EFFINGHAM — The Unit 40 School Board has approved the purchase of a new student management system called Infinite Campus. This will replace the district’s current system, Chalkable’s InformationNOW (INOW).
The software is used to manage student records and help teachers, parents and administrators share information and communicate.
“I don’t think people understand this change,” Superintendent Mark Doan told the school board during a meeting this week. “This is huge because everybody touches this. I mean everybody: parents, teachers, administrators, everybody.”
Assistant Superintendent Jason Fox described the platform as a way for parents and district staff to access all kinds of records in one place. He said they’ll be able to “access grades, attendance, discipline, lunch accounts, fees and contact teachers.”
The school board approved a first-year cost of $75,829 with an additional allowance of up to $10,000 to pay Infinite Campus to integrate existing services into the new system. In the future, these services will cost $41,779, slightly higher than the current INOW student information system.
“Things you get with that ... are gonna be your licensing cost, your support cost, your maintenance, your upgrade. All of that’s included in that cost. It’s fairly standard for what you see on an application of the size and scope of what we’re looking at,” said Brad Waldhoff, a board member.
The allowance was granted based on Fox and the board’s technology committee finding that it would be less expensive to contract that work than to pay district staff for the same services.
Fox anticipates that because of the planned integrations, in particular with the registration system and lunch system, the cost of Infinite Campus will be similar to Information NOW. “Moving forward in the future it will level out,” he said.
The district currently pays about $12,000 a year for the system it uses for online registration, according to Fox.
“That will go away,” he said. This is in addition to costs for other systems.
“We’re trying to make our whole situation more user friendly and more efficient,” Doan said.
The district wanted to replace INOW last year, but that had to be put on hold because of the complexities that arose during the pandemic in early 2020, Doan said in an interview.
The switch to Infinite Campus comes at a time when much of the district’s technological capacity is changing. At August’s school board meeting, the board approved spending $478,000 on new computing devices. The purchase will ensure every student in the district has access to a device. Pre-K and kindergarten students will be issued iPads and all other students will receive laptops.
The Infinite Campus website says that “more than 2,000” school districts use the system, which range in size between 100 and 300,000 students.
The school board also approved its FY2021 budget. The budget includes provisions for increased staff salaries, technology upgrades, continued renovation work at Effingham Junior High School, purchases of seven buses, and contingency funds for unforeseen circ*mstances.
Despite several funds running a deficit, Fox is not worried. This is the fourth year of a budget showing deficits, though the district has ended the year “in the black” for the previous three years, according to Fox.
“We try to underestimate our revenues and overestimate our expenses,” Fox said.
In other district matters:
• Three school board seats will be up for election in April. Nominating petitions may be circulated now. Once a candidate has collected 50 signatures, they need to file paperwork at the Effingham County Clerk’s office between Dec. 14 and 21. Elections will be April 6.
• The board approved a plan to survey the existing school facilities for the technological capacity for the district’s planned 1:1 computer purchases, since it will increase use of the building’s power and wireless internet systems. The consultation will cost $8,713.67, according to Fox.
• Jane Willenborg received the “Master Board Member” certification from the Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB). Willenborg was awarded a framed certificate from IASB. Steve Bone reached “Level I” in the same program from IASB and was given a commemorative lapel pin.
• The Unit 40 Education Foundation will not be issuing teacher grants at this time because of a lack of fundraising in the spring. Fundraising will continue in the future. An exhibition game with the Harlem Wizards has been rescheduled to April after being pushed back due to concerns about COVID-19.
• Enrollment this year in the district is down 132 students bringing the district total to 2,322 as of Sept. 9, according to district paperwork. Doan suggested this is due to an increase in homeschooling and students moving out of the district. He added this follows a trend throughout Illinois, particularly rural districts.
