nFocus Software Deploys Solutions to Raise Community's Graduation Rates

PHOENIX, Aug. 30, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- nFocus Software, the leading provider of performance management and outcome measurement software to the public sector, has been selected by United Way of Forsyth County and the Community Education Collaborative in Winston-Salem, N.C., to deploy a community data system that will help evaluate and support student progress and other initiatives.

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The Collaborative was founded in 2008 by Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, United Way of Forsyth County, the Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce, Graduate. It Pays., and various community leaders to coordinate and strengthen strategies on academic achievement and high school graduation rates. It now includes a broader constituency, including representatives from the faith-based community and grass-roots organizations.  

The graduation rate was nearly 71 percent when the group was created. The graduation rate has since improved to nearly 80 percent and the goal is to reach 90 percent by 2018.

"This requires us to strengthen our efforts to reach that 2018 goal and increasing our data management capacity is a key element," said Eric A. Aft, Chief Operating Officer, United Way of Forsyth County. "We need a partner that will help assure greater effectiveness for our community initiatives and funders need data to evaluate how best to achieve the greatest return on our investment. nFocus will help us to ensure we are reaching our students in the best way possible and helping them build a path for success."

nFocus will implement TraxSolutions, a system that ensures data is shared and analyzed on an ongoing basis by various community partners to support decision making and deliver positive outcomes. A program manager, hired by the Collaborative's partner, Forsyth Futures, will manage the new system, which will initially gather data from 14 sites. Forsyth Futures' expertise in data management and analysis, along with its focus on coordinating projects with shared goals, is a vital asset to the project.

Ananda Roberts, President of nFocus Software, said, "Winston-Salem is entrusting us with their mission to reverse adverse trends and identify service gaps. Only through such a collective vision and measuring outcomes will the community achieve its goals."

TraxSolutions is scheduled to begin to go live with local partners this fall.

About nFocus Software

nFocus Software is the leading provider of performance management, training, and outcome measurement software to the public sector. For more than 17 years, the company's youth and education solutions tracked and measured outcomes for more than 3.8 million children in all 50 states and Canada including nonprofit organizations, Fortune 500 companies, and city, state, and federal government. Information: www.nfocus.com

About United Way of Forsyth County

United Way of Forsyth County, based in Winston-Salem, NC, unites community resources to address critical challenges facing its residents.  Information: www.forsythunitedway.org

About Forsyth Futures

Forsyth Futures convenes individuals and organizations around critical community issues to identify the best approach for creating solutions that no one organization can solve alone. Information: www.forsythfutures.org

SOURCE nFocus Software