schoolBundle™

Brandon School Division Goes Live!

Richard — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 15:00:24 +0000

We are excited to announce the launch of The Brandon School Division website. Improved navigation and content combined with a new responsive design, the division website is the first phase in the BSD schoolBundle™ solution go live strategy. The unique redesign effort for BSD includes, all of schoolBundle’s™ core functionality. Key features like single-source publishing, high contrast views, Twitter & RSS Feeds and centralized news & events just to name a few.

With our experience, we were able to guide BSD through the major decisions involved in a project of this nature. From the very start we worked closely with BSD on a clear plan of action outlining every major step of the solution, from initial strategy to implementation, then to training and finally go live.

What is Responsive Design?

For the past year, there has been a lot of buzz about Responsive Web Design (RWD) and it’s easy to see why . With the proliferation of mobile devices also came raised expectations on visual designs and user experience. Responsive designs made that possible. It seemed like the perfect time to build the BSD solution with a mobile first methodology and take advantage of RWD. This revolutionary approach to site layouts and coding transforms regular viewing to an optimum, easily navigable and visually appealing through functions such as resizing, zooming and scrolling.

The schoolBundle™ Responsive Web Design module optimizes the navigation and viewing experience of web pages across a wide range of devices like smartphones, tablets, and computers. Websites designed with RWD will look different on a smartphone than they will on a computer screen because the coding recognizes the screen resolution of each device and renders graphics and layout appropriately. RWD utilizes the latest technologies like CSS3 and HTML 5 which are fast becoming the industry standard.

Key Benefits of a RWD Solution for the Brandon School Division

Optimum Viewing Experience for Users
It is the overall user experience that encourages visitors to revisit your site. With RWD, the BSD website provides easy navigation and readability for users, regardless of their device.

Compatibility with a Wide Range of Devices
Be it desktop computers, tablets or smartphones, or whether they run through Android or Windows OS, the new RWD for BSD ensures that the web user experience is consistent and thorough across the entire site.

Integration on Mobile Devices
Each day it seems that a new device is released to the market. As the number of people who browse the Net through phones and tablets increase, so does the need for solid RWD.

Lesser Long-Term Costs
While it may initially be more expensive to create a responsive site than a traditional, lower-budget website, the long-term rewards of money and time are also far greater with RWD. The need for creating duplicate versions of a site such as desktop or mobile versions is totally eliminated. It not only cuts down development and ownership costs, but also time and effort on the part of the client.

For a first-hand look at the Brandon School Division redesign, please visit www.bsd.ca.

About the Brandon School Division
Brandon School Division’s Administration Office is located in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada. The Division services the city of Brandon, the town of Alexander, Canadian Forces Base Shilo and surrounding areas. There are 22 schools in the Brandon School Division, 19 of which are located within the City of Brandon.

Schools vary in grade and structures and although not physically structured in this matter, all schools in Brandon follow the Early (K-4), Middle (5-8) and Senior Years (9-12) philosophy.

About schoolBundle™
The schoolBundle™ Suite can increase your online services by being delivered both on-premise and in the cloud, reducing your IT requirements and lowering costs. Built on top of Microsoft SharePoint technology, we are committed to offering you the best in portal software innovations within the K-12 market.

The schoolBundle™ solution offers full integration capability with your Student Information System, Human Resources, Finance System and Browser technology, allowing for a single user platform for your entire Board.

Happy Holidays from SchoolBundle

Richard — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 18:41:49 +0000

To our customers and friends – a world of good wishes.

The goodwill of those we serve is the foundation of our success; we at SchoolBundle would like to take this opportunity to say thank you and wish you all the very best.

We would also like to take this time to welcome our latest customers, the Winnipeg School Division and the Brandon School Division who will launch their portals in the new year.

Customer Spotlights

Richard — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 12:07:34 +0000

We at schoolBundle would like to welcome everyone back to the 2012-2013 academic year. September is the time of year to reconnect with old friends and welcome new ones. We hope that you have had a restful and enjoyable summer, and would like to mark this occaison by congratulating everyone involved in the latest schoolBundle implementations. As well we would like to welcome a new set of customers to the schoolBundle family. We are looking forward to their deployments in the coming months.

Throughout this past summer, the schoolBundle team has been dilligently working away at some exciting developments and updates. Stay tuned to our website for customer spotlight stories, schoolBundle resources and important product news. You can also follow us on Twitter for the latest updates and schoolBundle tips!

We wish all of you a successful and enjoyable year ahead.

The schoolBundle Suite can increase your online services by being delivered both on-premise and in the cloud, reducing your IT requirements and lowering costs. Built on top of Microsoft SharePoint technology, we are committed to offering you the best in portal software innovations within the K-12 market.

The schoolBundle solution offers full integration capability with your Student Information System, Human Resources, Finance System and Browser technology, allowing for a single user platform for your entire Board.

Phase Two of schoolBundle Enterprise Portal Project Goes Live for GECDSB

Richard — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 19:04:34 +0000

We’ve just completed and delivered the second phase of Greater Essex County District School Board’s new Enterprise Portal, which has been designed and developed on the Microsoft SharePoint 2010 platform fused with the schoolBundle Suite.

The new Enterprise Portal is being used by the 4,700 GECDSB employees for everything from internal document storage, people search, and GECDSB news to more fun stuff like libraries of internal staff benefits, time sheets, and classifieds. Staff collaboration between employees has also increased within the board, allowing teams to create sub-sites within the intranet to deliver specific content and workflows of a given task.

The Enterprise Portal is now up and running and initial feedback is that it has been a brilliant success!

