In 2012, Littleton Public Schools needed a better way to manage student data. The district’s legacy student information system (SIS) lacked flexibility and couldn’t keep up with growing compliance and reporting demands. Two months into her role as Technology Systems Coordinator, Natalie found herself responsible for leading the transition to something better. The district chose Follett Aspen® Student Information System – and over a decade later, that decision continues to drive real results. From fast implementation and improved state reporting to mobile registration and community leadership, Aspen SIS didn’t just solve a problem. It became a partner in Littleton’s long-term success.

 

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Urgency Without a Road Map

When Natalie joined the district in 2012 as the state reporting specialist, she was immediately met with a significant challenge: leadership had decided to overhaul their SIS just two months into her tenure. Despite having no prior experience with SIS transitions, limited time to prepare, and high expectations, Natalie was tasked with navigating this major change. As she recalled, “I started in 2012 as the state reporting specialist, and within two months, we were navigating this big change.” The district needed to complete a full implementation in time for the new school year – without disrupting daily operations or falling behind on state requirements. “We were a little nervous. We had never done this before and did not know what to expect.”

The pain points were clear:

• Outdated workflows
• Difficult and manual state reporting processes
• A lack of flexibility and transparency
• The pressure of meeting DESE
  (Department of Elementary and
  Secondary Education) mandates on
  tight timelines

 

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How Aspen SIS Solved It: Speed, Flexibility, and Support

With Aspen SIS, Littleton hit the ground running. The system was fully implemented and live by the start of the new school year. “By September, we were up and going all in – let go of the old database and went fresh into Aspen.” The Aspen team provided hands-on support and made Natalie feel heard at every step. “We felt very comfortable in the transition process. We felt like people were there to listen, ask questions – and understood the difficulty of
this change.”

As she began working in the system, Natalie discovered just how customizable Aspen was – something the old SIS simply didn’t offer.

 

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Day-to-Day Impact: State Reporting and Online Registration

One of the biggest wins for Littleton when using Aspen SIS? State reporting. From SIMS and EPIMS to SSDR and more, Aspen SIS gave Natalie the tools to run clean queries, organize student data, and get reports out quickly and accurately. Over time, these improvements scaled beyond compliance. Littleton adopted Online Registration (OLR) from Aspen SIS – replacing manual forms with a fully digital process. The district even tied registration to homeroom visibility in the portal, boosting parent completion rates and data accuracy. “We started requiring parents to complete the current student registration before families and students could access homeroom or scheduling information at the beginning of the school year. This change significantly increased the completion of Current Student Registration forms compared to the old paper-and-pen method.” Now, they’re preparing to roll out Aspen Go, giving families mobile access to the same tools – another step forward in efficiency and equity.

 

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Leadership and Community: Training a State Through METAA & Pando

With more than a decade of experience using Aspen SIS, Natalie – alongside her colleagues – took on a new role: helping others. In partnership with Follett Software and METAA, the Massachusetts Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) chapter, they now lead regular statewide trainings for Massachusetts districts.

“Years ago, I started training data specialists on state reporting with DESE at MassCUE. It was clear there was a significant need across the state for a forum where data specialists could get much needed training, ask questions, and get support on the challenging task of state reporting.

Follett Software supports these sessions, many of which are hosted at the annual MassCUE conference as well as the annual METAA conference. The online training sessions that run six times a year are recorded and distributed via Pando, the Aspen user community. They reach hundreds of admins each year. ”Aspen has become an important partner, collaborating with us on these virtual training sessions that we offer six times a year.

This has been a real value-add for data staff who might not have the funds to attend in-person training or the ability to leave their office.”

 

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Built for Districts, Backed by People Who Understand Them

From urgent SIS replacement to long-term growth, Littleton Public Schools has built a data-driven, efficient, and community connected operation – all powered by Aspen SIS.

This extended collaboration highlights a consistent level of satisfaction and reliability, proving Aspen’s ability to meet the district’s evolving needs over more than a decade.

 

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Want to see what Aspen could do for your district?

Whether you’re navigating compliance, upgrading your SIS, or seeking more flexibility and support, Aspen delivers more
than software – it delivers partnership