Hayes Software Systems today announces that Houston Independent School District (HISD) in Houston, Texas has awarded it a contract to implement a comprehensive inventory control system for asset management and provide change management consulting services. The 7th largest school district in the country will be automating the yearly asset identification process in each of its 300 school buildings with the TIPWeb-IT software system.

Hayes Software Systems will provide HISD with complementary functionality to the district’s market-leading business management software, SAP, to improve asset identification and record accuracy. Hayes Software Systems’ TIPWeb-IT solution will allow HISD to automate the tracking of assets necessary for day-to-day operational efficiency of school buildings and instructional classroom practices. Creating a paperless asset management process will significantly reduce the dependency on paper-based forms to improve the efficiency of staff and reliability of asset records. From the computers used in the classroom to the kitchen equipment found in the cafeteria, TIPWeb-IT will support the district’s 200,000+ students, teachers, and administrators and manage over 1 million assets.

The data collection and tracking methodologies of TIPWeb-IT, combined with the district’s SAP solution, support both fiscal responsibility and asset transparency at the school building and department leadership levels. By providing a tool to school leaders to manage assets more effectively, HISD will control losses, over-ordering, and increase efficiencies – all while freeing more time for school leaders and staff to spend on instruction.

With TIPWeb-IT, HISD will automate administrative tasks that principals, clerical, and technical support staff had formerly performed by hand to inform property management of the status of assets. The system will create more efficient means of managing and tracking assets to provide administrators with a complete, real-time view of their assets. School staff will not only have access to data to make their jobs easier, but the software will give them more time to focus on what they do best – shaping and executing a vision of academic success for all students.

KEY FACTORS DRIVING BUILDING LEVEL ASSET MANAGEMENT IN HOUSTON
• Access to view and update assets assigned to schools and departments
• Create a paperless asset management process
• Focus on helping school and department personnel complete their annual inventory
• Integration with SAP, enterprise purchasing, and asset management tools
• Integrate with Chancery SMS, student information system to allow for assignment of technology items to students and staff

Additional titles for school libraries provide
students access to high-interest, best-selling titles

MCHENRY, Ill. – June 28, 2013 – Continuing its ongoing commitment to expand and enhance its PreK-12 digital solutions to support learning, Follett has partnered with Random House, Inc., the world’s largest English language trade publisher, to offer new and popular eBook titles to school libraries.

Available in time for back to school in August, Follett’s eBook customers will now be able to purchase Random House eBooks and lend them to students. The partnership gives librarians the opportunity to enhance their collections with many of the most sought-after titles.

“We are excited about the 36,000-plus titles published by Random House, Inc. imprints and the outside publishers we distribute that our new partnership with Follett will bring into the school library marketplace,” said Skip Dye, Vice President, Library and Academic marketing, Random House, Inc. “We share their customers’ high regard for the quality and consistency of service to their constituents.”

Random House features many of the top titles – fiction, biographies, classics and non-fiction texts – that engage and interest students, and encourage them to continue their development outside of the classroom setting.

“This exciting partnership with Random House supports Follett’s strategy of offering our customers the most robust eBook offering in the industry,” said Todd Litzsinger, President, Content Solutions and Services, Follett.

According to Gene Bahlman, Vice President of Content Acquisitions and Supplier Management for Follett, “This is one more example of Random House and Follett working closely together by offering schools Random House’s high-quality content that meets their educational needs in a new, exciting eBook format on Follett’s platform.”

Now used by more than 23 million students in 35,000 schools in the U.S. and other countries, Follett eBooks provide students and educators the curriculum-focused content and tools they need to support the Common Core and other state standards. Follett eBooks are managed through FollettShelf, the company’s free, cloud-based virtual bookshelf, and Follett’s market leading Destiny Library Manager – both of which provide robust reporting tools on usage as well as the ability to manage patrons and checkouts. All Follett eBooks use the proprietary Follett Digital Reader, which provides one consistent reading environment, includes a built-in dictionary, and allows students to take notes and bookmark pages.

A 2012 survey by Library Journal of electronic book penetration and use among PreK-12 school libraries revealed that two-thirds of the schools that purchase eBooks buy them from Follett. FollettShelf is the digital shelf of choice at 76 percent of elementary schools, 67 percent of middle schools and 59 percent of high schools.

To learn more about Follett, visit www.follettlearning.com.

About Follett’s K-12 Business
Follett is the largest provider of educational materials and technology solutions to PreK-12 libraries, classrooms, learning centers and school districts in the United States, and a major supplier to educational institutions worldwide. Follett distributes books, reference materials, digital resources, eBooks and audiovisual materials, as well as pre-owned textbooks. Follett also is one of the leading providers of integrated educational technology for the management of physical and digital assets, the tracking, storing and analyzing of academic data, and digital learning environment tools for the classroom focusing on student achievement.
About Follett
Since 1873, Follett has served as the trusted partner in education for students and educators at all levels of learning. Today Follett delivers physical and digital learning materials, retail services, school content and management systems to more than 70,000 early childhood, primary and secondary schools, and on more than 1,000 college campuses. Headquartered in River Grove, Illinois, Follett is a $2.7 billion privately held company.

