1 agents spend time with this preview in the coming weeks as it will eventually be released to all users. The timing on the release to all users has not been finalized and will be determined after speaking with clients first.
Last week, Mark Bedford completed two webinars about this release and recordings of these webinars, as well as additional documentation, can also be found on the Suite+ New User Interface Knowledge Base page.
Frontline Education Acquires Digital Schools
This past week a notification was sent to key contacts at all Digital Schools districts regarding the recent acquisition by Frontline education. We’re pleased to announce that Perennial EdTech, the parent company of Digital Schools is now officially part of Frontline Education! We’re thrilled to join an organization that shares our commitment to serving the education community.
Similar to Digital Schools, Frontline was founded on the belief that technology can help improve the running of educational systems, empowering administrators and educators with more time, improved resources and actionable data to support your important work in preparing students for the future.
Frontline may already be known to many of you using one or more of their solutions. They’re a leading provider of school administration software, used by over 80,000 schools, and their solutions provide tools, data, and insights to proactively manage human capital, business operations, and special education.
Additional information can be found in the attached FAQ document.
Digital Schools User Conference 2019
The early bird signup for this year’s conference is fast approaching and prices will increase after September 15th. You can register at the following link, https://www.eventsquid.com/event/7085. If you have any trouble with the registration site, please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com).
We hope to see you all in Monterey this November!
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Register in advance for these webinars by clicking on the links below. After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Suite+ Sandbox Preview – Release #3
Coming soon!
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have suggestions for future webinars, please contact us at info@digital-schools.com.
8/15/19
New Suite+ Interface
We’re pushing back the next Sandbox release to August 26th. This release will primarily include Time Management functionality. The three management screens are in final internal QA, and we’re nearly complete with the replicated Timesheet screen (attendance, EWA, and substitute timesheets). You can click the space on the splash screen of the application to see more details, including registration links for the Time Management Sandbox Preview webinars on 8/14 & 8/15, along with other ongoing updates.
The Suite+ Knowledge Base page is being updated on a weekly basis with informational and training videos, PowerPoints, webinar dates and much more. So, be sure to check it out on a regular basis to see what’s new. See details below for the next Suite+ Sandbox webinar previews.
Digital Schools User Conference 2019
Session planning is well underway and the presenters for this year’s conference are excited to showcase the new features and functionality of the new Suite+. Information on all the sessions and events can be found on the registration site, https://www.eventsquid.com/event/7085. Conference registration runs through October 15th, with early bird pricing ending on September 15th.
We hope to see you all in Monterey this November!
2019 ACA Reporting Compliance
There are less than 30 days to inform us whether your district will be utilizing ACA reporting compliance for the 2019 tax year. As soon as notification is provided, a contractual addendum will be provided.
Important Dates
- AUGUST 30th FINAL DATE TO ADVISE IF YOU WILL BE CONTRACTING FOR THIS SERVICE. Please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com) if your district is using the service this year.
- September, Exact Dates TBD: American Fidelity/Digital Schools Joint ACA Webinars: Focused on preparing Digital Schools’ clients for the upcoming ACA reporting period. Invitations will be sent by American Fidelity.
- SEPTEMBER 30th SIGNED CONTRACTUAL ADDENDUMS DUE
- OCTOBER LAUNCH (More information on dates and timing to be provided with contractual addendum)
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Register in advance for these webinars by clicking on the links below. After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Suite+ Sandbox Preview - Time Management
Aug 14, 2019 10:00 AM Pacific Time
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/dd94d932b029f9a67510d14dfea9e911
Aug 15, 2019 01:30 PM Pacific Time
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/b2349b21d9a3a3248c34be5db4a05ad8
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have suggestions for future webinars, please contact us at info@digital-schools.com.
JULY 2019
7/30/19
New Suite+ Interface
A reminder for Application Managers and Tier 1 agents to review the information on the new Suite+ interface Knowledge Base page. The page can be accessed by clicking on the announcement located on the splash screen once you’ve logged in to the application. Currently, this announcement is restricted to Application Managers and Tier 1 agents. The current plan is to continue this restriction until the end of August when it will be visible to all users.
To ensure all districts are fully prepared for the launch of the new Suite+ interface in October, we’re tracking who has accessed the new Knowledge Base page (accessible from the splash screen announcement), as well as logging in to the new Suite+ Sandbox.
The Suite+ Knowledge Base page is being updated on a weekly basis with informational and training videos, PowerPoints, webinar dates and much more. So, be sure to check it out on a regular basis to see what’s new. See details below for the next Suite+ Sandbox webinar previews.
Updates to Tier 1 User Designation
This week Digital Schools staff reviewed district user designations in the database, particularly focusing on users that also have access to Zendesk. We wanted to ensure that all Zendesk users were also tagged as Tier 1 agents within the database. This designation will guarantee that Zendesk users are receiving all the proper communications and have access to the new Suite+ Knowledge Base page that is visible after clicking the announcement on the Suite|Plus splash screen.
Digital Schools User Conference 2019
Registration for the 2019 Digital Schools User Conference is now open. This year all registration can be done online through our event website, https://www.eventsquid.com/event/7085. The full agenda for the conference is posted on the registration site and there is also a link to the hotel booking site. Conference registration runs through October 15th, with early bird pricing ending on September 15th.
This year’s User Conference will be focused on collaboration and training. The collaboration track will incorporate round-table sessions that discuss best practices for the different aspects of Digital Schools Suite+, while the training track will focus on providing attendees a deep dive into the features and functionality available in the new user interface.
We hope to see you all in Monterey this November!
2019 ACA Reporting Compliance
Digital Schools is collaborating again this year with American Fidelity (AF) to provide full IRS ACA reporting compliance. In conjunction with the ACA tracking capabilities in Suite|Plus, subscribing districts will be able to utilize American Fidelity’s AF Comply to generate IRS Forms 1094-C and 1095-C. Together we will handle the data exchange from Digital Schools to American Fidelity; they will also work with each of you on the coverage data and will coordinate your insurance data to populate the fields needed for IRS reporting.
Important Dates
- AUGUST 30th FINAL DATE TO ADVISE IF YOU WILL BE CONTRACTING FOR THIS SERVICE. Please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com) if your district is using the service this year.
- September, Exact Dates TBD: American Fidelity/Digital Schools Joint ACA Webinars: Focused on preparing Digital Schools’ clients for the upcoming ACA reporting period. Invitations will be sent by American Fidelity.
- SEPTEMBER 30th SIGNED CONTRACTUAL ADDENDUMS DUE
- OCTOBER LAUNCH (More information on dates and timing to be provided with contractual addendum)
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Register in advance for these webinars by clicking on the links below. After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Suite+ Sandbox Preview - Time Management
Aug 14, 2019 10:00 AM Pacific Time
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/dd94d932b029f9a67510d14dfea9e911
Aug 15, 2019 01:30 PM Pacific Time
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/b2349b21d9a3a3248c34be5db4a05ad8
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have suggestions for future webinars, please contact us at info@digital-schools.com.
7/11/19
Digital Schools User Conference 2019
Registration for the 2019 Digital Schools User Conference is now open. This year all registration can be done online through our event website, https://www.eventsquid.com/event/7085. The full agenda for the conference is posted on the registration site and there is also a link to the hotel booking site. Conference registration runs through October 15th, with early bird pricing ending on September 15th.
