Bremerton School District officials had long discussed moving to online governance. Apple®’s new mobile, low-cost iPad™ device made making the switch easy, affordable and enjoyable!
New “Paperless” Leadership
“I had seen BoardDocs’ paperless solutions at the WSSDA Annual Conference numerous times over the years and wanted to do something about the large amount of copies needed for board meetings and staff time that was being eaten up,” said district Director of Finance and Operations Wayne Lindberg. “But our current board at the time wasn’t ready for the change.”
“When our current Superintendent joined us in 2009, he made is clear that he was interested in going paperless whenever possible. Three new board members were elected that same year, all very comfortable with technology, and our dream of paperless meetings became a reality.”
Discovering the iPad
Lindberg also said that one of the highlights of BoardDocs is that the product is compatible with innovative technology devices, such as the Applie iPad. “I read that BoardDocs was now compatible with the iPad in an edition of BoardNews, the BoardDocs’ newsletter; it was exciting news!”
Innovative Technology is Key to Success
“The great thing about the iPad is that it doesn’t require all the operating systems and interfaces that laptops need,” said Lindberg. “We wanted a tool that could easily pull up a program like PowerPoint, but didn't require lots of software being loaded onto the device. The iPad is so simple; it just seemed like the best way to outfit our board with a means for accessing their meeting agendas and information.”
Steve Bartlett, district IT Specialist, commented: “Ease of deployment and the wireless infrastructure of the iPad made it so much easier to get the board up and running with BoardDocs. I think we actually saved money, while increasing mobile access for board members, who by the way, love it!”
Ease and Accessibility for Board Members
“Board Members really enjoy the dynamic interface of the iPad. They have noted that if they bring up one of our reports, they have the ability to search through it, make notes about questions they have for the meeting, and they can scroll back and forth so easily,“ continued Lindberg.
Flexible Training was Added Bonus
Moving to online governance is a big transition for school districts and it is imperative that a company provide the education necessary to make the transition as easy as possible. Lindberg said that one of the best parts of BoardDocs is the support it provides to subscribers. “The Company is definitely dedicated to its clients. The implementation process was very smooth. It’s not easy to get all of our board members together, even for a short training session. BoardDocs was flexible with the initial implementation and worked with us to get all of our groups trained individually.”
BoardDocs includes on-site training with every subscription. Once the organization is up and running, a toll-free, 800 number provides round-the-clock access to BoardDocs’ highly-trained support staff.
Increased Transparency with Stakeholders
BoardDocs not only helps organizations to significantly improve the way they create and manage packets, access information and conduct meetings, the service also dramatically increases transparency with the public. Access to current information is quick and easy.
Bremerton School District is home to 5,000 students at ten sites. The District’s Early Childhood Care and Education Partnership with area preschools, FREE All-Day Kindergarten Program, Special Education, and Title I Programs have received state and national recognition. After-school and early-morning tutoring programs are available to help students reach both their educational goals and state standards.