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For more information, contact:

Thompson Drake Public Relations
Doug Thompson
541.322.9345 (office)
541.419.4471 (cell)
doug@thompsondrake.com

Follett
Britten Follett
815.578.7835 (office)
815.271.2675 (cell)
bfollett@follett.com
or
Tom Kline
708.437.2053 (office)
708.912-4244 (cell)

Over the course of the past ten months, Edgenuity has hosted a series of Executive Leadership Summits on Blended Learning across the country to foster discussion about the future of online and blended learning. These “first-of-their-kind” events highlighted how online and blended learning solutions are being implemented to meet a range of district needs, including schools that are using Edgenuity’s extensive, standards-aligned courses to meet the upcoming Common Core standards. Dozens of schools from across the country shared their blended learning success stories, including:

• Matt Covington, Assistant Principal of Goochland High School in Goochland, Virginia, who spoke to his positive experiences with online and blended learning after the Richmond, Virginia Summit. Covington noted, “Through our partnership with Edgenuity, we have the ability to support students in credit recovery, increase academic options not offered within our current curricula, and assist those students that are homebound for a temporary time.”

• Adam Hile, Associate Director for Curriculum and Instruction at Klein Independent School District of Klein, Texas, who attended the Houston, Texas Summit. “We have a need to ensure all students have a differentiated curriculum, with multiple opportunities to earn credit and master content using tools that are comfortable for them,” he noted. “Students who struggle in traditional learning environments excel in a blended environment because they are provided different ways to demonstrate their learning. Teachers are able to pinpoint student needs and intervene in appropriate ways.”

“We hosted these Summits to advance the conversation about blended learning and have an honest discussion around what’s working well, what the challenges are, and how schools and districts are using digital solutions to improve student performance,” said Sari Factor, CEO of Edgenuity. “School leaders have shared how blended learning models are helping to achieve a more student-centered learning experience. We heard firsthand how Edgenuity is freeing up good teachers to be great, allowing them to focus on high-value teaching activities like coaching and providing students with a more personalized instructional experience instead of delivering lectures and grading tests.”

To date, 13 Summits have been held in 11 states including Arizona, California, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, New Mexico, New York, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin. Over 700 school and district leaders have attended.

“Edgenuity’s Summits helped school leaders push their thinking about how to transform their classrooms based on a more personalized and mastery-based model,” said Heather Staker, Senior Research Fellow at the Clayton Christensen Institute, author, and guest speaker at many of the Summits. “Participants at the Summits shared ideas, asked questions, and walked away with a clearer vision of how they can help lead the education technology transformation.”

Based on the in-depth discussions with educators who attended the Summits, Edgenuity has compiled an Online and Blended Learning Workbook to serve as a comprehensive planning guide for schools and districts that are interested in implementing online and blended learning programs. Schools and districts now have a roadmap based on real-world experience that can guide them through the process of getting an online learning program started to help achieve better student outcomes. For school leaders interested in obtaining a copy of the Workbook, please click here.

About Edgenuity
Edgenuity (formerly E2020, Inc) provides engaging online education solutions that propel success for every student, empower every teacher to deliver more effective instruction, and enable schools and districts to meet their academic goals. Edgenuity delivers a range of Core Curriculum, AP®, Elective, Career and Technical Education (CTE), and Credit Recovery courses aligned to the rigor and high expectations of state, Common Core and iNACOL standards and designed to inspire life-long learning. Fully flexible for use in any blended or online learning model, Edgenuity supports an environment where personalized learning is possible. With 185 semester-long courses and growing, Edgenuity has already driven outcomes for more than one million students in schools and districts across the country. For more information, and to see Edgenuity in action, visit Edgenuity.com.

Contacts:
John Hartz
Sloane & Company
857-598-4779
jhartz@sloanepr.com

Amy Protexter
Edgenuity
877-202-0338
Amy.Protexter@edgenuity.com

WUPPERTAL, Germany — June 25, 2013 — Riedel Communications, provider of pioneering real-time video, audio, data, and communications networks, today announced that the U.K.’s Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) is using Riedel gear within its new Liverpool Screen School building to enable flexible, high-quality communications across its studios and offices. The installation includes Riedel’s Artist 5000 matrix intercom system and Performer digital partyline intercom system.

“Riedel’s intercom solutions offer the high audio quality and exceptional versatility that our facilities require,” said Kelly Loughlin, TV studio manager at Liverpool John Moores University. “The Riedel system installed is a small but incredibly versatile system that covers all of our communications needs, and the quality of the audio is great.”