This year’s User Conference will be focused on collaboration and training. The collaboration track will incorporate round-table sessions that discuss best practices for the different aspects of Digital Schools Suite+, while the training track will focus on providing attendees a deep dive into the features and functionality available in the new user interface.
We hope to see you all in Monterey this November!
Inaugural Suite+ Sandbox Release
As of today, July 15th, the first release into the new Suite+ sandbox is available for preview. This release will include personnel management and position control screens, such as:
- Employee Dashboard (new)
- Employee Detail
- Employee Portal
- Leave Account Management
- Position Control Management
- PCA Management
The plan is to continue releasing additional screens into the sandbox environment every month until the launch of the new user interface in October.
You’ll be able to get to your sandbox by going to https://[district URL]sandbox.digital-schools.com and logging in with your usual username and password. For example, if your current Digital Schools Suite|Plus URL is https://vusd.digital-schools.com, then your new sandbox URL will be https://vusdsandbox.digital-schools.com (no space between your district name and the word sandbox).
To find more information on sandbox releases, Application Managers and Tier 1 Agents can click on the new message on the splash screen when they login to the application. This message will contain information on the upcoming release and a link to a new Knowledge Base page dedicated to Suite+. The Knowledge Base also has links to a quick 5-in-5 video describing 5 highlights of the new interface in minutes.
2019 ACA Reporting Compliance
Digital Schools is collaborating again this year with American Fidelity (AF) to provide full IRS ACA reporting compliance. In conjunction with the ACA tracking capabilities in Suite|Plus, subscribing districts will be able to utilize American Fidelity’s AF Comply to generate IRS Forms 1094-C and 1095-C. Together we will handle the data exchange from Digital Schools to American Fidelity; they will also work with each of you on the coverage data and will coordinate your insurance data to populate the fields needed for IRS reporting.
Important Dates
- AUGUST 30th FINAL DATE TO ADVISE IF YOU WILL BE CONTRACTING FOR THIS SERVICE. Please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com) if your district is using the service this year.
- September, Exact Dates TBD: American Fidelity/Digital Schools Joint ACA Webinars: Focused on preparing Digital Schools’ clients for the upcoming ACA reporting period. Invitations will be sent by American Fidelity.
- SEPTEMBER 30th SIGNED CONTRACTUAL ADDENDUMS DUE
- OCTOBER LAUNCH (More information on dates and timing to be provided with contractual addendum)
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Register in advance for these webinars by clicking on the links below. After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Suite+ Sandbox Preview - Time Management
Aug 14, 2019 10:00 AM Pacific Time
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/dd94d932b029f9a67510d14dfea9e911
Aug 15, 2019 01:30 PM Pacific Time
https://zoom.us/webinar/register/b2349b21d9a3a3248c34be5db4a05ad8
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have suggestions for future webinars, please contact us at info@digital-schools.com.
JUNE 2019
6/28/19
New User Interface Release
Going forward, the new User Interface will be referred to as the new Suite+. Like the upgrade of the interface, the goal of the name change was to refresh something that has been successful for Digital Schools over the last few years, while keeping the spirit of the original alive.
Later next week, Application Managers and Tier 1 Agents will be greeted with a new message on the splash screen when they log into the application. This message will contain information on the upcoming release and a link to a new Knowledge Base page dedicated to Suite+. Included on this page is background on the project, timelines, FAQ’s, PowerPoints and instructional videos.
On July 15th the first sandbox preview of the new Suite+ will be released. This release will include personnel management and position control screens, such as:
- Employee Dashboard (new)
- Employee Detail
- Employee Portal
- Position Control Management
- PCA Management
The plan is to continue releasing screens into the sandbox environment every month until the launch of the new user interface in October.
You’ll be able to get to your sandbox by going to https://[district URL]sandbox.digital-schools.com and logging in with your usual username and password. For example, if your current Digital Schools Suite|Plus URL is https://vusd.digital-schools.com, then your new sandbox URL will be https://vusdsandbox.digital-schools.com.
See the information below to register for one of the preview webinars where we’ll be providing a quick overview of the new interface. These webinars will be recorded so you’ll be able to watch them later. Details for downloading the recordings will be included on the new Knowledge Base page.
Digital Schools Users Conference 2019
The 2019 Digital Schools User Conference is returning to the Monterey Marriott on November 6th and 7th. Next week is the planned launch of the registration site, where details on sessions, food menus, accommodations, directions, and some of the exciting events that we are planning for this year will be located. Notifications with the link for this site will be sent out as soon as it goes live.
This year’s User Conference will be focused on collaboration and training. The collaboration track will incorporate round-table sessions that discuss best practices for the different aspects of Digital Schools Suite+, while the training track will focus on providing attendees a detailed dive into the features and functionality available in the new user interface.
We hope to see you all in Monterey this November!
Important Dates
- AUGUST 30th FINAL DATE TO ADVISE IF YOU WILL BE CONTRACTING FOR THIS SERVICE
- September, Exact Dates TBD: American Fidelity/Digital Schools Joint ACA Webinars: Focused on preparing Digital Schools’ clients for the upcoming ACA reporting period. Invitations will be sent by American Fidelity.
- SEPTEMBER 30th SIGNED CONTRACTUAL ADDENDUMS DUE
- OCTOBER LAUNCH (More information on dates and timing to be provided with contractual addendum)
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
New Suite+ Previews
Register in advance for these meetings. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
July 10th @ 10:00 am
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/1781a0397d3fae467510d14dfea9e911
July 11th @ 1:30 pm
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have comments or suggestions for the next issue, or suggestions for future webinars, please contact info@digital-schools.com.
6/7/19
New User Interface Release
As it's been noted in previous newsletters, Digital Schools will be releasing a major update and enhancement to the User Interface this fall. This release represents the next step in the evolution of Digital Schools Suite|Plus and the Digital Schools team could not be more excited.
In the coming weeks, there will be information on the project timeline, instructional materials, sandbox releases and instructional webinars posted in the newsletter. There will also be a brand-new communication method that will be able to reach all Suite|Plus users. By the end of the month, when any user logs in to Digital Schools Suite|Plus they will be greeted with the latest updates about the new User Interface on the landing page. Along with basic information, there will be a link that will connect to a dedicated space in our online Knowledge Base. This space will include PowerPoints with background information, a full development release timeline, and, as they become available, training videos and other content.
Digital Schools Users Conference 2019
The 2019 Digital Schools Users Conference is returning to the Monterey Marriott on November 6th and 7th. Later this month a link to the registration site will be available to anyone interested in signing up. This site will provide details on sessions, food menus, accommodations, directions, and some of the exciting events that we are planning for this year.
The focus of this year’s conference will be on the new Suite|Plus User Interface and will feature sessions that will enhance everyone’s understanding of what’s going to be possible in the new environment. Be on the lookout for information on signing up, as we anticipate an announcement shortly.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have comments or suggestions for the next issue, or suggestions for future webinars, please contact info@digital-schools.com.
MAY 2019
5/24/19
Save the Date
The 2019 Digital Schools Users Conference is returning to the Monterey Marriott on November 6th and 7th. We understand that the CCAC credentialing conference is scheduled during this time frame this year. Unfortunately, this was the only week during late October/Early November that was available to us. We apologize for any inconvenience and hope to see as many of you as possible in Monterey this year.
