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District says Synergy rollout centralizes student data, adds assessment tools and real-time analytics
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Summary
District staff presented a final rollout update on the Synergy student information system, describing consolidation after a vendor sunset, 15 assessment question types (including constructed-response and free-draw), live teacher monitoring during assessments, new analytics dashboards and ParentVUE enhancements.
District curriculum and technology leaders told the Mounds View School Board on March 10 that a vendor sunset of the previous data warehouse in 2025 prompted migration to Synergy, which now holds student data, assessment tools and analytics in one system.
"So Synergy is our student information system," said John Perry, the district technology director, describing how assessment and analytics modules now live inside the student information platform. Angie Peschel, the executive director of curriculum and instruction, explained the change was fast-tracked in 2025 because the prior data warehouse was being discontinued by its vendor and staff wanted a solution that would better integrate assessment delivery, scoring and reporting for teachers.
Peschel and Mary Staub, director of research, assessment and evaluation, demonstrated assessment capabilities the district is rolling out: 15 question types that go beyond multiple choice (including constructed-response with multiple inputs, a free-draw tool and a multi-part question that presents a scrolling passage with linked items), rubric-based scoring tied to PLC-created rubrics, and a live teacher snapshot that shows where students are during an assessment (how many questions they have answered and indicators of correct/incorrect/partial responses). "Teachers are really loving this because it's allowing them in real time to respond to students," Peschel said.
On analytics, Perry and Staub showed dashboards for attendance, tardies, discipline, enrollment, grades and test results with multiple chart types and drill-down capability to student-level records. Presenters said these dashboards enable schools to track trends over multiple years and create reports customized to local needs (for example, tracking tardies by period and week).
The presenters acknowledged some integration issues remain (pushing assessment results into other modules) but said training and a tiered rollout have reduced support needs. Peschel said early adopters reported efficiencies in grading and better data visualization; the district is also improving ParentVUE to surface test history and individual student reports.
In response to a board question, staff confirmed the assessment tools support accommodations and modifications for students who need them.
The district will continue phased rollouts, add report requests on a prioritized schedule, and monitor teacher feedback as new features are implemented.
