Testimonials

Centre SIS replaces Winschool for 1/5th the cost of other solutions

by Nyle F. Landas, Technology Coordinator, Jefferson-Lewis BOCES, as posted on Tech WEBLOGS.

"With Winschool not longer being supported, CTE started investigating options for replacement Student Information Systems. One requirement was that the system be web based. After evaluating the current regional standards and another promising system that was being developed for CTE programs. The problem was that these systems all cost almost $50K to deploy the first year.

When the cost was noted, the fact that the regional standards were not geared towards CTE and the new promising system had still not been fully vetted, I started looking for alternatives. Since the world of Open Source offers so many quality products, I thought I would start there. I found three projects that were under active development - two of them still have a long way to go but one in particular was already in active use by schools across the Country - Centre/SIS.

Centre completely changed our entire school community

by Dan Stockton, Principal, Oneida Baptist Institute.

"As we begin the process of closing another school year I felt compelled to provide you with some insights we have experienced with Centre.

As a teacher for 12 years and a principal for six, I have had numerous opportunities to "learn" new and advanced ways of keeping current with student information systems. For over a decade our school used a very popular, but costly record keeping system. Scheduling was a nightmare, and we often just resorted back to the "paper trail." Our teachers had to keep the old fashioned grade books, figure grades, bubble scan-tron sheets, and hope everything worked. Our guidance office had to run scan-tron sheets for the teachers to complete, wait, scan the sheets, wait, and hope the process worked, which often did not. The system did not allow for midterm grades. Every quarter we literally typed individual schedules, sent them to the faculty, waited for grades, and finally mailed them. We could not check student progress without the process taking at least two full days. No transcript options, which was unbelievable. As for technical or any type of assistance, it was virtually non-existent, and when a problem occurred, we again had to wait. Needless to say, I grew weary of waiting, and we found Centre.

Virtualizing Centre yields cost savings

by Karl McElwain,Technology Director, Banks County School System.

The Banks County School System seeks to provide a challenging academic curriculum that prepares every student for a productive life. In partnership with parents and the greater community, we aspire to foster in every student a desire for lifelong learning, a commitment to personal fitness, an appreciation of the arts, a deep-rooted understanding of right and wrong, and a desire to participate responsibly in a free and democratic society.

The Banks County School System is embraced by a progressive community that supports a quality education for all students. The community has shown support with the passage of three Educational Local Option Sales Taxes (ELOST). This funding has resulted in the completion of a new high school, stadium, field house, state of the art middle school and elementary school, additions to the primary school, and new bus maintenance facility.

Currently, the technology staff includes a Director, Instructional Specialist, and two technicians. Every classroom has 3 to 5 desktops connected to the internet for a total of approximately 1500 nodes.

Centre Users Group

We're pleased to introduce the Centre Users Group. Formed by users of Centre, the premier open source student information system, Centre Users Group is the place to check news, seek, get and give answers to some of your most interesting Centre questions. It's also your opportunity as a recognized Centre User to impact the future direction of Centre.

James, Brian, Phil, Jack and the others all invite you to visit the Centre Users Group site for the most current information. If you have any questions, or want to join -- and it's free! -- just contact one of the Users Group leaders.

While the Users Group Site is not at it's most beautiful, member's pressure has forced us to make it available to you. You'll find really interesting stuff in the next few months, including coming Centre enhancements, our Roadmap, and Matt Boytim, our Lead Developer's Secret Hobby!

Join us at Centre Users Group!

TO: the School Board, Superintendent and Principal

Emailed to the School Board, Superintendent and Principal of U.S. Middle School:

"Last year, as some of you know, Amy and I had a very frustrating time with the S??? software. During grade reporting times, especially, there didn't seem to be any time left for kids. We had both worked with S??? in District 51, but since there was not a "go to" person in the building, we were spending much of our counseling time dealing with software issues.

We just mailed mid-terms with our new Centre system and it was fantastic from the counseling end! Although we can't speak for the entire staff, it seems to be so user friendly they are able to catch on quickly. Brian has been extremely helpful and willing to "tweak" anything that can make the process more efficient. Thank you for the opportunity to use our time more effectively counseling students at SMS!"

Thanks!

We appreciate your thoughts and support.

Centre SIS