Talent Development
Businesswire | August 08, 2023
PowerSchool the leading provider of cloud-based software for K-12 education in North America, today announced it is joining the K-12 Education Technology Secure by Design Pledge, a voluntary pledge for K-12 education technology software manufacturers, developed by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the U.S. Department of Education. PowerSchool also announced new commitments to further secure the education technology ecosystem by offering free and subsidized security-as-a-service resources to all U.S. schools and districts.
“Our primary mission is to personalize education for every student and that journey starts with our responsibility to protect and safeguard the over 45 million students we serve today in the U.S.,” said Hardeep Gulati, CEO of PowerSchool. “That is why we have made significant investments in cybersecurity and successfully defend our districts against over 1 billion cyber-attacks each year. We are honored to sign this pledge and even provide additional free and subsidized security-as-a-service trainings, tools, and resources to support and enable all U.S. school districts to fight against cybersecurity threats.”
As part of First Lady Jill Biden’s Back to School Safely: Cybersecurity Summit for K-12 Schools event on August 7th, 2023, PowerSchool CEO Hardeep Gulati will highlight PowerSchool’s cybersecurity leadership and initiatives including cloud infrastructure security, cyber defense, and governance risk and compliance, that secure over 80% of the school districts across all U.S. states, including 90 of the top 100 districts by student population.
“Let’s face it: in today’s digital age, our students and their teachers will increasingly use technology in the classroom. Schools have access to more devices and connectivity than ever before, and this technology in education has incredible potential to help students better connect with their learning and achieve, and teachers better engage with their students,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. “But to make the most of these benefits, we must effectively manage the risks.
Just as we expect everyone in a school system to plan and prepare for physical risks, we must now also ensure everyone helps plan and prepare for digital risks in our schools and classrooms. The Department of Education has listened to the field about the importance of K-12 cybersecurity, and today we are coming together to recognize this and indicate our next steps.”
PowerSchool already adheres to several commitments outlined in the pledge, including offering single sign-on for free to customers, providing audit logs to any customer upon request, maintaining a published vulnerability disclosure policy administered by an independent third party, and embracing vulnerability transparency by openly engaging with customers on vulnerabilities, threats, and risks the company identifies.
PowerSchool is also taking additional steps to provide industry-leading cybersecurity support to educational institutions. This includes offering free and subsidized security-as-a-service resources, including on-demand webinars, toolkits, and trainings to U.S. schools and districts, as well as offerings from partners including Abnormal Security, Amazon Web Services, and KnowBe4. These resources will be available to any U.S. school or district, regardless of their customer status.
“Keeping our students and our schools safe from cyberattacks comes down to equipping schools with three things – knowledge, resources, and people,” said Anne Neuberger, Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technologies. “This week, the White House worked to do just that – mobilizing funding, cybersecurity fact guides tailored for schools, and cybersecurity teams to visit schools and help them fight ransomware. We appreciate the innovative and meaningful private sector commitments in this ransomware fight, as we work together to keep kids cyber-safe online and in schools.”
PowerSchool’s significant investment in advanced security technologies, including static and dynamic code scanning, best-of-breed Web Application Firewalls, and more than 30 annual penetration tests, reinforces its unwavering commitment to providing unparalleled protection and trust to districts and schools. As a signatory of the Student Privacy Pledge 2020, PowerSchool adheres to all applicable state, province, and federal regulations and goes beyond those by independently verifying its security management system annually to third-party audited, internationally recognized standards for security management systems, achieving the ISO:27001 certification and SOC2 Type 2 – the gold standard data security certification for business service providers. PowerSchool is also partnered with the Consortium for School Networking (COSN) on their recently rolled-out K-12 Community Vendor Assessment Tool (K-12CVAT) and is an active partner of 1EdTech, focusing on industry standards, interoperability, and data privacy and security best practices. PowerSchool products have been vetted and certified as TrustEd Apps by 1Edtech, based on the organization's rigorous data and privacy rubric.
About PowerSchool
PowerSchool is the leading provider of cloud-based software for K-12 education in North America. Its mission is to power the education ecosystem with unified technology that helps educators and students realize their full potential, in their way. PowerSchool connects students, teachers, administrators, and parents, with the shared goal of improving student outcomes. From the office to the classroom to the home, it helps schools and districts efficiently manage state reporting and related compliance, special education, finance, human resources, talent, registration, attendance, funding, learning, instruction, grading, assessments, and analytics in one unified platform. PowerSchool supports over 50 million students globally and more than 15,000 customers, including more than 90 of the top 100 districts by student enrollment in the United States, and sells solutions in more than 90 countries.
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Education Technology
GlobeNewswire | September 14, 2023
Acuity Insights announces that its One45 product now offers a Canvas Alignment Tool, which streamlines the flow of data with Canvas – one of the most widely-used learning management systems (LMS) in higher education. This new tool allows programs to ensure that their curriculum mapping and facilitator reporting are consistent and accurate between the two systems. As a result, it reduces administrative burden, duplication of effort and reporting inconsistencies, ensuring program reporting meets accreditation standards with ease.
This new tool will improve functionality and productivity for health professions programs that use both One45 and Canvas.
"The Canvas Alignment Tool is an exciting addition to our groundbreaking One45 product. This tool combines complex data from diverse systems, delivering an efficient and effective solution for program administrators," says Rich Emrich, CEO of Acuity Insights. "This is yet another step in our strategy to enable program administrators to harness the power of data easily and effortlessly. We offer seamless integrations with leading education technology platforms in higher education. By doing so, administrators can gain valuable insights, ensuring both program and student success, without the hassle of making sense of data from various disconnected systems."
