Case Studies > Transforming lives by improving access to student data

Transforming lives by improving access to student data

Company Size

1,000+

Region

America

Country

United States

Product

Smartsheet
Microsoft Power BI
Google Apps
Tableau

Tech Stack

Data Visualization
Work Management
Collaboration Tools
Self-Service BI

Implementation Scale

Enterprise-wide Deployment

Impact Metrics

Customer Satisfaction
Digital Expertise
Productivity Improvements

Technology Category

Analytics & Modeling - Predictive Analytics
Application Infrastructure & Middleware - Data Visualization
Functional Applications - Remote Monitoring & Control Systems

Applicable Industries

Education

Applicable Functions

Business Operation
Quality Assurance

Services

Software Design & Engineering Services
System Integration

About The Customer

The Metropolitan School District of Lawrence Township (MSDLT) is a recognized leader in developing supportive, innovative educational programs with a 90 percent graduation rate. Located near downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, MSDLT is one of the largest K–12 education systems in the state, serving approximately 15,000 students across 22 schools. The district is committed to improving student success through a collaborative, holistic approach, implementing response-to-intervention (RTI) models that provide a system for assessment, intervention, and instruction. MSDLT is a technology innovator, constantly seeking new ways to work with data to promote student achievement. Despite already having a high achievement rate, the district aims to get even better by efficiently correlating various data points, including grades, attendance records, behavioral incidents, and other day-to-day observations.

The Challenge

One of the largest K–12 education systems in Indiana, MSDLT has approximately 15,000 students across 22 schools near downtown Indianapolis. The school district already had a high achievement rate, but it wanted to get even better. A technology innovator, MSDLT believes that finding new ways to work with data holds the key to promoting student success. Although grades and attendance records are important measurements, they don’t tell the whole story. To keep students on track, the school district wanted to more efficiently correlate “soft data”—such as behavioral incidents and other day-to-day observations—with grades and other metrics. But while grades and attendance records were kept in a centralized student information system, teachers’ notes were scattered across email and documents in a variety of computers and devices. The information silos created multiple hurdles. Even when the notes were entered into the student information system, making sense of the unstructured information for disciplinary referrals or other reporting could be challenging. And collaborating to improve student performance could be difficult too. RTI meetings, which typically include a roundtable discussion with teachers, social workers, guidance counselors, and administrators, weren’t as efficient as they could be. Faculty spent most of their limited time trying to pull together incomplete social, academic, and behavioral findings.

The Solution

To aggregate and analyze student information, Lawrence Township created an integrated system based on Smartsheet technology and Microsoft Power BI. Called Attendance, Behavior, Academics, and Incidents (ABAI), the multiphased solution uses Smartsheet’s work-management and collaboration capabilities to provide a hub for multiple sources of data—from grades and attendance records in the student information system to documents, photographs, and email. Power BI integrates with Smartsheet to provide interactive, self-service data visualization tools that can be used by everyone from teachers to school district administrators. The new ABAI system is currently deployed across 17 buildings, including elementary, middle, and high schools. Because staff have started using the system for RTI meetings, they can find information more than three times faster and spend most of their time helping students. Data is also more comprehensive with the ability to drill down into details. The next step will be to take advantage of predictive analytics to drive a best-practices approach across the entire school district. The solution empowers educators to make informed decisions in time, allowing them to consume information quickly and easily, and become more effective at changing students’ lives.

Operational Impact

The ABAI system is currently deployed across 17 buildings, including elementary, middle, and high schools.
Staff can find information more than three times faster, allowing them to spend most of their time helping students.
Data is more comprehensive with the ability to drill down into details, providing a 360-degree view of the child.
The system empowers educators to make informed decisions in time, enhancing their effectiveness in changing students’ lives.
The next step will be to take advantage of predictive analytics to drive a best-practices approach across the entire school district.

Quantitative Benefit