It is true that Rancho Santa Fe, Rowe School, a one campus school district has applications with overlapping functions each set up to meet the specific needs of different departments. What exaggerates these inefficiencies, is the fact that with such a small student base (450 @ elementary, and 250 @ middle school), there are no economies of scale to make up for the waste. For example we currently have seven different ways of communicating information with the parent body. This state of affairs evolved slowly over time, morphing into the beast it is today. Some of the systems were add-ons, tailored to meet a specific need, while others were parts of a larger system that while not needed, requested, or valuable, had a built-in communication function. What was at first convenient has become burdensome, as it is virtually impossible to know the source of the messaging, making it unlikely that future correspondence will be received. Take for instance the scenario where a parent uses our LMS, Canvas to send a note to the child’s teacher while checking on an incomplete assignment. Having received the note, reflexively bounced to our Luisa email system, the teacher responds to the parent’s email address which autofills on the reply. Expecting the reply in Canvas, the teacher reply goes unnoticed, and creates an aggravating situation, all because of overlapping systems that end up working against one another. Multiple methods to perform the same function also puts the onus on staff, parent, administrator, and student to be fluent in the workings of those systems. As leader and change agent, I would have to first perform a comprehensive systems analysis, carefully noting the existing duplication. I would then have to communicate clearly to each of the different departments from teaching and learning, to back office, the degree of waste involved. Paying close attention to the expenses being absorbed, I would need to get a consensus that the status quo was unacceptable, looking for allies to support my cause. The next step would involve looking outward to like districts, in the effort of identifying best practices to guide the purchase and, or development of a more comprehensive system. Accepting the fact that a system that does too many things may not do any one perfectly, the alternative of having taxpayer funds serve a need other than clearly outlined in our school’s mission statement, is exceptionable.
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October 2016
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