How Bayside Academy Transformed Their Emergency Response

Have you ever wondered how much time your school could save during an emergency if your systems worked seamlessly together? Bayside Academy discovered the answer when they integrated their emergency platform with their student information system.

Meet Bayside Academy

Bayside Academy in Daphne, Alabama has a beautiful 20-acre outdoor campus with about 800 students from pre-k through 12th grade. With students ranging from age 3 to 18 all on one campus, accounting for everyone during an emergency presented unique challenges.

Like many schools, they were looking for ways to improve their emergency response procedures. Their driving requirement? Finding a solution that would integrate with their existing Blackbaud Student Information System (SIS).

From Color Cards to Digital Speed

Remember those old-school emergency drills? The ones where teachers hold up green cards if everyone's present or red cards if someone's missing? That's exactly what Bayside was doing before they made the switch.

"With an expansive 20-acre campus featuring numerous outdoor areas, this approach made it difficult to ensure everyone was accounted for," explains Brooks Chew, Advancement Associate at Bayside Academy.

The transformation was dramatic. Brooks puts it perfectly: "It's gone from minutes to within like a minute everyone's accounted for, and we know where everyone is."

That's an 80% reduction in response time during emergencies – crucial moments when every second counts.

How Integration Makes the Difference

This remarkable improvement is possible because Ruvna and Blackbaud communicate directly with each other:

• When a teacher marks a student absent in the morning, that information automatically appears in Ruvna
• If there's an emergency later that day, the system already knows who should be accounted for
• No more frantic cross-referencing attendance sheets or wondering if someone is actually missing
• Teachers can check in students from other classrooms when necessary

"Ruvna automatically knows which students are already marked absent in Blackbaud and doesn't prompt teachers to check them in," Brooks explains. "This saves valuable time during emergencies."

For administrators, Ruvna displays a live feed showing which students have been checked in and by whom, allowing for accurate accountability through the integrated systems.

No Tech Headaches for Teachers

The last thing teachers need is another complicated system to learn. The good news? Setting up this integration was super simple for Bayside Academy.

"It was pretty much seamless. Once we signed on and synced with Blackbaud, it did it on its own," Brooks notes.

There's no manual data entry. No tedious updating of rosters or student information. The systems sync automatically, which means teachers can focus on what they do best–teaching and keeping students safe.

Of course, there was some initial hesitancy with adopting new technology, as Brooks recalls: "Teachers initially said, 'We don't like downloading the app, we don't always have our phone with us, our phones are on silent.'"

But those concerns quickly faded. In fact, when the alarm at Bayside Academy was accidentally triggered, teachers immediately checked Ruvna. "That's how quickly the teachers rely on having it," Brooks says.

Perfect for Diverse Campuses

What makes this integration especially valuable for Bayside Academy is their wide age range of students.

"It was so important for us because we have 3-year-olds to 18-year-olds on one campus, so it's really important to be able to account for everyone quickly in an emergency," Brooks emphasizes.

Think about the challenge of accounting for preschoolers and high schoolers during the same emergency. With integrated systems, administrators at Bayside get a complete picture of where everyone is supposed to be, making it much easier to ensure everyone's safe–regardless of age.

Proven Results That Speak for Themselves

Bayside Academy's experience with Ruvna has been so positive that they've become advocates for the platform.

"For us, I would definitely say we have had nothing but great things happen, and it's been wonderful. So I would highly encourage it," Brooks shares, even extending an invitation: "We'd always be happy to talk with anyone."

Ready to Connect Your Systems?

If your school is still using disconnected emergency systems or those color-coded cards, it might be time for an upgrade. The difference between minutes and seconds matters when it comes to student safety.

Ready to see how Ruvna could integrate with your existing SIS? Schedule a personalized demo today.

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