New York, NY – December 1, 2010 – eChalk, the pioneer of web-based learning platforms for communication and collaboration in K-12 school communities, announces today the opening of a Southeast Regional Center located in Atlanta, Georgia.  Continued growth and an expanding customer base has prompted eChalk to open an Atlanta Regional Center giving the New York based company a presence in the Southeast.

“eChalk is committed to meeting the needs of our customers across the country. Opening a Southeast Office will allow us to provide specialized customer service to our clientele in the area and be even more accessible to current and future customers,” said Martin Brutosky, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer of eChalk. “Our continued expansion is a point of pride for us at eChalk, and we intend to use our ability to grow in a way that best serves our educators.”

In May of 2009 eChalk opened their first Regional Center in Austin, Texas to meet the needs of eChalk’s large Texas customer base.  Atlanta is home of the second Regional Center, which will primarily serve eChalk’s clients in Georgia,  South Carolina, and North Carolina.  The Atlanta Regional Center will also house extensions of the New York Headquarters’ operations including client services and support, marketing, and sales.

Operations at eChalk’s headquarters in New York City will continue to focus on the product development, marketing and other support roles for the company. The new office is located in the Midtown area with close proximity to downtown Atlanta.

About eChalk

Founded in 1999, eChalk is a patented learning platform designed specifically for K-12 schools and districts with the goal of helping school leaders, teachers, students and parents safely use the web to connect to the people and information they need to make learning successful. Current products include WebVantage™, PLC (Professional Learning Communities), ClassView (Class Management System), Anytime, and Lesson Planner. eChalk is available as a web-delivered SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) or as a locally-hosted enterprise solution for schools, districts, ESAs or states. eChalk is headquartered in New York City.

Media Contact

Jim McVety
800.809.3349 ext. 3538
jmcvety@echalk.com

Torrance Robinson outlines eChalk’s mission and his thoughts on the Business Forward Education and Social Entrepreneurship Roundtable with Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, Melody Barnes.

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“After eleven years of serving K-12 schools we are no longer pushing the market, the market is pushing us. This partnership will enable eChalk to deliver more powerful and robust learning solutions more quickly and easily while using the latest technology available. Most importantly it will enable our clients to continue to drive the instructional results they have come to depend on without having to manage the technology,” explains Torrance Robinson, eChalk’s Founder and President. “We are excited to work with a like-minded company that has proven itself again and again in its commitment to technology, education and privacy.”

The partnership will touch many parts of the eChalk platform and clients can expect to see results as early as this summer. These will include new features and functionality, Course Management tools, extended Enterprise offerings and easier integration with Microsoft’s on-premise and Cloud offerings.

About eChalk

Founded in 1999, eChalk is a patented learning platform designed specifically for K-12 schools and districts with the goal of helping school leaders, teachers, students and parents safely use the web to connect to the people and information they need to make learning successful. Current products include WebVantage™, PLC (Professional Learning Communities), ClassView (Class Management System), Anytime, and Lesson Planner. eChalk is available as a web-delivered SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) or as a locally-hosted enterprise solution for schools, districts, ESAs or states. eChalk is headquartered in New York City.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

Michael Dixon’s high school uses an online lesson planner to distribute information from the classroom to administrators and into the home.  This is particularly helpful for students home sick or out of school for an extended period of time.  The high school also uses online communication to vote for homecoming queen, senior superlatives, and student government. Michael explains how online communication is a large part of daily process at the school, but not just for students. Faculty have active dialogues outside of weekly staff meetings with online discussion boards. Greene County High School uses online communication in a creative way so that all stakeholders participate.

10.20.2010– New York, NY — eChalk, the pioneer of web-based learning platforms for communication and collaboration in K-12 school communities, today reports its key findings in the areas of best practices for learning, social media, collaborative technologies and the frequency of practical use, from the results of Project RED’s year–long study, of which eChalk is an institutional partner.

Project RED conducted a national survey of principals and district administrators to analyze two major issues: what technology models can lead to improved student achievement and how do investments in technology effect budgets in schools and districts. “We believe that properly implemented ubiquitous technology schools can produce dramatic improvements in achievement, be revenue positive at the state and federal level and contribute positively to issues of STEM, 21st Century skills and lifelong learning,” notes Tom Greaves, Project RED management team member and CEO and Founder of The Greaves Group.

Technology Practices that Affect Learning the Most
Project RED research identified nine practices that affect learning, including the integration of technology into every class, regular use of games and social media by the students, technology integration into curriculum, online assessments, and virtual field trips.

