NCSIS Phase I Bulletin - May 8, 2024

North Carolina Public Schools sent this bulletin at 05/08/2024 04:17 PM EDT

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.

May 8, 2024

Phase I Bulletin

What's New!

3rd Party Integrations
Transportation Statement for Data Conversion
Canvas Information
Upcoming Training Information
Conversion Tips & Data Clean-Up
SIS Speak
SIS Snippets
NCSIS Resources

Reminders:

June (EOY) Steps Phase
EOY Updates
SIS Scoop
Clarifying Points
Partnering Progress
Empower with PowerSchool
Want to Stay in the Loop?
Questions

WHAT'S NEW!

3rd Party Integrations

If on State Contract:

NCDPI will do the integration. Please see the list below:

PowerSchool Unified Talent/NCEES
ScholarPath
Pearson Schoolnet
Canvas LMS
Learning.com
EBSCO
Britannica
ECATS
Amplify mClass and alternative assessment when awarded
NROC/edReady (CCRG)
SAS EVAAS
NC Early Learning Inventory
LETRS
Prodigy - Minecraft EDU
NC Cardinal
Credentia
NCCER
Microsoft
Pearson Certiport
Learning Ally
School Nutrition Technology System
NAVVY

If NOT on State Contract:

PSUs will need to work with Infinite Campus. *Please note there may be a cost.

Transportation Statement for Data Conversion

Address verification and validation are critical for the data conversion in Infinite Campus. As PSUs work to clean up addresses, make sure to collaborate with the transportation department to ensure the changes in the addresses won’t disrupt the current bus route information.

When updated student information is loaded into the school bus routing system, any change in street address will remove a student from their bus route pending reassignment. To minimize disruption please coordinate closely with the transportation department and use valid County GIS map addresses. Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, and other consumer mapping applications are more likely to provide invalid addresses in most PSUs.

Canvas Information

The link below provides documentation on how to prepare Canvas cartridges to upload to Infinite Campus’ Learning Management System. The document will be updated often with an “updated on” line at the beginning of the article for users to know what version they are viewing. Please do NOT share a pdf version of this link as users will not get the updates when they are made.

Infinite Campus’ plan is to release improvements to the import tool as soon as they are available over the summer and potentially into the fall. For example, the new quiz question types Infinite Campus is releasing soon won’t immediately be supported with the import tool. A teacher with quiz question types that won’t import immediately (as outlined in the document) could hold onto the cartridge to import after the additional question types are added or could re-import the cartridge after the improvements are made.

Infinite Campus Upload document

Canvas Guide on Exporting Courses

Upcoming Training Information

NCBOLD 2024 NCSIS Training for New Data Managers, Administrators, & Directors

We will offer “New Data Manager Training” for Infinite Campus and PowerSchool users as well as sessions for Administrators and Directors. The sessions will cover General Navigation, Admission/Withdrawal, Attendance, Grading, Crosswalk with new SIS and State Reporting processes. We will have recommended tracks for participants to follow.

Week 1: July 15th- 18th (West)
Week 2: July 22nd-25th (East)

Registration is coming soon.

NCBOLD Infinite Campus Gradebook Training for Teachers by Teachers- We will offer “Infinite Campus Gradebook Training” for teachers. These sessions will be led by teachers and will cover gradebook setup, assignments and scoring, quizzes, progress monitoring, engagement check-ins, as well as the Learning Management System.

Week 1: July 15th - 18th (West)
Week 2: July 22nd - 25th (East)

Registration is coming soon.

Conversion Tips & Data Clean-up

SIS Phase I - Data Extracts Process Update

Data extracts that find no data in PowerSchool tables are no longer creating empty files. This will give you less files to work with. If you are missing a file that you know should have data in it, please email ncsis@dpi.nc.gov to report the problem.

The gradeLevel.csv file has been updated with new sequence numbers to prevent gaps in sequences. You must download a new version to upload to your Live Conversion dashboard for your production instance of Infinite Campus.

Instructions were added to the lep.csv section in the Data Conversion Guide on what to do with blank initial identification dates for students, and blank exit dates for students with a “Exited EL” status. Also, instructions have now been added to the remaining files in the Conversion document.

The sectionSchedule file was previously only extracting classes that occurred on the first day of a rotating day schedule. This problem has now been corrected.

Several files have been updated to make them more useful, based on feedback from you! The student and contact household keys will no longer contain commas or periods, to make matching more likely between the two. In the contact.csv file, the relationships of “Brother” and “Sister” will not show as “Sibling”, as Infinite Campus recommends. The transcript.csv file will now contain an asterisk in blank score or courseNum fields.

All health files are now production ready. All health files are pulling from the new health module, so if you do not have any data entered on those screens, the respective files will not show on eMFTS.

There will be new data files in the next week for several programs and accommodations. Please check out the Data Conversion Guide for instructions once they appear.

Continue to email questions and concerns to ncsis@dpi.nc.gov. Your feedback has helped make this process better for everyone!

**Please continue to monitor the Additions/Corrections page in the Data Conversion Guide. All updates will be posted there!

SIS Speak

Explore Infinite Campus Terminology:

Attendance Messenger: The Attendance Messenger creates attendance message templates that specify delivery criteria. Messages may be sent to student messenger contacts immediately through this tool or set for automated delivery with the Attendance Messenger Scheduler tool.
Behavior Messenger: The Behavior Messenger allows you to create messages that are sent to guardians when students are part of a behavior event. The Behavior Messenger templates specify the criteria on which to filter events. You can set up a Behavior Messenger template to be dialed on a schedule using the Behavior Messenger Scheduler tool.
Staff Locator Wizard: Districts linked to State Edition can use the Staff Locator tool to prevent duplicate entries of new employees.