The focus of this year’s conference is on the new Angular interface and will feature a number of sessions that hope to enhance everyone’s understanding of what will be possible in the new environment. Be on the lookout for information on signing up, as we anticipate an announcement shortly.
DS Staff on the Road
This week staff members from Digital Schools were traveling around the state of California running implementations, making sales visits and hosting the second collaboration day of 2019.
Implementations in San Diego County
Both Poway Unified and Oceanside Unified hosted DS staff this week for for their respective phases of implementation. Both districts are moving along nicely and are on pace to finish by mid-September. We are excited to have both districts in the fold and look forward to them being able to fully utilize Digital Schools Suite|Plus.
The Oceanside team engaged in deep discussion during phase II training.
Stanislaus County Collaboration Day
On Thursday, May 23rd, Chris, Mark and Andrew went to Riverbank Unified for a Stanislaus County collaboration day. The morning was spent covering topics related to HR including PCA and leave account management. We then provided the most in depth preview of the new Angular interface yet and were able to demonstrate the new grid technology that everyone at DS is highly anticipating. After a catered lunch, the group shifted to a discussion on payroll that focused on auditing payroll data.
We would like to thank the entire Riverbank staff for their help in hosting this event, the great breakfast spread they provided and their enthusiasm throughout the day. To all the attendees, thank you for making the time to spend the day with us. These days would not be as successful without the attendance and participation from all of our clients. We truly get just as much insight into our application during these events as our clients do and they help us to continue to improve our product.
If your district is interested in hosting a future collaboration day, please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com).
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
If you have comments or suggestions for the next issue, or suggestions for future webinars, please contact info@digital-schools.com.
5/3/19
Save the Date
The 2019 Digital Schools Users Conference is returning to the Monterey Marriott on November 6th and 7th. This year’s conference will feature lots of information on the new Angular interface that is scheduled for release in late September. Information on pricing and signup will be sent in the coming weeks, so be on the lookout.
Newsletter Distribution Changes
While we were at CASBO it came to our attention that many of our clients have not been receiving either the newsletter or release notifications. These communications are typically sent via MailChimp, and it’s possible that they’ve been blocked by district email systems. We do apologize that these communications may have been missed by your district. We’ve made a few modifications to our MailChimp settings and hope that this allows these communications to be successfully delivered. We’d like your assistance to confirm if this is working. This issue of the newsletter is being sent via direct email from cbeyne@digital-schools.com, as well as via MailChimp. If you notice that you are still not receiving the newsletter via MailChimp, please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com) directly. These emails will only be sent to Application Managers and Tier 1 agents, so please distribute to your staff as necessary.
The newsletter can also be found in the DS News section of our website https://digital-schools.com/ds-news.html.
Stanislaus County Collaboration Day
On May 23rd Digital Schools will be hosting our second Cllaboration Day. This event will take place in Stanislaus county at Riverbank Unified. We are excited to meet with all of our Stanislaus clients and look forward to their feedback. If your district is interested in hosting a future collaboration day, please let us know.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
If you have comments or suggestions for the next issue, or suggestions for future webinars, please contact info@digital-schools.com.
APRIL 2019
4/19/19
Newsletter Distribution Changes
While we were at CASBO it came to our attention that many of our clients were not receiving either the newsletter or release notifications. These communications were not even being sent to SPAM folders. We do apologize that these communications may have been missed by your district. For the time being, newsletters will be sent via a direct email from Chris Beyne, cbeyne@digital-schools.com and can also be found in the DS News section of our website https://digital-schools.com/ds-news.html. These emails will only be sent to Application Managers and Tier 1 agents, so please distribute to your staff as necessary.
CASBO 2019 in San Diego
On the 16th and 17th Mark, Sue, Machelle and Chris attended the annual CASBO conference in San Diego. Over the course of the two days, we were able to connect with a number of clients from across the state and it was great to see each and every one of them. CASBO is always a great opportunity to hear about new developments in the State and get a better feel for what will be the hot topics in the coming year. Thank you to all of those clients who stopped by the booth to say hello. We hope to see everyone next year in Palm Springs.
San Diego Collaboration Day
On Thursday, April 18, Digital Schools hosted our first collaboration day in San Diego County. The day saw over fifty attendees from the seven client districts in the county. It was spent discussing best practices and where each district has found success using Digital Schools. The highlight was definitely the level of participation by everyone. We will host more of these events throughout the state over the course of the year and if your district is interested in hosting an event, please contact Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com).
Digital Schools’ CASBO Customer Reception
At the conclusion of the conference on Wednesday the 17th, Digital Schools hosted a customer appreciation reception at Café Sevilla. Unfortunately, the fact that users were not receiving our communications was unknown prior to the event and many of you probably did not see an invitation. We apologize for this and I do want to thank the dozen-plus attendees who did see the invitation and were able to join us. It was great to spend time with all of you and we look forward to more events like this in our future.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
If you have suggestions for future webinars, please contact us at info@digital-schools.com
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
AB1522
Friday, April 26th @ 10:00am
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/561f9d361abde995dc2040ba88984b7b
4/5/19
Congratulations to California Exemplary Districts
Digital Schools would like to congratulate Lemoore Union and Poway Unified on being named California Exemplary Districts by the CA Department of Education. The California Distinguished Schools Program recognizes California middle and high schools that have made exceptional gains in implementing the academic content and performance standards adopted by the State Board of Education for all students.
Digital Schools’ CASBO Customer Reception
As a show of appreciation to our clients, we would like to invite you to join us on April 17th from 4:30-6:30pm, after the conclusion of the CASBO vendor show for drinks and appetizers at Café Sevilla. Located just blocks from the convention center in San Diego’s Gas Lamp district at 353 Fifth Avenue. Feel free to invite any of your district staff that will be attending the conference, just let us know who is coming in your RSVP.
Please RSVP to Mark Bedford (mbedford@frontlineed.com) or Sue Pankow (spankow@frontlineed.com), no later than April 12th.
CASBO 2019 in San Diego:
If you are attending this year’s CASBO in San Diego, please come by our booth, #645, and say hi.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
If you have suggestions for future webinars, please contact us at info@digital-schools.com
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
AB1522
Thursday, April 11th @ 9:30 am.
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/150700a1c16a4f1966858a512be5123a
Friday, April 26th @ 10:00am
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/561f9d361abde995dc2040ba88984b7b
MARCH 2019
3/22/19
AB 1522 Update
The Healthy Workplace Healthy Family Act of 2014, otherwise known as AB 1522, went into effect on July 1st, 2015. This law provides for paid sick days for employees who are not otherwise covered by district policy and/or bargaining agreements. However, there are lots of nuances and details stipulated as to who’s eligible, when they’re eligible, and how and when sick leave is allowed and paid.
Although this law has been in effect for several years now, we continue to note that many of our districts do not fully take advantage of the time-saving and automated AB 1522 S/L eligibility tracking and management functionality in Suite|Plus.
We’re offering a couple of refresher web meetings in April to go over our AB 1522 Sick Leave Management functionality and answer any questions you might have. Click on one of the two links below to register.
Thursday, April 11th @ 9:30 am
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/150700a1c16a4f1966858a512be5123a
Friday, April 26th @ 10:00 am
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/561f9d361abde995dc2040ba88984b7b
CASBO 2019 in San Diego
This year’s CASBO annual conference is fast approaching and the Digital Schools team is preparing to head to San Diego in less than one month. In the coming weeks, we will be announcing events around the conference and sending reminders to come to see the staff. Digital Schools will be at booth number 645 this year.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
If you have suggestions for future webinars, please contact us at info@digital-schools.com
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
AB1522
Thursday, April 11th @ 9:30 am.
