What to Look for When Buying Afterschool Management Software

Finding the right afterschool management software can be a tedious task. After all, you are investing in technology that must deliver measurable results and profitable ROI. The software should also have helpful resources, tools, and features essential to your program. Most of all, it has to run your afterschool program efficiently, quickly, and within budget. Where do you even start?

Here are some essential features to look for when shopping for an effective management software.

Batch Check-in and Check-out Feature

Tracking students from the moment they enter your care is always paramount. However, you also want to ensure they are safe when leaving your afterschool center. Simplify this process with an attendance tracking feature. This tool allows you to check students in batches or individually and saves time, recording attendance efficiently and accurately.

With an attendance tracking tool you can -

1. Communicate drop-off and pick-up times with parents and teachers.
2. Manage bus routes and rosters for your afterschool program. Registrations can be sorted by name, grade level, and group.
3. Print daily, weekly, or monthly rosters and weekly/daily sign-in sheets from one convenient portal.
4. Record check-in/check-out times of students using our mobile app or via smartphone, iPad, or tablet.
5. Record check-in/check-out in real-time with PIN keypad/badge scan applications. This saves time by letting students punch in their district student IDs or scan badges for expedited check-ins.
6. Record special events attendance to track family participation. This is a crucial way to engage parents in your afterschool programs.

Save Time With Easy Enrollment and Registration

As an afterschool administrator, you know how tedious the registration/enrollment process is for new and returning students. It´s time-consuming with paper-sensitive tasks that must be performed accordingly. Online enrollment tools take the hassle out of registration and enrollment and are essential in reducing operational costs and paperwork for parents and staff.

An enrollment tool like EZReports lets you import all of your students from your day school system with an Excel template. This helps site coordinators register students quickly into your afterschool programs. It also allows them to enroll children in specific activities on time.

With an enrollment tracking tool you can -

1. Collect and organize accurate student data in electronic formats for teachers and parents.
2. Secure online application forms for parents to register their kids for afterschool programs.
3. Track student data, emergency contacts, and approved adults for authorized pick-up.
4. Track students´ detailed medical and dietary information, including allergies, medications, special needs, and food restrictions.
5. Approve enrollment/registration applications in just a few clicks.
6. Manage registration lists accurately for afterschool program classes, schedules, and activities.

Manage Multiple Enrollments Easily

Like batch check-in and attendance, afterschool management software can offer multiple enrollment options. This is a time-saver, especially when you need to batch enrolled students into sessions quickly. You can also enroll one child into multiple sessions based on their grade level or preferred choice of activities.

This feature allows you to :

1. Divide students into groups and quickly enroll these groups into various lessons and activities.
2. Review program sessions and enrollment details from built-in dashboards with calendars.
3. De-enroll or remove students from sessions – ideal for students no longer registered or who have moved away from the area.
4. Automatically update enrollment history for all sessions and students.

Track Outcomes

When buying afterschool management software, tracking student performance should be at the top of your wish list. After all, parents rely on programs like yours to educate and enlighten children – of all grades – with educational learning. They want their kids to excel in studies while celebrating their milestone achievements and accolades.

EZReports meets the demand with outcomes tracking, a tool that lets you track all five reporting requirements of the new Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) measures as adopted by USDOE. You can even record, analyze, and assess their test scores, day school grades, and teacher survey data.

With this tracking tool, you can -

1. Automatically generate Fed21APR outcomes reports.
2. Create customized assessments, tests, and modify criteria.
3. Detailed reports that let you analyze test scores and track student outcomes.
4. Track students´ classroom grades for different grading periods.
5. Track test scores for multiple exams, including district and state assessments.
6. Upload test scores and grades from the school database.

Outcomes tracking also provides detailed information for monitoring grades and teacher survey data. Teachers can even complete surveys online via PCs, iPads, tablets, and smartphones.

Increase Staff Productivity and Performance

Another vital component of afterschool programs is staff productivity. You need your employees to work hard and put their best effort forward, from teachers to activities teams. This puts your afterschool center in its best light, one that illuminates the minds of students that want to learn and participate in productive activities.

Afterschool management software should help increase staff productivity with better communications between sites and administration. Your employees no longer have to deal with repetitive tasks like record-keeping on paper and spreadsheets with digitized documentation. Instead, they can record attendance quickly and accurately while gathering data for compilation and reporting.

This feature will help you -

1. Streamline afterschool management by monitoring site operations in real-time.
2. Schedule programs, activities and assign teachers and students for classes and activities.
3. Make quicker and better decisions via real-time access to data, reports, student grades, and teacher performance.
4. Create customized reports, teacher surveys, and correspondences for parents.
5. Effectively manage programs, grants, and increase community outreach efforts.
6. Conduct continuous program improvement by tracking progress and outcomes.

Web-Based Afterschool Management and Reporting Software

Keeping these features in mind will help you refine your search and find the solution that is the best fit for your afterschool program.

EZReports offers top-rated afterschool management software for administrators - powerful, affordable, and comprehensive web-based. In addition, our program meets the data collection and reporting requirements of the Federal 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC) programs.

EZReports supports grant-funded afterschool programs with robust management software tools and is in use by over 5,000+ schools and community-based organizations nationwide. With a full suite of customization options, you can effectively manage your program precisely and consistently.

Let´s talk about transforming your program today.