Frontline Blog

School's back in full swing – and we've got a quick quiz for you!  #1: What percent of your district budget is made up of labor costs?  #2: What's the average percent of errors made in payroll?  #3: How much did the DOL collect in FLSA backwages in 2008?  #4: How much do districts spend on paper timesheets?  Find out the answers – and why they matter for your district!  

Are you building your online Personal Learning Network (PLN) to help you find and share great ideas? Many people in K-12 have discovered that building an online PLN is one of the fastest and best ways to ask questions, find answers and get inspired by what others are doing. Here are a just a few of the influential voices in K-12 that will give you a great start for your PLN. Find and follow them on Twitter or their blogs to start learning, sharing and growing!

"Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are." – Bertolt Brecht This quote sums it up when it comes to the Affordable Care Act! Since the proposed regulations were released in February, some changes have occurred and we anticipate more – but many districts are still taking steps to address the coming mandate.

More than half of Americans in 2012 were using a mobile device to access the Internet, according to a Pew Internet survey. Out of these, 31% were using mobile as their primary way to get online. Many districts are taking advantage of mobile technology by getting iPads or other mobile tablets into the hands of both students and administrators. Here are some of the ways they are using it!

Dig deeper into Aesop and VeriTime, meet the Frontline team, network with other district professionals, show off your Ping-Pong® and Nerf® gun skills... These are just a few of the reasons to attend a Frontline Technologies Regional Conference - check out this infographic for more great reasons to attend our Columbus conference in October!

So you've pretty much written off most popular myths: the Loch Ness Monster, Bigfoot, we never really landed on the moon (conspiracy theorists, cover your ears)! But when it comes to time and attendance and workforce management systems, some myths are surprisingly hard to shake off. Here are some of the common myths school districts may believe about time and attendance systems – and the true stories you should know!

Billions spent on substitutes. Up to 50% teacher absenteeism in Rhode Island. Reduced student achievement. Ever since the media got a hold of newly released data on teacher absenteeism, these kinds of statements are prompting raised eyebrows and tough questions from the public.  But is it the whole story? And how do districts need to respond?

Last week, many in the Northeast found out they were overly prepared for the "snowquester" - the snowstorm that didn't quite happen. The overblown "snowquester" (named after the recently passed "sequester") left a lot of people in the Northeast feeling a little sheepish after the 6-18 inch predicted super-storm brought little more than a drizzle for many areas that had already called off school. What about the "sequester" from which the snowquester took its name? Districts have been prepping for the worst, but the dreaded cuts slipped into place last Friday with surprisingly little noise. Will the sequester, like the snowstorm, fizzle out after a flurry of activity - or will the full impact of the cuts still threaten to cripple education?

It's official: the new healthcare reform is not going away. Not only was the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act upheld by the Supreme Court last spring, but the IRS has also just released Proposed Regulations - this time with some rules specifically for educational organizations like school districts. While the regulations don't go into effect until January of 2014, the preparations are beginning now for many school districts that are realizing the far-reaching effects of the mandate on part-time employees - including substitute teachers.  Keep reading to learn some of the key points of the Affordable Care Act and why 2013 is a crucial time to prepare.