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/150700a1c16a4f1966858a512be5123a
Friday, April 26th @ 10:00am
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/561f9d361abde995dc2040ba88984b7b
3/8/19
SB 1343; Sexual Harassment and Abusive Conduct Training
A newer requirement in California is that all employers of 5 or more employees provide 1 hour of sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training to non-managerial employees and 2 hours of sexual harassment and abusive conduct prevention training to managerial employees once every two years. The existing law requires the trainings to include harassment based on gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation and to include practical examples of such harassment and to be provided by trainers or educators with knowledge and expertise in those areas.
In order to track this training for employees, an action due type can be created in Digital Schools that will retain the last training date and the next date needed.
For additional information of SB 1343 please visit School Services of California or the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, https://www.dfeh.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2018/12/SB_1343_FAQs.pdf.
Poway Unified
The Digital Schools’ implementation team was at Poway this week for their implementation kickoff. Machelle, Sue, Andrew, Chris and Edward all made the trip to San Diego to welcome the newest Digital Schools client. We would like to thank new application manager Laura Vaca for all of her hard work in organizing the week and providing snacks to ensure that everyone in attendance was able to focus on the implementation and not being hungry
Poway staff during Thursday afternoon’s session.
LA County Visit
Last week, Mark and Chris went to Arcadia Unified to spend a day with the Digital Schools clients in LA county. Unfortunately, a few districts had to cancel last minute due to staff shortages and second interim. Throughout the year, Digital Schools staff will make trips to counties throughout the state to meet with clients and provided needed training.
Release Notes
Several Budget Scenario Management issues have been resolved associated with running an Update to Position Control budget commitments, including the overstating of step increases and FTE, and fixing an issue when rolling Budget Entries into the Working Budget.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule: Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
FEBRUARY 2019
2/22/19
Poway Unified
On February 14th Poway Unified School District approved a contract with Digital Schools and will begin implementation on March 5th. Digital Schools would like to welcome Poway to the Digital Schools team and express our excitement about working with the district and its staff. Poway represents the seventh Digital Schools’ client in San Diego county and the largest individual client district.
CSPCA Conference
On February 8th and 9th Chris exhibited at the CSPCA Conference in Anaheim. Digital Schools was one of the silver sponsors for the conference. A number of clients were also in attendance. It was great to be able to spend time and catch up with them.
Escondido Union Implementation
Sue and Machelle are at Escondido this week for phase two training and phase three assessment. They have enjoyed working with the staff throughout the implementation process and look forward to wrapping in the next few months.
Escondido Union Staff collaborate during the recent Phase II training session.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule: Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
2/8/19
Presidents Day
Digital Schools will be closed for Presidents Day on Monday February 18.
Auditing User Accounts
We recommend auditing user accounts on a regular basis to ensure all the information is current, correct and complete.
Security Group Definitions
Evaluate your Security Group definitions to ensure that the security groups provide for appropriate user access. For example, a good business practice it to ensure that HR and Payroll users have different settings, i.e. HR users can’t edit payroll data and Payroll users can’t hire new employees.
Security Management screen
User Accounts
Ensure that all users are valid users and active employees. The system will automatically inactivate a user account when an employee is terminated. However, there may be reasons to inactivate (or modify) a user account if an employee changes positions. Dropping in an Inactive Date on the User Account screen will inactivate user access after that date.
User Accounts screen
It’s very helpful to Digital Schools Support staff if you associate the appropriate Contact Group information for all of your users. The checkboxes are not editable to clients, but they indicate who’s designated as a Tier 1 Agent (i.e. someone authorized to submit Support tickets) and who’s designated an Application Manager (i.e. the person(s) who coordinates with Digital Schools on behalf of the district). Please advise Support if these designations should be updated.
CASBO San Diego Sectional Meeting
Chris was at University of San Diego on February 7 for the CASBO San Diego Sectional meeting and spoke with clients from Carlsbad, San Dieguito, Lakeside Union, Escondido Elementary and Oceanside. It was great to speak to all those in attendance and we look forward to seeing everyone again at the annual CASBO conference in San Diego this April.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule: Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
JANUARY 2019
1/25/19
Digital Schools News
Digital Schools would like to welcome our newest client, Oceanside Unified School District in San Diego County. Oceanside will be kicking off their implementation next week and we are looking forward to working with them throughout the process.
Sue Pankow was at Escondido Union School District this week to begin phase two of their implementations. The focus of this visit was the assessment of data for employees and substitute leaves. Sue will be back onsite next month to train on these topics.
Release Notes: Evaluations Reports
The pre-formatted Evaluations reports (in the Employee and Site Report Groups) were incorrectly excluding some evaluation data. The [Protected] Active Position at Evaluation Due Date filter was removed.
Release Notes: New Hires Report
The existing pre-formatted New Hires (Union Report) has been updated to include the employee’s district email address to meet the needs of California AB 119.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule: Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month. Click here to register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
1/11/19
User Password Update
In December we released an update which introduced more security around passwords. There have been a number of support tickets about employees being locked out of their account. If a user enters the incorrect password 10 times, they are then "locked" and cannot login to Suite|Plus. Anyone in your district with edit access to the Personal Information tab on the Employee Management screen can unlock these users (see the screenshot below).
When a user is not locked out of the account, the button will read "Lock". When the user is locked out, the button will read "Unlock". Clicking "Unlock" will allow the user to try logging in again.
Please note that part of the update to password security included enforcing case-sensitivity. Previously, if your password was "Password", you could have typed "password" and it would have been successful. After the update, that is no longer possible. We recommend that users who do not recall their exact password reset their password on the login page.
Go to the Release notes in the online Knowledge Base, or click this link for more about the password security update: https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/ds-zoom-video/Suite+Plus+-+Enhanced+User+Password+Security.pdf
Upcoming Webinar Schedule: Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month – the next one is on Tuesday, January 8th. Click here to register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
DECEMBER 2018
12/19/18
Lakeside Union Post Implementation Assessment
On December 13th Mark and Chris visited Lakeside Union to conduct a post implementation assessment. These visits help us gather valuable insights into the implementation process and for improving ongoing training. It also allows us to better learn the nuances of each district’s unique practices. A big thank you to everyone at Lakeside Union for their time and thoughtful responses.
Enhanced Password Security Options
Background/Overview
To further enhance user security in Suite|Plus, and allow districts to optionally determine user password expiration frequency, Digital Schools has made some changes to user password requirements, user management, and login functionality. In addition, Suite|Plus can send notifications for password changes.
New Enhanced User Password Requirements
The Register/Reset Password popup will require users to define a password that meets the following requirements:
- Must be different from the user’s email address
- Must be different than the previous and existing password
- Must be at least 8 characters
- Must include letters (upper and lower case) and numbers
- Must include a special character that is not a letter or number (i.e. !#$%()*@^|)
If a user resets their password, they will receive an email notification that their password was reset.
New User Lock-Out Functionality
The system provides two new and different user lockout functions. If a user unsuccessfully attempts to login, after 10 login attempts the system will lock the user’s account. The popup message will now say “Account Locked, please contact your Application Manager.” The user will also receive an email notification that their account was locked as a result of 10 unsuccessful login attempts.
