LAS VEGAS, July 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- In a major effort
to increase student retention and success at college campuses
across the state, the Kentucky
Community & Technical College System (KCTCS) has
selected Blackboard Inc. (Nasdaq: BBBB) to redesign its process for
delivering services and support to students, the company announced
today.
With the initiative, KCTCS aims to save millions of dollars by
streamlining administrative processes and improving the way the
organization manages admissions, enrollment, financial aid, and
information technology across the system. In the initial phase of
the project, Blackboard Student Services(SM) – formerly Presidium
Inc. – will work with KCTCS to enhance, centralize and manage
operations in each of these areas, collaborating with institutional
leaders on system-wide change management.
"Through this multi-year initiative with Blackboard, KCTCS will
be more nimble and focused on providing better service to
students," said Dr. Gloria McCall,
vice chancellor of KCTCS. "The plan is designed to ensure the
global competitiveness of Kentucky
by educating our citizens in high demand, high wage jobs."
KCTCS supports more than 106,000 students and approximately
10,000 faculty and staff at 16 colleges located on 68 campuses
across the state. Working with Blackboard Student Services, KCTCS
will implement a statewide relationship management system to
support students in all areas of college life. The effort is part
of a larger system-wide transformation initiative to deliver
improved services to a growing number of students and faculty with
cost-effective approaches that allow for a more sustainable,
efficient use of resources.
The effort will provide integrated services, support and
technology across the college system including service desk
operations for recruitment and admissions, financial aid and
student accounts, retention services and identity management.
Students and faculty will gain access to on-demand phone, Web, chat
and mobile support and will receive proactive voice and e-mail
communications that anticipate their needs in key areas. Across the
system, the changes will enable KCTCS officials to better measure
outcomes and – through an integration with technology partners
Intelliworks and Starfish Retention Solutions – provide a holistic
approach to student lifecycle management including strategic
enrollment management and proactive retention solutions.
"Keeping students engaged, keeping them on track, and making
sure they're successful is a difficult task, especially at a
community college system that is called to serve a growing
population on a limited budget," said Craig
Chanoff, general manager of Blackboard Student Services.
"Intuitive self-help and mobile technologies are not only in high
demand, they're critical to student success in today's technology
rich environment. We are excited to partner with KCTCS to improve
these types of services and provide comprehensive, multi-channel
support for students in all areas of campus life. This effort can
help them retain and graduate more students, keeping them in
Kentucky to pursue further
educational and career opportunities."
Launched earlier this year with the acquisition of Presidium
Inc., a leading provider of administrative and academic support
services to hundreds of colleges and universities, Blackboard
Student Services supports all aspects of the student lifecycle,
including admissions and enrollment, financial aid, student
accounts and IT helpdesks.
The announcement was made today at BbWorld®, Blackboard's
annual user conference held in Las Vegas,
Nevada.
For more information about Blackboard Student Services, please
visit http://www.blackboard.com/StudentServices
About Blackboard Inc.
Blackboard Inc. (Nasdaq: BBBB) is a global leader in enterprise
technology and innovative solutions that improve the experience of
millions of students and learners around the world every day.
Blackboard's solutions allow thousands of higher education, K-12,
professional, corporate, and government organizations to extend
teaching and learning online, facilitate campus commerce and
security, and communicate more effectively with their communities.
Founded in 1997, Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in North America, Europe, Asia
and Australia.
Any statements in this press release about future
expectations, plans and prospects for Blackboard and other
statements containing the words
"believes,"
"anticipates," "plans,"
"expects," "will," and
similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within
the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by
such forward-looking statements as a result of various important
factors, including the factors discussed in the "Risk
Factors" section of our Form 10-K
filed on February 18, 2011
and Form 10-Q filed on May 9,
2011 with the SEC. In addition, the forward-looking
statements included in this press release represent the
Company's views as of July 13, 2011. The Company anticipates
that subsequent events and developments will cause the
Company's views to change. However, while the Company
may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point
in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to
do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon
as representing the Company's views as of any date
subsequent to July 13,
2011.
SOURCE Blackboard Inc.