Designed and specified by Drama by Design, and supplied and integrated by Sony Broadcast, Riedel’s Artist and Performer systems support communications between control rooms for the school’s large full-HD TV studio and a smaller full-HD news studio, the cameras on each studio floor, the technician’s office, and the central technical room. The flexible product combination provides high-quality audio that allows the LJMU facility to integrate both studios into one system and to establish talkback into the studios, the green room, and preshow areas.

The Artist 5000 panel series is a cost-effective matrix intercom solution that provides the full functionality of Riedel’s digital matrix intercom panels at an unbeatable price point. The Artist panels feature marker strips that identify each of eight talk keys. Housed in a universal enclosure, the panel is suitable for rack-mount, wall-mount, and desktop operation.

The Performer C22 partyline system interface converts two two-channel CAT5 matrix ports to two phantom-powered digital beltpack lines and vice versa, enabling seamless integration of LJMU’s digital partylines with its Artist matrix intercom system. While LJMU currently uses three digital beltpacks, the system can power daisy-chains of up to nine beltpacks, split-boxes, or desktop speaker stations per line.

“When we specified the system for the Liverpool Screen School, we didn’t know exactly what button needed to do what or what signal needed to be routed where, but the flexibility of the Riedel equipment enabled us to customize the system on site as part of the commissioning process,” said Andy Stone, studio design consultant at Drama by Design. “The result was a system that exactly met our requirements. Given the success of this installation, we are now using the Riedel system on a number of similar projects.”

Further information about Riedel and the company’s products is available at www.riedel.net.

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About Liverpool John Moores University
Originally founded as a small mechanics institution in 1825, the institution today known as Liverpool John Moores University grew over the centuries by converging and amalgamating with different colleges and eventually became the Liverpool Polytechnic. In 1992, the polytechnic became one of the U.K.’s new generation universities and assumed the name Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU). LJMU has continued to grow and now has more than 24,000 students from all over the world. The university has played a vital role in the cultural renaissance of Liverpool and has taken an active part in the regeneration of the city. New advances in digital technology and science have placed LJMU at the forefront of exciting developments in areas such as multimedia, sports science, and space exploration. More information is available at www.ljmu.ac.uk.

About Drama by Design
Drama by Design theatre and creative media consultants specialize in the design and technical specification of theatre, performing arts, TV, and recording studio spaces. We provide a comprehensive range of solutions to building professionals and owners, whether it be for a simple refurbishment of a small drama studio, or a full-scale construction or renovation of a theatre or TV studio. More information is available at www.dramabydesign.com.

About Riedel Communications
Riedel Communications designs, manufactures, and distributes pioneering real-time video, audio, data, and communications networks for broadcast, pro audio, event, sports, theater, and security applications. The company also provides rental services for radio and intercom systems, event IT solutions, fiber backbones, and wireless signal transmission systems that scale easily for events of any size, anywhere in the world. Founded in 1987, the company now employs more than 400 people at 11 locations in Europe, Asia, Australia, and the Americas.

Photo Link: www.wallstcom.com/Riedel/LJMU.zip

Cloud-Based Student Information System Experiences Rapid International Growth

June 27th, 2013 – Sycamore Education, a leading provider of online school management and student information systems, announced today that the company has expanded their client base into 40 countries. This milestone occurred with the addition of Bethel American International School in Nigeria.

Over the past year, Sycamore Education has experienced a dramatic increase in the number of new international clients using their student information system. One key reason for the increase is their excellent customer support. “Their team works hard to continue to make Sycamore Education the best system possible – which is one of the chief reasons we decided to go with Sycamore,” commented Michelle Laudermilk, IT Coordinator at Guangzhou Nanhu International School, located in China. “Before I got into education, I worked in corporate IT, so being able to work with a vendor that is open to enhancements and so committed to the level of customer service that you guys have is absolutely fantastic!”

Price and flexibility are also important factors for Sycamore’s international clients. “Sycamore Education has been a great solution to our student information system needs,” stated Gary Lenn, Principal of Ukarumpa International School, located in New Guinea. “Finding a system that was flexible enough to meet the needs of an international MK school, yet also affordable, was a challenge. Sycamore was the perfect solution. We really appreciate how helpful they were in implementing the new system.”

When Sycamore Education was introduced over a decade ago, their client base was centered chiefly in the Midwest. However, within a few years, Sycamore Education had clients across the entire United States, and was already receiving a significant number of inquiries from international clients. Sycamore Education is now a recognized global leader when it comes to online student information systems, with an established presence in Germany, China, France, Canada, Japan, and Argentina, among other countries.

Sycamore Education is an online school administration software solution offering over 200 seamlessly integrated features, including a comprehensive student information system, grade book, accounting and payment management, online parent portal, cafeteria management, daycare management, and course scheduling. Sycamore Education is unique in that it was designed from day one to be entirely cloud-based.

About Sycamore Education
Sycamore Education combines deep experience, expansive features, and low total cost of ownership into a complete online school management and student information system. Sycamore Education serves clients in 47 states and 30 countries. More information can be found at SycamoreEducation.com, or by calling 866-757-4968.