What is One45?
One45 by Acuity Insights is a comprehensive program management solution that allows health professions programs to simplify complex workflows, streamline accreditation, and enhance program assessment.
Streamlined solutions for health professions programs
One45 empowers programs with a dynamic, all-in-one platform that powers scheduling, curriculum management, assessment and evaluation, and MSPE processes with unparalleled flexibility.
Simplified reporting tasks
One45 solves tedious reporting challenges. It fully supports accreditation requirements in assessment, curriculum, clinical experiences, and Student Affairs, while effortlessly meeting day-to-day reporting needs.
Seamless collaboration
The One45 program management solution facilitates easy information sharing, collaboration, and communication among departments and learners alike.
To find out more about the Canvas Alignment Tool, please read our blog post about integrating Canvas with One45.
About Acuity Insights
Acuity Insights is the leading provider of admissions assessment, program management, and analytics solutions for higher education. The company’s solutions help higher education institutions deliver on their mission holistically, considering the whole student, widening pathways into higher education, and ensuring both student and program success. Recognized as one of Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500 companies for 2021 and 2022, Acuity’s solutions are used by over 600 higher education programs worldwide. Its Casper situational judgment test (SJT), taken by more than 150,000 applicants every year, is the most widely used open-response SJT in higher education and is backed by almost 20 years of efficacy research. For more information, visit acuityinsights.com.
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Continuing Education
PRnewswire | August 07, 2023
Spark Education Group, ("Spark" or "the Company"), one of the world's largest providers of small-group online classes for K-12 education, is announcing a brand upgrade from "VISPARK" to "Spark Education". As Spark Education, the company will expand upon its flagship Spark Math program, offer additional subjects, and introduce its interactive experience in offline learning centers around the world. This transformative shift reflects the edtech's commitment to continuously improving learning experiences for students and educational outcomes, all while ensuring a fun and stimulating learning environment.
Spark Education unveils brand upgrade with enhanced experiences
• Spark Math: Complete learning system from foundations to competition math
To better serve students at all levels, Spark is introducing additional features (such as daily practice, knowledge mapping, and other assessments.) Additional program options are being introduced to support students with diverse learning needs, from those looking to build a strong foundation to those looking to excel in top-tier math competitions.
• Learning Centers: New locations in Singapore and San Francisco
At many parents' requests, Spark is expanding its award-winning interactive learning experience to offline learning centers, introducing interactive components and hands-on learning elements in small-group classes. Look for us in Singapore at i12 Katong, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Vancouver Canada
• Expanded Offerings: Same great interactive learning experience, more subjects
Spark has continued to invest extensively in research and development. In the coming months, it will continue to unveil new subjects with the brand upgrade including Spark Chinese, Spark Chess, and Spark Coding (coming soon).
"This is an extensive brand upgrade that we hope will help parents and students around the world better connect with us," Tina Chen, VP of Brand at Spark commented.
"The brand upgrade to Spark Education clearly articulates our focus on education, and the essence of 'Spark.' We aspire for all students to be able to find their inner calling and discover meaning in their lives. 'Spark' also signifies the enlightening of others. Our mission is to Spark passion for learning and ignite lifelong growth. With Spark Education, we hope to bring this to life in a fun and stimulating way for students around the world, both online and offline."
About Spark Education Group
Founded in 2017, Spark Education Group is headquartered in Singapore. Its portfolio of education brands combines research-based pedagogy with technology to improve the learning experience and educational outcomes for students around the world. It was recently accredited by STEM.org, awarded "Best Interactive Learning Experience" at EdTech Asia Summit, and recognized as a Parent and Teacher Choice Award Gold Medal Recipient.
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Continuing Education
Businesswire | August 03, 2023
While Michigan test scores declined sharply during the pandemic, the new MI Kids Back on Track program is working to tackle unfinished learning by providing $150 million for individualized tutoring and academic support. To help Michigan schools and districts get students on track in math, Littera Education has partnered with Ottawa Area Intermediate School District (ISD), the developers of the Delta Math RtI Program, to integrate the evidence-based Response to Intervention (RtI) curriculum with high-impact tutoring delivered through the Littera Tutoring Management System (TMS).
“Now more than ever, districts need proven ways to support students who have fallen behind in math,” said Justin Serrano, CEO and co-founder of Littera. “We’re excited to welcome the Delta Math RtI Program to Littera’s growing portfolio of curriculum partners.”
The Delta Math RtI Program focuses on high priority readiness standards from first grade through Algebra II to prepare students for success with grade-level content. Using the Littera TMS, Littera virtual tutors can deliver the Delta Math curriculum to students in 1:1 or small group tutoring sessions. As tutors log feedback in the Littera TMS, districts can monitor student progress in real-time.
“Delta Math resources have been used with success since 2009,” said Mike Klavon, who leads the development and implementation of Delta Math for the Ottawa Area ISD.
“Through our partnership with Littera, I look forward to many more students benefiting from these materials in tutoring sessions with experienced, highly-trained professionals."
About Littera
We believe every child deserves the care and attention of a great tutor. Littera customizes high-impact tutoring for K-12 schools and districts by supporting any student, subject, schedule or staffing model. With our virtual tutors, curriculum partners, and the Littera Tutoring Management System, schools can reach every learner with individualized support.
About Delta Math
The Delta Math RtI Program, developed by the Ottawa Area Intermediate School District with support from Alt+Shift, integrates accelerated learning strategies within an MTSS framework to help students complete unfinished learning in kindergarten through Algebra II.
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