Powerschool to Acquire Kinvolved, Expanding K-12 Platform to Provide Critical Messaging and Communication to Improve Student Outcomes
PowerSchool (NYSE: PWSC), the leading provider of cloud-based software for K-12 education, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Kinvolved, a leading provider of K-12 communications, attendance, and engagement solutions supporting over 250,000 students and used within three of the top four school districts in the U.S. Adding Kinvolved’s leading communication engine to PowerSchool’s Unified Home solution will enable schools and districts to strengthen and simplify overall communications and notifications between school and home to increase engagement and help reduce absenteeism.
"Collaboration between teachers, parents, and students is one of the most important aspects of an effective education, and we know it’s a top priority for our customers to have efficient, centralized notifications and communications integrated with PowerSchool," said Hardeep Gulati, CEO of PowerSchool. "We look forward to welcoming Kinvolved to our PowerSchool team, and together making a bigger impact on improving student engagement and outcomes."
Recent research from the National Education Association shows how crucial parents and families are to the education and growth of students, as support from the home directly increases student attendance and academic outcomes. Ongoing COVID-related disruptions have also increased the importance of schools being able to communicate time-sensitive updates to parents and families no matter where they are or the language they speak. The return to in-person and hybrid instruction saw a dramatic increase in chronic absenteeism, defined as missing 10 percent or more of the time, with some districts reaching rates as high as 40%. Student absences also have a direct and negative impact on available budget for schools and districts, and recently accounted for $10.7 billion in lost annual funding.