A group of students at GECDSB has also put together a great video to explain the value and purpose of their new Enterprise Portal. Check it out below, we couldn’t have explained it better ourselves!

Check Out Our New Look, GECDSB Website Goes Live!

Richard — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 20:01:55 +0000

The Greater Essex County District School Board has made big changes to the way it communicates with everyone on the World Wide Web launching the first phase of its new Enterprise Portal on schoolBundle.

There is a tremendous improvement in the look and feel of the website with new graphics and easier navigation. There are also features such as Google Translate, which allows each page of the site to be translated into a selected language at the click of a mouse.

The public portion of the portal project is just the first of 7 stages that will be implemented in the coming months. Upcoming phases include an improved intranet for staff, as well as access for parents / guardians and an e-commerce site.

For more information, please visit www.gecdsb.on.ca

LDCSB Website Launch

Richard — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 14:58:30 +0000

We are happy to announce that the London District Catholic School Board has launched its new website on the schoolBundle platform.

In an effort to make the LDCSB website easier for students, parents and staff, a number of changes have been included with the launch. An improved search interface makes it even easier for visitors to find the information they are looking for. As well, news stories from in and around LDCSB can be published and curated across the LDCSB network of sites. Important events and timely announcements can be pushed “live” in real time, giving visitors to the site the most up-to-date information on school bus cancellations, and weather delays within LDCSB.

For more information, please visit www.ldcsb.on.ca

TCDSB Goes Live!

Richard — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 18:12:55 +0000

We are happy to announce the launch of the new Toronto Catholic District School Board site. The new site has been redesigned with a fresh new look and has been updated with information catered to students, parents and staff of the board.

Launch schoolBundle Now without the need for SharePoint Licensing!

cfederico — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 15:54:56 +0000

Recognizing your School Board’s individual needs the schoolBundle Suite has been developed to offer a scalable solution that fits any budget, infrastructure, or communication strategy. With our 3 new platform packages we can now get your Board started at virtually any level of the schoolBundle Suite with the ability to create multi-tiered initiatives.

With the newly offered Foundation Package your School Board can still take advantage of schoolBundle’s rich graphic design templates and customized branding for your Board and School Sites without the additonal cost of SharePoint 2010 Licensing or CALs*. By deploying on the Foundation Platform your School Board can get started with all new Internet and Intranet sites with our schoolBundle Internet and Intranet Edition. Your School Board can also upgrade at any time to integrate Teacher, Student and Parent MySites, giving you a complete solution aligning to your Boards communication and collaboration strategy.

To see the full detail on our new packages please click here or visit the schoolBundle Suite Product Page

Wondering how much it costs for your School Board to adopt the schoolBundle Suite? Simply send us an email to info@schoolBundle.ca with the specific package or schoolBundle Edition your Board is interested in and receive a Quote within 24 hours.

Find out how affordable schoolBundle can be for your Board…

*Microsoft SharePoint Foundation 2010 licensing is included in Microsoft’s Windows Server 2008 R2 licensing

Concept Wins Microsoft Partner of the Year Award

cfederico — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 15:34:23 +0000

On November 30th, 2011, Microsoft Canada Inc. was proud to announce the 2011 IMPACT Award Winners at an award ceremony in Toronto.

“Our annual IMPACT Awards celebrate the great work done in the Partner Community to help customers respond to their business challenges through the benefits of technology,” said Eric Gales, President of Microsoft Canada Inc. “Technology partners are always finding new and exciting ways to develop and deliver innovative technology solutions, making them true leaders in their respective fields.”

Concept Interactive was honored to take home Partner of the Year in the Portals and Collaboration category for their schoolBundle Portal solution. We are very proud to have been recognized for our accomplishment, hard work and dedication in creating a unified solution for the education sector. We look forward to our continued partnership with Microsoft Canada and our on-going commitment to offering the best in software innovation to our education customers. Visit the Microsoft Partner page to see the complete list of official winners and finalists.

schoolBundle selected as Finalist for 2011 Microsoft Partner of the Year

cfederico — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 13:39:21 +0000

Concept Interactive Inc. announces that they have been selected as a finalist in the Portals and Collaboration Partner of the Year category for the 2011 Microsoft Partner Network IMPACT Awards. The ninth annual IMPACT Awards recognize excellence within the Microsoft technology partner community in Canada.

“Technology partners are at the core of Microsoft’s business.” said Neil Tanner, Vice-President, Small Business, Mid-market Solutions & Partners, Microsoft Canada Inc. “We are honoured to celebrate and recognize the outstanding achievements of industry leaders like Concept Interactive Inc. through the Microsoft Partner Network IMPACT Awards. We are proud to work with them as they deliver innovative solutions to mutual customers. ”

Concept Interactive Inc. was chosen as a finalist in the Portals and Collaboration Partner of Year category for their schoolBundle Portal Solution developed for the Canadian Education Market.

Concept Interactive Inc., along with other technology partner winners and finalists in each of the award categories, will be honoured at an award ceremony in Toronto on November 30, 2011.

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About the Microsoft Partner Network IMPACT Awards

In 2003, Microsoft Canada Inc. launched the IMPACT Awards, a program to recognize the numerous achievements within it’s technology Partner community. This year’s awards program is bigger than ever with over 35 award categories designed to recognize excellence across Microsoft Partner Network competencies, emerging technologies, community involvement as well as sales, marketing and partnering excellence.

The IMPACT Awards are open to Active Canadian members of the Microsoft Partner Network.

For a list of all 2011 finalists, and more information on the Microsoft Partner Network IMPACT Awards, please visit http://www.microsoft.ca/awards.