In addition, someone with the appropriate security setting (typically an Application Manager) can manually lock and/or unlock an employee login. This can be done on the Employee Management > Personal Information tab.
When either of these two events occur, the system sends an email notification to the user that their Digital Schools Suite|Plus user account is locked or unlocked.
New Option for Districts to Define a Requirement for Password Expiration
If a district would like to have user passwords expire, and require that users reset their password, the district can either optionally define a password expiration frequency (in days), or require a one-time reset of all user passwords by forcing all passwords to expire on a set date. This is not a requirement, and if a district elects not to take advantage of this option, the new user password security will only apply for new users when they first register and when any user resets their password.
If a district defines a password expiration frequency, Suite|Plus will begin to count down to the password expiration whenever the user resets their password. Users will be notified by email when their password is about to expire (5 days before the password expires). If a user password expires, the user will need to click on the Register/Reset Password link on the user login popup.
Recent Legal Decision on the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
Last week a District Court Judge in Texas ruled that the Affordable Care Act, in its current form, was unconstitutional. According to American Fidelity, this will not affect reporting for the 2018 tax year. This ruling will certainly be appealed, and most likely end up in the Supreme Court. For now, activities related to the ACA are business as usual. As updates become available, Digital Schools will continue to pass along that information.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule: Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
Second Tuesday of every month – the next one is on Tuesday, January 8th. Click here to register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
12/7/18
Moving from Distress to Success
A number of factors contribute to the fiscal stability of a district and importantly the accuracy and efficiency of its gross payroll. Many of these factors are measured, monitored and maintained by the functionality of the Digital Schools Suite application developed specifically to meet the gross payroll needs of California districts.
The supporting characters of the main attraction, accurate gross payroll is: Budget, position control, internal controls, management of data and District leadership which combine to support and achieve fiscal stability.
Signs of Fiscal Distress
FCMAT (Fiscal Crisis & Management Assessment Team) has identified more than 130 yes/no questions crossing 20 areas to assess fiscal risk. The questions are weighted based on high, medium and low risk. Importantly, per FCMAT “the vast majority can be answered from your integrated financial/HR systems.”
Assessing internal operations and data begins with a leadership commitment. One of the key concerns we face is the inability of HR and Fiscal to ‘sync up” in order to recognize that there is a problem and to seek the external assistance needed to respond to the problem. The problems can be manifested in multiple ways; the most evident way is financial, e.g. are revenues and expenses in line with the current budget.
Is district leadership in sync with the influence of position control on the budget? Are all positions and costs accounted for? Does the District reconcile the budget and gross payroll with position control? Does District leadership recognize, measure, monitor the impact of extra work, school business on the budget and retirement costs? Recognizing that classified and certificated salaries and employee benefits represent 82% on average of a District’s cost, the inability to monitor, measure, and control these costs are a significant indicator of fiscal distress.
Moving from Distress to Success with Digital Schools
Since 1999 Digital Schools has specialized in working with Districts providing a highly-sophisticated integrated Financial and HR application with the functionality to achieve an accurate gross payroll and the data required for district leadership to make informed decisions.
Understanding Gross Payroll.
- Start with leadership agreement: HR and Finance in agreement on the need for informed decision making.
- Ensure willingness to the provisioning and sharing of key financial and related data including personnel information.
- Commit to position control including understanding the data that is generated from thorough position control functionality.
- Commit to interaction between budgeting and position control…one driving the other for informed decisions.
Districts utilizing an integrated financial and HR application will move to success with leadership commitment and the ability and willingness of personnel to appropriately use the application. The tools will be in place to understand a multitude of variables ranging from the impact of extra work on PERS Rate by individual to the impact of overload assignments when not reviewed and approved prior to work being performed.
Return on Investment…
It begins with commitment and with that it can end in success. If fiscal distress is your reality or your future reality, we can offer the tools to help you move from distress to success. The tools do cost money, That is the reality but so to is the ability to achieve typically a full return on your investment within 12 months and continuing thereafter. This is what many of our clients have experienced.
If moving to success and achieving this return on investments is a commitment of district leadership, then contact us. We would look forward to providing you a webinar on Digital Schools application.
NOVEMBER 2018
11/30/18
Angular Reveal at the 2018 Users Conference
During day one of the User Conference Chris, Mark and Jamie presented the new Angular framework that Digital Schools will be moving to in 2019. The presentation highlighted the new User Interface (UI) that will replace Flex (The UI is what allows the user to interact with an application. It’s what you see, type into, click on, etc. It does not store data, do complex computation or create reports. That is all done by our server.)
As we’ve said before, this change is necessary due to the fact that Adobe Flash is an outdated technology that will reach end of life in 2020.
The goal of this project is to have as little impact on the user as possible. While the application may look a little bit different, the functionality will not change. Simply, Suite|Plus will be getting a face lift, not reconstructive surgery! Every single page in the current Flex environment will be replicated in Angular, with the same panels, fields and report buttons running the same reports.
This change represents a chance to improve on the current user experience by no longer needing to install Flash, allowing screens to automatically resize and fill the window, providing enhanced keyboard shortcuts, and allowing Suite|Plus to run on all mobile devices (including iPads and touch screen laptops), with full touch access to all controls.
Over the next six months Digital Schools will be working with a client advisory group to help shape communications and training, as well as provide direction on enhancements throughout the application. This group consists of representatives from both the county and district level, with their district sizes ranging from small to large. Digital Schools staff is greatly looking forward to their input and are excited about the future of our product.
To see the Angular Conversion power point that was presented at this year’s conference go to https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/ds-zoom-video/Angular+Overview.pdf
Zendesk Email Attachments
Attachments will no longer be included in email traffic in Zendesk due to security concerns. In order to download files, users will need to log into their Zendesk account to obtain them.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule:Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
First Tuesday of every month, beginning Tuesday, December 4th. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
11/14/18
Users Conference 2018
We would like to thank everyone who attended this year’s Users Conference. It was full of memorable events and featured our first ever guest speaker, Michael Fine, CEO of FCMAT. Seeing and interacting with our customers always proves to be such a valuable experience for all Digital Schools’ staff. Presentations from many of the sessions, including Michael’s, are available by logging in to Suite|Plus, clicking on the blue book (online Knowledge Base) and navigating to the 2018 Users Conference page.
Conference Highlights
Electronic Time Sheets with Robb Haase
Robb Haase & Sue Pankow created a fun gameshow format for this session explaining the adoption and use of electronic timesheets at Arcadia and Dinuba. The gameshow featured Sarah Lively-Lopez from Arcadia and Ellen Alvarez from Dinuba answering questions about their district’s roll out of electronic timesheets, some of the challenges they faced and the success that resulted from their hard work. The best part was that all contestants ended up winning through their use of electronic timesheets and Robb awarded both with parting gifts.
