Upper Grand District School Board

What stood out for us, was how flexible and customizable the system was. The interface is modern and it looks familiar, because the forms mimic our originals - but better!

Mark Howe, Special Education Consultant

District
Overview

Challenge

The District’s Special Education processes were not integrated adequately. Many processes were not digital at all which did not allow for an appropriate level of data collection and analysis. Many processes involved physically printing forms, written signatures, and distributing forms via interoffice envelopes and a courier service. Traditional forms i.e. paper-based, fillable PDFs, Google Forms, did not allow direct integration with the SIS, therefore data was often incorrect and needed to be corrected. The Board’s goal was to bring all of the work of Student Support and Program Services into a single integrated platform. The Board released an RFP in May 2019 for a Special Education Software Solution to meet the needs of the Student Support and Program Services department which included: Psychological Services, Communication, Speech and Language Services, and Special Education.

Solution

The District selected an Ontario-based edtech company, clevr. The most important criteria was integration with the SIS, ease of use, and the ability to have multiple people/roles working on the same form in real-time. The Board was able to move off of spreadsheets and into a fully integrated system that pre-populates fields with SIS data, and allows for consistent and more accurate data collection. Users have restricted access to records based on their caseload, role and permissions. Role-Specific Dashboards allows users to quickly search for Student Profiles, view active IEPs and referrals in a listings table, as well as Metrics related to caseloads. The Dashboard also organizes forms under the followings categorizes: Special Education - Psychology and Mental Health - Counselling and Attendance - Communication, Language, and Speech Services. By modernizing these practices, staff are able to be more efficient with their time and improve collaboration and effectiveness of student interventions.

District Overview

Location: Ontario
Students: 35,000
Schools: 76
Staff: 4,000