New Grade Level Naming in Infinite Campus:

SIS Snippets

Quick Tips for Time-Savvy Users:

Check out the User Group Tool Rights in the Knowledge Base within Campus Community for guidance on assigning tool rights. Infinite Campus User Group Tool Rights Examples

NCSIS Resources

Phase I participants will gain access to the Campus Community, where they can acquire product knowledge, glean tips and tricks, and engage in networking opportunities with other districts. The Campus Community offers convenient single sign-on access from the Campus system to a wealth of resources including the knowledge base, forum discussions, learning tools, support site, upcoming events, and more.

Campus Community- contains the information you need to learn how to use Infinite Campus through product documentation, videos & simulations, study guides, forums, and much more. Whether you are a teacher, data manager, or Infinite Campus user, you will find the learning resources in a clearly defined pathway for a seamless transition from PowerSchool.

Campus Passport- is on-demand, self-paced courses that can be assigned to new and existing staff. Accessed through the Campus Community, you will find Instructor-Led Training, specific E-Learning courses, or select a learning plan based on your district role.

NCSIS Crosswalk Document- will contain Infinite Campus and PowerSchool terms with their meanings to assist users with learning the new NCSIS terminology. This is a working document and will be updated regularly. NCSIS Crosswalk Document

Infinite Campus Role-specific Staff Videos can be viewed by clicking on http://ncsis.gov and then click on Learn more about NCSIS (Technology Staff, Counselor, Front Office Staff, Teacher, etc).

IC Role Specific Resources- can be viewed by clicking on http://ncsis.gov, go to the Phase I PSU’s tab and scroll to the IC Role Specific Resources section. It Includes information for specific staff roles, as well as a guide for parents & students.

Data Manager Roadshow Presentation Link - HERE

Webinar Recording Links and FAQs- can be found at http://ncsis.gov under the Professional Learning tab.

REMINDERS:

June (EOY) Steps Phase I

As implementation continues, questions have been raised about the EOY processes and what ability will be available in each system in June once the production site has been provided in Infinite Campus. During the pre-EOY phase, while preparing for End-of-Year (EOY) procedures in PowerSchool, it's crucial to adhere to the established EOY guidance. This ensures that records are processed accurately and efficiently, setting the stage for a successful transition to the new academic year in Infinite Campus. Grades for graduates should not be updated in PowerSchool after they have been finalized. PSUs can update all other grades in PowerSchool until EOY. To capture those changes, you will provide a new transcript file to Infinite Campus after EOY. If you have schedule changes between the time the Infinite Campus production data is due and EOY, you can make roster changes in the 23-24 or 24-25 year in PowerSchool. You will provide a new roster file to Infinite Campus after EOY that will capture those changes. However, you cannot add, remove, or move sections in PowerSchool since the section data will not be updated in the Infinite Campus Production Site.

Activities in Infinite Campus before EOY will focus on validating data to confirm the accuracy of the trial site conversion. Once the Infinite Campus production site is available, PSUs can enroll new students from non-North Carolina Public School systems in Infinite Campus for 24-25. However, please note that students currently enrolled in North Carolina Public Schools cannot be pre-enrolled or pre-registered in either system for the upcoming school year until the EOY processes are completed. Please see the charts below for Pre and Post activities in each system.

This transition period requires particular attention to detail and adherence to established protocols to guarantee a smooth and accurate implementation. We look forward to working collaboratively to achieve these goals and provide the best possible experience for all stakeholders.

Thank you for your dedication and commitment to this process.

EOY Updates

PSUs will plan when to commit their master schedules with their Infinite Campus implementation manager to be ready for their production site. The earlier you start, the earlier access to your production site.
EOY will be June 28th for all Phase I and Phase II PSUs
No early EOY, early commitment of master schedules only
Post EOY- PSUs will have to reload Enrollments, Rosters, Transcripts

SIS Scoop

Get the Inside Track on Big News! We are excited to announce the “XX” Symposium coming January 2025. Join us for a focused training event designed to equip you with the skills needed to master our new Student Information System. Get ready for hands-on workshops, networking opportunities, and expert-led sessions. The conference will be held at the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro, NC. More information is coming soon!

Clarifying Points

Emergency Contacts will convert to Infinite Campus
ECATS data will be uploaded to Infinite Campus- there is no charge to PSUs
PSUs can continue to use Canva
Schoolnet & NCEES will continue to be used
Please discuss 3rd Party applications with your Infinite Campus Implementation Team to verify integrations. *The sex offender registry is not included in Infinite Campus
The enrollments and transcript data from 2013 to present will be converted

Partnering Progress

DPI’s Commitment to PSU Success with New SIS Implementation

NCSIS Professional Development Plan 2024

Empower with PowerSchool

Seeking Trainers for Data Manager Training!

FINAL CALL! We need you! Please consider being a presenter for PowerSchool Data Manager Training. If interested, please complete the application below.

Week 1 - July 15th - 19th
Week 2 - July 22nd - 26th

NCBOLD PowerSchool Trainer Ambassador Application

Want to Stay in the Loop?

Click HERE to learn how to sign up to receive the weekly NCSIS Phase I bulletin.

Stay informed with the latest NCSIS news and information by visiting: http://ncsis.gov

Questions?

Please feel free to reach out for questions or concerns by emailing ncsis@dpi.nc.gov

Stay Connected with North Carolina Public Schools:

SUBSCRIBER SERVICES:
Manage Subscriptions | Help