(Ellen Alvarez of Dinuba discusses her implementation of electronic timesheets)
Guest Speaker Michael Fine, CEO, FCMAT
Michael’s presentation, “System Innovations to Strengthen Fiscal Stability”, focused on determining and managing fiscal stability within your district. Throughout the presentation he highlighted the risk factors for a district and preventative measures that could be taken to ensure fiscal stability. Not unexpectedly, he focused on the need for fully integrated and comprehensive position control, as typically more than 85% of a district’s budget is associated with personnel costs. The presentation can also be found by clicking on this link: https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/ds-zoom-video/Digital+Schools+User+Conference+-+FCMAT+System+Integration+-+11-05-18.pdf
(Ellen Alvarez of Dinuba discusses her implementation of electronic timesheets)
Super Users: Tips & Tricks for HR, Payroll, Position Control & Finance
Several sessions featured wonderful interaction between attendees. With conversations that ranged from how districts use floating/roving subs, how new employees are trained on Digital Schools, to tracking job shares, AB 1522 Sick Leave, and special Hours Worked Assignments . Digital Schools staff also gleaned valuable insights into the way users make Digital Schools work for them and how we can better serve our clients. One specific example of this was having an…
Application Manager List Serve Group
Participants at the conference reiterated that Digital Schools users want to be in contact with each other in order to ask questions and bounce ideas of each other. In order to help facilitate this, Digital Schools is testing a number of platforms that would be able to host discussion forums and allow for users to share documentation in a secure environment. More details will be released over the coming weeks and provided to District Application Managers.
Reporting Workshops
This year’s conference included two sessions on Reporting, focusing on Pre-Formatted and custom Reports. One of the takeaways was an interest in Digital Schools scheduling regular interactive webinars to cover reporting and t share tips & tricks. Digital Schools will be scheduling monthly webinars, with more details to come in future newsletters (see below for the first Reporting webinar).
Advanced Excel Workshop
Andrew Chaney (from Digital Schools) and Clint Rucker (from Pajaro Valley Unified SD) presented an in-depth, hands-on session on utilizing Excel to transform complex data into meaningful information and insights.
Note regarding the Flash popup message when logging into Suite|Plus
One comment that came up several times throughout the conference was that many uses are having to authorize Flash on a daily basis. This is most likely due to the fact the district IT department has set up a routine to clear your browser cache daily. Unfortunately, this is out of Digital Schools control and may be part of your district’s policy.
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
Overview of Digital Schools Purchasing Functionality
Tuesday, November 13th; click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/2b543da57e33ed0bdc2040ba88984b7b
Suite|Plus Reporting: Tips & Tricks
First Tuesday of every month, beginning Tuesday, December 4th. Click here to register:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/cd5f5503d20cb44e7510d14dfea9e911
OCTOBER 2018
10/25/18
Escondido Union School District Implementation Launch Week
Machelle Andrews, Sue Pankow, Andrew Chaney and Chris Beyne were all participants in the implementation of the newest Digital Schools’ client, Escondido Union School district in San Diego County. The implementation team was excited to begin working with everyone at the district and the districts’ preparation in advance of the meeting made that excitement completely justified. A special thank you to new Application Manager Amy Lawton, Director of Classified Personnel, whose diligence in making sure that everyone involved was exposed to Digital Schools in advance made this week a great success.
10/12/18
Google Chrome Issues
We've recently received several Support tickets from Chrome browser users that they can't save a change to a custom report. This problem is exclusively associated with a recent Chrome issue handling Adobe Flash/flex and is unfortunately out of our control. Firefox, Safari, Edge and IE are browsers are not affected.
10/5/18
Conversion to Angular
The project to convert the Digital Schools Suite from Adobe Flex (Flash) to Angular (HTML 5) is well underway and a large percentage of the screens have already been converted. We are all excited to premiere some of these screens at this year’s User’s Conference and know that our clients will be equally as excited about the enhanced functionality that they will have access to once it is released.
10/5/18
Digital Schools Users’ Conference
The last chance to sign up for the conference is next Monday October 8th. If your district is still interested in signing up, please click the link below. The conference will feature our first ever key note speaker, Michael Fine, CEO of FCMAT, and more user lead sessions than ever before.
To learn more about this year’s conference and sign up please visit https://digital-schools.corsizio.com/c/5b60ca2bc667f709f6a07310.
10/5/18
Updated Digital Schools’ Website
Remember to check out the Digital Schools’ website, which has now been updated with a blog section (https://digital-schools.com/ds-news.html).
10/5/18
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
ACA Reporting Compliance: Digital Schools and AFcomply are partnering to bring you this helpful webinar that will cover ACA compliance fundamentals, how to best use Digital Schools' ACA module and reports, and tips and tricks for creating and reviewing IRS Forms 1094-C and 1095-C in AFcomply.
Please register for Tips and Tricks to Streamline ACA Reporting and Compliance on Oct 9, 2018 10:00 AM PDT at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/5882985736537790221
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
SEPTEMBER 2018
9/21/18
CASBO Central Section Regional Conference
It was great to see clients from all over the central region today, many of whom will be joining us in Monterey this November for the Digital Schools Users’ Conference. This mornings’ highlights included a presentation from FCMAT Deputy Executive Officer, Michelle Giacomini. Special recognition to Digital Schools’ client Marcus Wirowek (Senior Director of Human Resources, Riverbank Unified), who was instrumental in organizing today’s event and did a great job of opening the ceremonies.
9/21/18
Digital Schools Users’ Conference
Conference signup is still underway, but registration will be closed on October 8th. If your district is still interested in signing up, please click the link below. The conference will feature our first ever key note speaker, Michael Fine, CEO of FCMAT, and more user lead sessions than ever before. Our presenters are hard at work on their session and are looking forward to interacting with all our clients.
To learn more about this year’s conference and sign up please visit https://digital-schools.corsizio.com/c/5b60ca2bc667f709f6a07310.
9/21/18
Updated Digital Schools’ Website
The Digital Schools’ website has now been updated with a blog section (https://digital-schools.com/ds-news.html). It features the information you see in each newsletter, plus additional weekly updates that you won’t see anywhere else. We are excited about the ability to provide our clients, and the public, with more company and product information on a regular basis. The first posts are already up and waiting to be read by you.
9/21/18
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
ACA Reporting Compliance: Digital Schools and AFcomply are partnering to bring you this helpful webinar that will cover ACA compliance fundamentals, how to best use Digital Schools' ACA module and reports, and tips and tricks for creating and reviewing IRS Forms 1094-C and 1095-C in AFcomply.
Please register for Tips and Tricks to Streamline ACA Reporting and Compliance on Oct 9, 2018 10:00 AM PDT at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/5882985736537790221
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
Digital Schools HWA Webinar October 2nd @ 10am & October 3rd @ 2pm: Mark Bedford will be demonstrating the Hours Worked Assignment (HWA) functionality to better manage timesheet-only assignments. The webinar will provide an overview of HWAs and explain the benefits of adopting this approach (streamlined business processes, automatic budget visibility, position control integration). If you are unable to attend either of these webinars, a recorded version will be made available. Please follow the links below to register.
October 2nd: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/1574289515e8a11cdc2040ba88984b7b
October 3rd: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/04a289708c043e8dcde7dc3c8da9331e
9/14/18
Digital Schools at Carlsbad Unified
This Monday and Tuesday Mark Bedford and Chris Beyne were at Carlsbad Unified to present to area districts interested in utilizing Digital Schools Suite|Plus and meet with area clients for group training sessions. Staff from Vista Unified, Carlsbad Unified, Lakeside Union Elementary and San Dieguito were all in attendance for session on Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning.
Mark covered topics ranging from time management to budget. Just as important were the insights we gleaned from better understanding how Digital Schools’ clients utilize the application on a daily basis. A special thank you to Rachel Austin (Direct of Classified Personnel, Carlsbad) for hosting us and helping to make all the sessions be so successful.