Collaboration and Social Media
Project RED’s research findings include that web 2.0 functionality and social media use substantially enhance collaboration productivity, erasing the barriers of time, distance, and money. Collaboration can now extend beyond the immediate circle of friends to include mentors, tutors, and experts worldwide.

Real-time collaboration increases student engagement, one of the critical components for student success. One of the results of increased engagement and buy-in is a reduction in disciplinary actions.

Frequency of Technology Use
The daily use of technology in core classes correlates highly to desirable Education Success Measures. Daily technology use was one of the top five indicators of better discipline, better attendance, and increased college attendance.

“Establishing empirical data that support investments in education technology underscores what we, at eChalk, work to accomplish—to make learning more successful and to impact results” details Martin Brutosky, CEO and COO of eChalk. “We have found our year of partnership to be highly beneficial to the education community as a whole.”

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About eChalk
eChalk helps school leaders, teachers, students and parents safely use the web to connect to learning, information and each other. eChalk streamlines communication in one secure, integrated and scalable online environment for everyone in a given school, district, ESA or state. Founded in 1999 and headquartered in New York City, eChalk hopes that by communicating more effectively among their stakeholders, K-12 school communities can better support teacher and student success. eChalk is available as a web-delivered software-as-a-service or as a locally-hosted enterprise solution. Whether schools communicate with a few or a few million, eChalk’s easy-to-use and customizable tools – including websites, email, intranets, lesson planners and Web 2.0 technologies – help engage students, address individual learning needs, cultivate 21st century skills and provide necessary support for staff development. For more information on eChalk, visit www.echalk.com.

About Project RED
Project RED (Revolutionizing Education) is a national research and advocacy plan founded on the belief there is the need to revolutionize the way the U.S. looks at technology as part of teaching and learning. Project RED is conducting a national survey to analyze what’s working in technology-transformed schools and to show how technology can save money when properly implemented. Through the efforts of Project RED and partners, technology can transform learning, just as it has transformed homes and offices in almost every other segment of our society. To learn more about and support Project RED, visit www.projectred.org.

Media Contact
The Sensible City
Ian Bryan
828.242.1868
ianbryan@sensiblecity.com

We love seeing eChalk educators using technology to make a difference.  Microsoft is creating user videos as a part of a “Make Education Great” campaign. Recently, they featured Christy Crawford from The Bronx New School, PS 51.

An elementary school technology teacher, Christy uses technology in the classroom to help kids express big ideas. She believes technology can help kids change the world in a digital way. Watch how she and her students make education great with movies that tell adults what kids really want to say.

Click here to learn more about Microsoft’s make education great campaign and watch other videos.

In these schools,  staff members work alongside after-school employees and parents to make sure they are meeting each child’s individual needs. The Promise Academy Schools strive to do whatever it takes to make sure students are accepted by and succeed in college. Promise Academy school days last from 8am to 4pm, with the opportunity to participate in after-school programs from 4pm to 6pm. The academic year is 210 days, including a 20-25 day mandatory summer program, exceeding the 180 day minimum required by law.

The Promise Academy strategy is proving successful. In 2008, 100 percent of third-graders at Promise Academy II tested above grade level. At Promise Academy I, 97 percent of third-graders were at or above grade level in math. HCZ Promise Academy received and “A” rating for performance from the New York City Department of Education, in its citywide progress reports.

Class of students at students at Promises Academy Charter Schools

]]> http://echalkmedia.com/2010/10/promise-academy-charter-schools-not-waiting-for-superman/feed/ 0 http://echalkmedia.com/2010/09/echalk-to-invest-5-million-in-next-generation-of-k-12-course-management-system/ http://echalkmedia.com/2010/09/echalk-to-invest-5-million-in-next-generation-of-k-12-course-management-system/#comments Thu, 30 Sep 2010 16:03:23 +0000 admin http://echalkmedia.com/?p=758 NEW YORK, NY – 9.30.10 – eChalk, the pioneer of safe and secure web-based learning platforms for K-12, announced today it will invest five million dollars of capital into the development of the next generation of K-12 specific Course Management System (CMS) and upgrade eChalk’s current Class Management System. Development began earlier this year with the release of Phase I scheduled for June of 2011. The next generation of eChalk’s Class and Course Management Systems will feature expanded capability designed to meet emerging trends in K-12 including the alignment to the new national core standards.

