NJSBA - 100 Year Anniversary 1914-2014

While everyone is talking about the NJEA Teacher Convention this Thursday and Friday, many don't know that the New Jersey School Boards Convention happened last Tuesday and Wednesday at the Atlantic City Convention Center.

I was fortunate to spend my time there as an exhibitor for the company I work for Realtime Informational Technologies Inc. It is always a pleasure getting to meet our clients and setting up future clients as well.

The show was sold out and I think it had a lot to do with the fact that it was the NJSBA's 100th Year Anniversary, and they did have quite the celebration.

Great workshops, free food, after party receptions, marching bands, choirs and tons of speakers. The centennial celebration began with a drum line and ribbon cutting ceremony where the guests began to pour in.

My company held two workshops, the first one titled "How a Web-Based Student Information System Can Improve the Staff Evaluation Process Evaluation" was on our new Staff Evaluation Module and was led by one of my colleagues Dr. Tracey Lederman.

Participants learned about our software solution to assist in the staff evaluation process mandated under AchieveNJ. The system, developed in partnership with several school districts, builds an evaluation schedule, sets up meetings, notifies staff, sends feedback forms and provides for flexible construction and completion of a district’s individual evaluation forms. This session acquainted attendees with the benefits of efficiently managing paperwork and engaging in dynamic communication.

The second workshop titled "Streamlining the Student Growth Objectives Process with an Integrated Student Information System" also led by Dr. Lederman and my boss Kenton Nice, co-owner of Realtime, focused on our newest module SGO's.

An integrated software solution drastically cuts down on paperwork and time spent tracking down approvals and signatures so districts can focus on the hard work of designing quality goals and tracking student data. This session included discussion of an SGO management tool permitting teachers to enter SGOs on forms modeled after those created by the state. The screens accommodate simple or tiered goals, allowing a choice of a scoring plan, and permit you to choose a scoring plan, manage approval electronically, and track changes during the February revision deadline. SGOs can even be archived into a personal library that is maintained by a supervisor and curated according to district or school goals.

All in all the show was a success, for more information on the convention check out the website.