Frontline Blog

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!

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.

The role of the school district IT Manager has changed. What used to be a position marked by installing and maintaining hardware has shifted to one of safeguarding - almost consulting for - the district on decisions and their effects across the entire organization. The IT Director has grown from maintaining systems to managing  them; fromrunning software to recommending it.  Gary Lambert, the Educational Technology Manager for Beekmantown Central School District in New York, has embraced this evolving role. In the interview below, he shares his insights on this new role and how to maximize your value as an IT professional to your school district.