9/7/18
Updated Digital Schools’ Website
The Digital Schools’ website has now been updated with a blog section featuring the information you see in each newsletter, plus additional weekly updates that you won’t see anywhere else. We are excited about the ability to provide our clients and the public with more company and product information on a regular basis.
9/7/18
2018 ACA Reporting
Signup for the 2018 reporting year through American Fidelity is now closed. Thank you to everyone that registered. If your district missed the signup period but still would like to utilize the service, please contact Kristen Lanz (kristen@digital-schools.com) to discuss your options.
9/7/18
Digital Schools Users’ Conference
Early bird registration is now closed, but there is still plenty of time to sign up for this year’s conference. The conference will feature our first ever key note speaker, Michael Fine, CEO of FCMAT, and more user lead sessions then ever before. Our presenters are hard at work on their session and are looking forward to interacting with all our clients.
To learn more about this year’s conference and sign up please visit https://digital-schools.corsizio.com/c/5b60ca2bc667f709f6a07310.
9/7/18
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
American Fidelity/Digital Schools Joint ACA Webinars: Focused on preparing Digital Schools’ clients for the upcoming ACA reporting period. Invitations will be sent by American Fidelity in the coming weeks.
September 17th @ 9:30pm
September 18th @ 1:30pm
AUGUST 2018
8/24/18
2018 ACA Reporting
Signup for the 2018 reporting year through American Fidelity is currently under way. The deadline for districts to notify Digital Schools of their intent to use this service is September 1st. If your district is interested in utilizing the service this year, please contact Kristen Lanz (kristen@digital-schools.com) to sign up.
8/24/18
Digital Schools Users’ Conference
Sign up for the conference has begun and we are especially excited about the user participation this year. As in years past, users of the application will be assisting Digital Schools personnel in their presentations. However, this year we have more user presenters than ever before and know that their contribution will only help to enhance each session.
To learn more about this year’s conference and sign up please visit https://digital-schools.corsizio.com/c/5b60ca2bc667f709f6a07310. Remember that early bird pricing ends on August 30th.
8/24/18
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
American Fidelity/Digital Schools Joint ACA Webinars: Focused on preparing Digital Schools’ clients for the upcoming ACA reporting period. Invitations will be sent by American Fidelity in the coming weeks.
September 17th @ 9:30pm
September 18th @ 1:30pm
8/10/18
Digital Schools Users’ Conference
Digital Schools is proud to announce Michael Fine as this year’s key note speaker.
Michael Fine, Chief Executive Officer, FCMAT
Mike became FCMAT’s Chief Executive Officer on July 1, 2017. Before joining FCMAT in 2015 as the agency’s Chief Administrative Officer, Mike served a combined 13 years as interim superintendent and deputy superintendent of business services and governmental relations at the Riverside Unified School District. Mike has experience as assistant superintendent at Newport-Mesa USD and financial administrator in accounting and indirect budgets at Hughes Aircraft Company and General Dynamics Corporation. Mike is a regular presenter at many state and national convenings, workshops and professional development programs. He has degrees in accounting and public administration. Mike has a long history in governmental relations, working closely with policy makers in Sacramento on behalf of California’s K-12 students.
To learn more about this year’s conference and sign up please visit https://digital-schools.corsizio.com/c/5b60ca2bc667f709f6a07310. Remember that early bird pricing ends on August 30th.
8/10/18
Upcoming Webinar Schedule
American Fidelity/Digital Schools Joint ACA Webinars: Focused on preparing Digital Schools’ clients for the upcoming ACA reporting period. Invitations will be sent by American Fidelity in the coming weeks.
September 17th @ 9:30pm
September 18th @ 1:30pm
8/10/18
2018 ACA Reporting
Signup for the 2018 reporting year through American Fidelity is currently under way. If your district is interested in utilizing the service this year, please contact Kristen Lanz (kristen@digital-schools.com)
JULY 2018
AB 1487 Limits Out-Of-Class Appointments to 960 Hours per Fiscal Year
Effective January 1, 2018, AB 1487 prohibits a school district that contracts with CalPERS for retirement benefits from keeping an employee in an out-of-class appointment for more than 960 hours in a fiscal year. This limitation applies only to employees working out-of-class in a vacant position during recruitment for a permanent employee to fill the position; it does not apply to employees working out-of-class to fill in for an employee who is on temporary leave.
AB 1487 requires the employer to report the hours worked by the employee in the out-of-class appointment to CalPERS no later than 30 days after the end of the fiscal year. The compensation for the out-of-class appointment must be set in a collective bargaining agreement or publicly available pay schedule.
An employer who violates these requirements must pay a penalty of three times the amount of employee and employer contributions for the additional out-of-class pay for all hours worked out-of-class, not just those above 960 hours. The employer must also reimburse CalPERS for the administrative expenses of dealing with the violation.
Employers who contract with CalPERS should review their personnel policies and labor contracts to ensure that employees do not work out-of-class in a vacant position for more than 960 hours per fiscal year. As AB 1487 may have significant impacts on how public agencies handle out of class assignments, public agencies should consult with legal counsel on how best to comply with this new law.
JUNE 2018
Extract Project for Turlock Unified School District
Recently Turlock Unified came to us with a special project request. The project covered the configuration and implementation of a scheduled extract of active employees for the Turlock USD domain, which is then either emailed or send via SFTP to recipients at the district for uploading into the Tools4ever IAM platform. This will allow the district to quickly extract and upload active employees into a separate database.
After determining a scope of work for the project, the Digital Schools team was able to work with Turlock to finalize a timeline and begin work on the project. As with all special projects this one is fee based. If your district is interested in exploring an idea like this, please submit a Zendesk ticket through your application manager.
Angular Update
The Digital Schools’ Development team is hard at work on the Angular project and has made a great deal of progress in the last few months. Recently, the conversion of all pages in Digital Schools Suite|Plus from Adobe Flash to Angular was completed and work has begun on styling these pages.
The style of the current application was created about 10 years ago. At that time Digital Schools Suite|Plus was structured and styled to mimic an installed desktop application. This means that pages are a fixed size and have trouble adapting to different screen sizes and resolutions.
We are replacing our Adobe Flash application with a new web user interface developed in Angular. However, we are not making any significant user interface changes in the new Angular application. Each screen in Adobe Flash will be recreated in Angular with all the same panes, controls and grids.
In terms of Application Style, a major goal is to get the maximum user acceptance with minimal user training.
Our aim is to upgrade our current style, but in a way that will make the new application seem familiar and accessible to clients. We want the application to look like it got a face lift, not complete reconstructive surgery.
The biggest single difference in the Angular application vs the Adobe Flash application is that it is reactive. The Angular application will react to the screen size and adjust appropriately. It will look great on a laptop screen, on a desk top monitor or on a tablet. Meaning Digital Schools will soon be coming to an iPad near you. Not only will it respond well to different screen sizes, it will respond well appropriately to different zoom levels.
MAY 2018
In the past two years the educational market landscape has been changing with acquisitions and expansions. Digital Schools was not immune to this change; we received several calls from interested firms. One such inquiry was from Alpine Investors.
As you may be aware, Escape Technology partnered with Alpine Investors in July 2017. We liked what we heard about this partnership and we equally liked Alpine Investors and their market philosophy.
