Seminole County Schools increases efficiency, security, & school funds with our paperless solution!
Fast Facts
Enrollment: 66,000+ students
12th largest school district in Florida
60th largest school district in the nation
Monthly revenue generated through Scribbles: ~$6,500
Scribbles Solutions used: ScribOrder, ScribOnline
Seminole County Schools is recognized as a Premier School District in the State of Florida. According to their website, the district has a vision to be “recognized nationally for high standards, academic performance and offering students customized educational pathways 24/7/365.” They are ranked #1 in the state for STEM. Despite their district-wide academic success in technology, their records office had some catching up to do when it came to innovation. Staff were continuously shuffling paper to complete hundreds of student records requests on-site each year. Time was spent tediously locating and searching microfilm for student information. Verification calls would need to be answered. Current students, as well as alumni, were directed to travel to the district office to receive their requested transcript orders during office hours.
Seminole County Schools turned to Scribbles Software to make records requests more accessible for students and alumni, streamline the request process for students and staff, minimize verification calls, and even generate revenue for the district.
The Scribbles Software team sat down with Carolyn Bedsole and Belinda Dyal of Seminole County Schools to discuss how they transitioned from microfilm to an online system, and what changes and benefits they have seen through working with ScribOrder from Scribbles Software.
Tell us about using ScribOrder in terms of efficiency and environmental impact.
We use e-Transcripts that allow us to send transcripts electronically, avoiding the use of paper. Schools receive the information immediately making the process much faster. We reduce the use of paper more and more as we store information in the electronic system. We pull the information out using ScribOrder to get the information to colleges and students right away. We are paperless.
The system also eliminates travel times for the students; they don’t have to travel to the central office to drop anything off or go to the school to pick anything up. They’re excited when we share that we are using an electronic transcript process.
Where were the student documents before being scanned in?
We had them on microfilm. It is a very, very tedious process: you find the school, you look in the book, you find the tape the student is on, you go get the microfilm, and then you scan and pull up [the record]. Scribbles took all of our microfilm and digitized it and put it straight into the ScribOrder system.
How has access to records changed with ScribOrder?
With ScribOrder we just search the archive. We’ve been given several indexes to search on: last name, first name, middle, DOB, SSN, grad date, and/or student ID. We are able to find that information immediately, no longer going to the microfilm and the notebooks. The efficiency has improved so much because the information is right at our fingertips.
What has surprised you with implementing the ScribOrder process?
When we had the [on-site] transcript desk where people drove up, came inside, and paid their money, we did not have the same amount of traffic that we do now. Build it and they will come! As soon as we rolled this out, we started seeing 10-15 requests a day, and then every day it was like “bam!” Since we have opened up the electronic process, the requests have not stopped.
How does ScribOrder help students around graduation time?
We give ourselves a 48-72 hour turnaround but are currently able to handle them all within 24 hours. If it’s urgent or last minute, we are able to handle same-day and urgent requests.
We feel pretty good about telling the students that if we receive the order today, we can have it to the university today. And they reply, “Wow that’s so cool! Okay, I’m doing it right now.”
Summary
Utilizing the electronic ScribOrder records request system, Seminole County Schools is minimizing the use of paper by providing a completely paperless process for students, staff, alumni, and third-party verification companies. Time is now spent efficiently processing orders through the system without being inundated with graduation verification calls and faxes and without the hassle of painstakingly searching through microfilm. Removing the burden of travel and paper orders has opened the floodgates for transcript requests allowing the district to generate more than $6,700 per month through ScribOrder.
If your district is ready to go paperless, make records more accessible to students and families, and even generate revenue, fill out the form below to contact our team today.