“eChalk’s current Class Management System is a wonderful system and can serve any K-12 class being taught in our schools. However, as the K-12 community turns to online courses to supplement or add entirely new courses to their roster, they need a safe and secure system to deliver those courses to the student. eChalk is excited to offer schools a system that will be affordable, safe, and secure. The new CMS will continue in the eChalk tradition of being fully integrated with our communication and collaboration suite,” says eChalk’s Founder and President, Torrance Robinson.

eChalk’s upgraded CMS will enable schools to import and export course content from and to other systems, integrate third party content (licensed or free), and access an expanded suite of application programming interfaces. In addition, schools will be able to participate in distance learning with tools such as video conferencing and online white boarding sharing. The upgraded CMS will provide the ability to share and search user-generated content and course materials within a school or district to promote collaborative learning and support Professional Learning Communities.

“Too often course management systems are cumbersome, underutilized or forced on K-12 schools from other verticals,” explained Charlene Noll, Vice President of Product Development at eChalk. “Not only are we upgrading our Class Management System but eChalk’s next generation of CMS will enable greater efficiency, productivity, and cost savings.”

About eChalk

eChalk helps school leaders, teachers, students and parents safely use the web to connect to the people and information they need to make learning successful. Founded in 1999 and headquartered in New York City, eChalk hopes that by communicating and collaborating more effectively among all of their stakeholders, K-12 school communities can better support and reach teaching and learning goals. eChalk is an instructional support system that streamlines communication in one secure, integrated and scalable online environment for everyone in a given school, district, ESA or state. eChalk is available as a web-delivered software-as-a-service or as a locally-hosted enterprise solution. Whether schools communicate with a few or a few million, eChalk’s easy-to-use and customizable tools – including websites, email, intranets, lesson planners and Web 2.0 technologies – help engage students, address individual learning needs, cultivate 21st century skills and provide necessary support for staff development.

Media Contact
Ian Bryan
828.242.1868
ianbryan@sensiblecity.com

To see NBC’s Education Nation online, click here.

New Millennium Secondary School (NMSS) of Carson, CA, has reported that its use of Web-based communications management system eChalk has resulted in improved student and teacher communication and greater parental involvement in the education process.

The public charter school was founded in 2008 as part of the Los Angeles Unified School District(LAUSD) to help prepare its predominantly black student population for both higher education and the competitive workforce in the 21st century. Technology is a critical tool for the school in fulfilling its mission, said NMSS Executive Director Tony Kline, and eChalk is an important part of that technology.

“It helps our kids understand what it’ll take to succeed in college,” Kline explained, “because it helps them understand the nuts and bolts of what they need to do to stay on track (turn in work on time, stay current with workload and schedule items, etc.) at the next level, i.e., higher education.”

Principal Kim Irons expanded on Kline’s assessment of the software’s role in the school’s efforts to prepare students for higher education, saying, “They’re able to connect with teachers throughout the day, even outside school hours. It just gives the students a more well rounded experience, similar to what they’ll experience in college. Professors are doing more and more through e-mail and Web 2.0, and less through office hours. I think the more our students learn using technology, the more prepared they’ll be.”

Kline specifically praised eChalk’s communication tools, including teacher and student home pages, online learning communities, and calendars and schedules, “It allows us to keep in regular communication with our kids, and it allows us [to maintain] exceptional transparency. Parents know what is expected of their kids several months out,” he explained.

The software’s ease of access for parents has evoked positive feedback from those who genuinely want to play an active part in their children’s education but have had difficulty doing so in the past. “Using eChalk is like checking in with online banking,” said Candice Arnold, parent of a 10th-grade student at NMSS. “The parent portal lets me know exactly what assignments my daughter is working on in real time.”

A recent Gallup public opinion poll on the future of public education in the United States indicated that, if schools are going to improve and graduates are going to remain competitive in the global workforce, in addition to teachers becoming better educated and more innovative, parents must play a more active role. Kline said NMSS has made parental involvement one of its priorities.

The school’s technology focus, Kline said, has also resulted in some favorable results at a more rudimentary level. “What I’m really proud of about this school is that we were able to find a financial recipe to have a 1:1 computer ratio, with Internet access, for only $350 per student. And we’re able to do it all without private money.”

Finally, Irons noted the improved opportunities for individual study that come with the enhanced access to technology. “We’ve been really lucky to access online learning programs. Students have been able to get online and really drill themselves in the areas where they really needed improvement,” she said, “and teachers have been better able to tailor learning to individual needs. And that has been due to the computers and the online access.”

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