Business

Providing Structure to an Unstructured Data Environment

Big data is nothing new in education. Districts grapple with disparate datasets living in various places both at the district office and within each individual school, all with the objective of making sense of so many data elements. From state data sources to vendor data extracts to local data sets, collecting and organizing the vast […]

Business

How District Leaders Can Address Challenges with the Power of Analytics

In today’s K-12 landscape, school leaders face a host of challenges that seem to have only been exacerbated since the pandemic. Ongoing barriers to a quality education workforce, interrupted learning and widening academic gaps, increased social emotional need, inequitable access to opportunity, uncertain stimulus-boosted budgets and heightened pressure to demonstrate meaningful growth and change are […]

Business

5 Steps to Forecasting in Uncertain Times

Long-term planning has always been a key responsibility for school business officials. But in the wake of the pandemic, this planning has taken on not only a new level of importance, but also a new degree of complexity. It isn’t enough to assume that a plan or budget will continue to work just because it […]

Business

Cash Flow Monitoring for Long-Term Solvency

Why SBOs should consider implementing cash flow monitoring as a long-term solvency solution Beyond ensuring monthly liquidity for operations, why should SBOs consider implementing cash flow monitoring as a long-term solvency solution? Knowing how your district’s monthly revenue and expenditures are trending supports healthy cash reserve planning and timely monitoring of your financial forecast. Strong […]

Business

Effective Dating & Conditional Workflows in Position Management

Behind the scenes at any school district, there are playmakers at work — including business officials who keep the gears moving. And behind those people? Their systems and processes. Tried and true methods get the job done, but innovations save time and elevate professionals in HR, Finance, and Payroll to higher-level insights, strategy, and stewardship. […]

Business

5 Ways Collaboration Between Tech and Finance Departments Can Create an Impact

Friction between tech and finance offices has historically stemmed from the business office’s need to maximize the use of any funds available to the greatest educational gain to support learning and teaching, while technology departments often found it difficult to prove the return on investment — to show explicitly that the purchase of a laptop […]

Business

Make the Most of Stimulus Funds: Budgeting Best Practices

As school districts across the country are beginning the process of developing their 2022-23 school-year budgets, the world is still reeling from the impacts of COVID-19. New revenue, lost revenue, rising costs, labor market shifts, and a changing educational landscape all together make it a challenging time to predict and plan for the future. Below […]

Business

How to Disaster-Proof Your School District Business Office

What does business continuity have to do with education? School districts have learned from experience how to manage crises. They are skilled at notifying students, parents, and other stakeholders in the community. Safety protocols have expanded far beyond fire drills into lockdown and active shooter drills. This year, schools dealt with a pandemic and learned […]

Business

Project Management Should Be Part of Your ERP Selection Choice

When searching for new ERP software, there are many factors to consider, like company experience, customer recommendations, desired features, and product infrastructure. One of the factors that may get overlooked but is essential to a smooth transition is project management. We all know that implementations are complex. There are so many moving parts, it can […]

Talk Data to Me

A data-centric view on the challenges facing school districts

Recruiting & Hiring

Talk Data to Me: Hire Rates

According to a 2021 Frontline survey, about two-thirds of over 1,200 school and district administrators reported having a teacher shortage. Some districts experienced the teacher shortage worse than others. About half of the respondents reported difficulty filling jobs across all grade levels and subjects while the other half felt the effects of the shortage in […]

Teacher Absences & Subs

Talk Data to Me: Trends in Absence Management and Substitute Pools

Troubled by substitute shortages and low fill rates? You’re not alone. These are challenges faced by many districts, and for good reason. Substitute management is no walk in the park: a lot of different elements go into maintaining and managing a healthy substitute pool.   To overcome the challenges associated with the substitute shortage, districts […]

Recruiting & Hiring

Talk Data to Me: The State of the Instructional Teacher Shortage

The Frontline Research and Learning Institute recently published a research brief called “The State of the Instructional Teacher Shortage”. Following a basic supply and demand economic model, the analysis investigates the quantity of candidates applying for jobs (supply) as well as the availability of open positions (demand). Trends show changes to both sides of the […]

Student Data

Talk Data to Me: Supporting the Health Needs of Students and Staff

In early April, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said that schools should be reopened and “full-fledged in person” come fall 2021, regardless of vaccination status. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona echoed this in early May, saying that he expects a full return for all students in the fall. With most states no longer placing restrictions on school […]

Front & Center

A series showcasing various leaders in the K-12 space