Their goals with Escape were and are in keeping with the goals of Digital Schools: developing the most comprehensive school business software available, offering the best customer support in the industry and an increasing leadership position in the education technology market.
We are happy to announce that we have taken a great step forward toward achieving these goals: Digital Schools and Escape Technology will be partnering via the Alpine Investors acquisition of Digital Schools. We join a growing number of companies under Educational Software Holdings which is headed by CEO Ali Jenab.
As you know Digital Schools and Escape Technology frequently have competed for customers. Rather than compete, we saw the immense value in collaborating through partnership as the best way to strategically address the ongoing needs of our combined customer base by bringing the best in school business software. What we believe is best for our customers is for both companies to continue operating independently. This gives us needed time to learn more about respective company cultures, products, personnel and operations. There should never be urgency in determining the best way to combine the products and organizations. Rather, there should be careful consideration and planning. That is our approach.
By working together, we are positioned to share best practices and combine our respective skills and school business knowledge. This powerful combination will greatly benefit our customer bases by enabling us to enhance existing products, processes and services. As a team, we are committed to continuing to deliver the best products and services in the industry.
Both companies will continue to operate independently and retain their company names, branding and products.
Ali Jenab, CEO of Escape Technology, as well as Educational Software Holdings, LLC, will continue setting overall company strategy and remain focused on pursuing opportunities for growth in the Ed Tech market.
Ramona Marshall, President of Escape Technology, will assume responsibility as President of Digital Schools for the daily operations. She will work closely with Sarah Beyne, who has served as CEO of Digital Schools since 2007. This collaboration will ensure a smooth transition, while allowing Ramona the opportunity to get to know the Digital Schools staff.
Sarah Beyne embarked on this venture with an eye towards a decreased workload and travel schedule. Through the coming months and the transition, she will be working full time in a management role and will collaborate with Ali on overall strategy while supporting Ramona and the Digital Schools team to ensure a smooth transition. It is our expectation that the transition will go unnoticed by customers.
APRIL 2018
CASBO 2018
Its that time of year again… The annual CASBO conference is coming to Sacramento this year and Digital Schools will be well represented. We hope to see as many of you as possible in Sacramento this week. So, please stop by booth 828 to ask questions, chat or just say hello.
Outbound User Communication Portal
Beginning in the next few weeks Digital Schools will be migrating our messaging system from MailChimp to Outbound. Giving us the ability to communicate with users directly through the Digital Schools Suite|Plus Application, allowing for more targeted messaging. This exciting new functionality will be debuting in the next few weeks, so be on the lookout.
Future Development Projects
Enhanced User Password Security
We’ll be implementing a requirement for more secure passwords when users sign in or new users register. Districts will also have the option of requiring users to reset passwords on a district-defined schedule, if desired. Projected release: Q2 2018
Expanded Document Attachment for Employee Management
Efforts are well underway to expand our electronic file attachment functionality to the Employee Management screen, with new security settings. This will allow our HR users to upload electronic copies of any employee-related files and designate appropriate user security to control access to sensitive and/or confidential data. Projected release: Q2 2018
JANUARY 2018
Release Schedule
Its that time of year again… The annual CASBO conference is coming to Sacramento this year and Digital Schools will be well represented. We hope to see as many of you as possible in Sacramento this week. So, please stop by booth 828 to ask questions, chat or just say hello.
Upcoming Conferences
Digital Schools will be attending the California School Personnel Commissioners Association Conference from February 1st-2nd and the San Diego/Imperial County CASBO Regional conference on February 9th. If you are also attending, please stop by our booth to say hello.
Q: we are required to use the financial and payroll system of our County Office, which is insufficient in offering position control, HR, and integrated budgeting. Can we use this functionality in Digital Schools alone?
A: Yes. We work with a large number of clients providing core functionality of human resources, position control, budgeting and gross payroll. A number also use our financial and purchasing capabilities, which enables them to use only County or State net payroll.
Q: Is it important for all departments to be a part of the selection process and ultimately the use of the application?
A: Yes, particularly Business and Human Resources. Too often districts operate as silos. The Digital Schools application enables the integration of essential date driven data, which means that decisions are “integrated” and based on current accurate information.
Q: Can the DS data be electronically exported to a county or state application?
A: That depends on the County and/or State. We certainly have experience and have successfully “bridged” in a number of situations.
Q: What is the involvement of IT in the process?
A: Ideally IT should be involved in any application decision. With Digital Schools however, IT departments generally find minimal involvement as the application is web-based and hosted. This is also welcome information as most IT departments are extremely busy with a number of other District applications and instructional materials.
Q: If one of my users has an Android phone and an iPad, is that two separate download codes for purchase?
A: Yes since they are two different competing companies. Therefore, your district will have to purchase 1 code for Android and 1 code for iOS (Apple).
Note that if the user uses the same platform on two devices (i.e. an iPhone and iPad), only 1 iOS (Apple) code needs to be used and can be downloaded on both devices.
Q: How do I redeem the download code once I receive it?
A: Google Play –
- Go through the checkout process until you see the payment method listed.
- Next to the payment method, select the down arrow Down Arrow and then Redeem.
- Enter your code.
- Follow the on-screen instructions.
App Store (Apple) –
- Tap the App Store icon from the Home Screen.
- Navigate to the new section on the Featured tab.
- Scroll to the bottom of the list to locate and tap the Redeem button.
- Enter the promo code and tap the Redeem button in the upper right.
Q: What if I don’t know how many Authorizers I have, but I want to purchase the mobile application for all?
A: Please place a ticket https://digitalschoolssupport.zendesk.com.
- Select Form Mobile App and request listing of Authorizers.
- A list of authorizers will be returned back with additional columns for you to select if the Authorizer needs the Android app, iOS (Apple) app, or both.
Copy and Paste
You can use the copy and paste feature
in many of the fields within suite plus. Control-C and Control-V for Windows based systems and Command-C and Command-V for Apple. Most notes and comment areas allow for this shortcut.
Pre-formatted Reports
When we make a change to an existing "Global" report, any personal or district
copies of those reports are not (and cannot be) updated with the change. Users have to read the Release Note, then go in to their own version of the report and re-copy from the new version and re-save the report. It's not that complicated... but if a user isn't on the Release Note distribution list... they won't see (standard) warning. Any user-created, District or Personal versions of these reports will not include the update(s). We recommend recreating using the updated report(s)
Data Audits
Your data is only as good as the last update and reoccurring data audits. We recommend scheduling and running a routine data audit as a part of your Suite|Plus tasks. To do this go to Reporting; Audit. Select the audit group area in which to audit and select “All Severities”. The “Get Audit Detail” button will give you an Excel spreadsheet of possible data issues and/or conflicts.
Clearing browser after new application release
For those users utilizing Chrome as your default browser, this link will give you direct access to clear your browser data: chrome://settings/clearBrowserData
Using the "SU" database
An effective "tool" that you may not know about is the "SU" database. This database is a "copy" of your production database that can be used for training, what-if testing or general learning of feature releases and how they affect your database instance. Your "SU" database is refreshed with production data twice a month on the 1st and 15th. Any transactions used for training or testing will be replaced with a copy of live production data.
Using Export to PDF in a creative way:
One way to keyword “search” a report is to export to pdf, then use Adobe Acrobat search feature to find specific names, numbers or titles.