CHARLESTON, S.C., July 15, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In an effort to make it easier for private schools to connect with third-party learning tools, Blackbaud (NASDAQ:BLKB) today announced that onCampus®, its learning management system (LMS), is Learning Tools Interoperability (LTI) certified giving users the capability to plug into external tools that pass through content, roster and gradebook information in a standardized way. By leveraging onCampus’ LTI certification, Blackbaud also now integrates with Microsoft OneNote Class Notebook to streamline user experience and save time for educators.
“The latest integration between Blackbaud and Microsoft improves classroom efficiency and provides teachers with a unique pairing of two innovative education tools,” said Travis Warren, president of Blackbaud’s K-12 Private Schools Group. “By opening our products to LTI provider tools and streamlining workflows through our partnership with Microsoft, we’re making it easier for teachers, students and parents to use the tools that supplement instruction, grading and reporting tasks.”
onCampus allows schools to easily manage, connect and share information by bringing everything associated with a school community, from students and parents to calendars and announcements, together in one convenient location. OneNote Class Notebook is a dynamic Microsoft tool that allows educators to create lessons and assignments for their students to complete collaboratively in OneNote.
“Microsoft is continually seeking to advance our solutions in the education space with partner organizations such as Blackbaud,” said Anthony Salcito, vice president of Worldwide Education for Microsoft. “Schools will discover that this new integration will both enhance the learning experience for students and save teachers time. We look forward to a continued partnership with Blackbaud on further integration and innovation to deliver a high-value school experience.”
LTI is a popular standard developed by the IMS Global Learning Consortium, a nonprofit member collaborative inventing the future of educational and learning technology through plug-and-play architecture and ecosystems. Through these LTI capabilities, Class Notebook can add to a variety of onCampus Topics to help create and share relevant and engaging resources within the classroom and throughout a school.
The LTI certification for onCampus is another example of how Blackbaud has continued to release rapid innovation for customers through its new cloud for the global philanthropic community. In addition, full-edition onCampus users can integrate with assignment learning tools, such as Turnitin’s formative feedback capabilities and SoftChalk’s content authoring software.
The first phase of this integration will be presented at the 2016 Blackbaud K-12 User Conference in Boston, July 13-15. User Conference attendees will be among the first to learn best practices on taking advantage of this technology for the upcoming school year. Following the initial integration phase, Blackbaud and Microsoft will continue expanding the capabilities with a single sign-on feature in addition to making grading and assessment data compatible between the two platforms.
For more information about onCampus, visit K12.Blackbaud.com/onCampus/, and to learn more about Blackbaud’s 2016 K-12 User Conference, visit http://K12hub.Blackbaud.com/h/c/219543-Blackbaud-K-12-User-Conference-2016.
About Blackbaud
Serving the worldwide philanthropic community for 35 years, Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB) combines innovative software, services, and expertise to help organizations achieve their missions. Blackbaud works in over 60 countries to power the passion of approximately 35,000 customers, including nonprofits, K-12 private and higher education institutions, healthcare organizations, corporations, foundations, and other charitable giving entities. The company offers a full spectrum of cloud and on-premise solutions, as well as a resource network that empowers and connects organizations of all sizes. Blackbaud's portfolio of software and services supports nonprofit fundraising and relationship management, digital marketing, advocacy, accounting, payments and analytics, as well as grant management, corporate social responsibility, and education. Organizations that use Blackbaud technology raise, invest, manage, and award more than $100 billion each year. Recognized as a top company, Blackbaud is headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina and has operations in the United States, Australia, Canada, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.blackbaud.com.
Forward-looking Statements
Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations, and assumptions contained in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including statements regarding expected benefits of products and product features. Although Blackbaud attempts to be accurate in making these forward-looking statements, it is possible that future circumstances might differ from the assumptions on which such statements are based. In addition, other important factors that could cause results to differ materially include the following: general economic risks; uncertainty regarding increased business and renewals from existing customers; continued success in sales growth; management of integration of acquired companies and other risks associated with acquisitions; risks associated with successful implementation of multiple integrated software products; the ability to attract and retain key personnel; risks associated with management of growth; lengthy sales and implementation cycles, particularly in larger organization; technological changes that make our products and services less competitive; and the other risk factors set forth from time to time in the SEC filings for Blackbaud, copies of which are available free of charge at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov or upon request from Blackbaud's investor relations department. All Blackbaud product names appearing herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blackbaud, Inc.