Bethlehem Area School District Chooses SunGard Public Sector ERP Solution

Web-based Capabilities and Industry Knowledge Factor in Selection

SunGard Public Sector today announced that Bethlehem Area School District of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, has selected Integrated Financial and Administration Solution (IFAS) to manage its financial, human resources and payroll information. IFAS is an ERP solution designed specifically for the encumbrance-based fund accounting used within the public sector.

Bethlehem’s desire to take advantage of advances in software technology helped drive its search for a new financial and administrative solution. “We wanted a system for human resources and finance that could help us streamline our processes and consolidate our data,” said Robin Lutcher, director of information technology for Bethlehem Area School District. The District’s legacy system is comprised of multiple databases, which require users to replicate data in several places. IFAS is expected to combine those multiple data sources into one integrated database for human resources and finance.

SunGard Public Sector’s knowledge and experience in the K-12 industry played a key role in Bethlehem Area School District’s decision to purchase IFAS. “We liked all aspects of the product, and appreciated the professionalism with which SunGard personnel approached our school district,” said Ms. Lutcher. “The demonstrations were very thorough and the SunGard Public Sector staff did excellent research on what we need.”

As a result of choosing SunGard Public Sector’s IFAS, Bethlehem Area School District expects to leverage Web-based functionality in order to streamline internal processes. For example, IFAS Workflow helps automate purchase order approvals; Applicant Online manages job applicants through the hiring cycle; and Employee Online helps staff access and modify their selected or predetermined personal human resources and payroll data, such as retirement accounts and emergency contact information.

“We are pleased that Bethlehem Area School District has chosen SunGard Public Sector to help meet its ERP needs,” said Drake Brown, vice president of sales and marketing for SunGard Public Sector Bi-Tech. “It is a welcome addition to our community of K-12 organizations.”

SunGard Public Sector technologies licensed by Bethlehem Area School District include:

• IFAS Financials, Human Resources and Payroll is a fully integrated, Web-based solution which addresses unique requirements of K-12 organizations.
• Workflow models and automates various business processes by defining rule-based activities.
• Click, Drag and Drill is an imaging-supported report writer which provides access to data within IFAS, from summary level to individual transaction detail.
• The Dashboard is a portal interface for IFAS which enables customized links to frequently-used data entry screens or reports.
• Applicant Online is a Web-based human resources tool enabling job applicants to search, review, and apply for available openings via the Internet.
• Employee Online provides employees with the means to edit and modify their personnel records via the Internet.
• Documents Online is a document management application which enables the archival and retrieval of documents, images and reports electronically within IFAS.

About Bethlehem Area School District

Bethlehem Area School District serves the needs of over 15,000 students in beautiful eastern Pennsylvania. The district is comprised of one pre-kindergarten school, sixteen elementary schools, two alternative education programs, four middle schools and two high schools. The Bethlehem Area School District has always been acknowledged as an outstanding educational institution with national and statewide recognition.

About SunGard Public Sector Systems

SunGard Public Sector Systems serves a wide range of customers - school districts, nonprofit organizations, and local, state and federal government agencies - with a growing range of specialized enterprise resource planning and administrative solutions for functions such as accounting, human resources, payroll, utility billing, land management, public safety and criminal justice, and grant and project management.

About SunGard

With annual revenue exceeding $4 billion, SunGard is a global leader in software and processing solutions for financial services, higher education and the public sector. SunGard also helps information-dependent enterprises of all types to ensure the continuity of their business. SunGard serves more than 25,000 customers in more than 50 countries, including the world’s 50 largest financial services companies. Visit SunGard at www.sungard.com.

Trademark Information: SunGard, the SunGard logo and Bi-Tech are trademarks or registered trademarks of SunGard Data Systems Inc. or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and other countries. All other trade names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.