Celebrating exceptional digital school communities
The Great Portals Build Off
Overview
The Great Portals Build Off recognizes the outstanding and thoughtful work of current Veracross users and hopefully provides inspiration for all schools.
Enter to win in one of the five categories
Best School Branding
Awarded to the school that best incorporated their schools brand into their portals. Beyond colors and images, this award goes to the school the best captures the schools mission and vision.
Best User Experience
This award goes to the school that built portals that make finding information and completing tasks efficient and enjoyable.
Best Navigation
This award goes to the school with the clearest and most thoughtful navigation within their portal
Best Overall Use of Portals
Does your school use multiple portals? Do you have very targeted portals for newly enrolled families, trustees, or other constituents? This award is for you!
Most Creative
This award recognizes schools that push the boundaries of the portals and show us something we’ve never seen before!
Frequently Asked Questions
Does it cost anything to enter?
Entry to “The Great Portals Build Off” is completely free!
What can I win?
Winners will get a Veracross SWAG bag, a certificate to display proudly in their office, and recognition on Veracross social media and website
Who are the judges?
- Nija Meyer – Nija is the Vice President for Enrollment Management at Woodward Academy. Before joining Woodward, she served in strategic marketing and consulting roles for The Coca-Cola Company, Andersen Consulting’s Strategic Services, and GE Capital.
- Caitlin Parker – Caitlin is the Director of Support Services at Veracross. A former school communication coordinator, Caitlin has helped dozens of schools build their portals strategy. The only thing more important to Caitlin than effective school community, is the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
- Peter Ross – Peter is the co-founder of 829 studios and is in expert in marketing strategy, site architecture, SEO, and interactive media. Peter is an outdoor enthusiast and serves on the board for America Outdoors Association.
- Mike Touhey – Mike is the Chief Marketing Officer at Veracross. Mike is a seasoned marketer with over 20+ year’s experience leading branding initiatives and communication strategies. Like any good New Englander, you can find Mike on the slopes in the winter and on a boat in the summer.
What is the judging criteria?
- Best design with end-user in mind
- Best school branding
- Best navigation
- Best portals strategy (do you go beyond just parent, student, and faculty portals? What about a board portal? New family portal? Show us how you crafted tailored portals for specific members of your community.
- Most creativity
How many times can I enter?
You can enter as few as one portal and as many as five. But you can only win once 😊
What about sensitive personal information in the portals?
All submissions need to have all personally identifiable information (PII) blurred out (names, emails, photos, etc.), or highlight test users. Submissions will not be accepted if PII is included.