Customer Stories
Saint James School
Unified records, digital transformation, and streamlined succession planning are among the benefits Saint James School experienced after switching to OnBoard.
Customer Stories
Unified records, digital transformation, and streamlined succession planning are among the benefits Saint James School experienced after switching to OnBoard.
Industry: Education
Headquarters: Hagerstown, Maryland
Board Management Goals
Results
Founded in 1842, Saint James School is a coeducational Episcopal boarding school located in Hagerstown, Maryland. Saint James is primarily a boarding school with a smaller day student program, and the school offers a personalized approach to learning in a diverse and inclusive environment. The school’s dedicated faculty and staff provide a personalized learning experience for students in grades 8-12, working to foster academic, athletic, artistic, social, and moral growth in its students.
In this case study, we share how Saint James School navigated the challenges of modernizing its board management process. The institution leveraged OnBoard’s capabilities to improve access to historical documentation, transitioning smoothly to a hybrid approach, fortifying its governance practices, and ensuring robust security. The Saint James migration to OnBoard is in keeping with the school’s commitment to efficient board management, security, and sustained excellence in education.
“I’ve worked with many vendors and software companies during my career, and OnBoard stands out as one of the best, with knowledgeable, helpful, and professional staff, outstanding customer support, quick response times, and well-developed training resources,” said Margaret McGuigan, Saint James’ director of development and alumni relations. “The platform is well-designed, intuitive to use, and has been readily adopted by our board members. I enthusiastically recommend OnBoard!”
Saint James School was looking for a way to improve its robust governance framework, while providing a tool that reduces administrative barriers for administrators, leadership, and their directors.
“When we sent exploratory emails to OnBoard and to one of its major competitors, the competitor didn’t respond for several weeks,” Margaret said. “OnBoard responded in a matter of hours. There was no contest — it was OnBoard from the very first day.”
— Margaret McGuigan
Director of Development and Alumni Relations
Saint James School
OnBoard provided Saint James School with a solution to many of the challenges the administrative staff and the board were facing by consolidating historical documentation, facilitating smooth transitions, and providing a level of customer service at all stages that exceeded expectations.
Emerging as a versatile platform, OnBoard’s adaptability not only streamlined planning but also created a cohesive and easily manageable environment for the institution’s board management practices.
“Several board members encouraged us to transition to an online board portal, and they are thrilled that OnBoard is launched and available as a resource,” Margaret said. “We have a few trustees who prefer to continue to receive their materials by email, and by downloading the OnBoard board book, we can send them a complete board package in one document. We are also able to provide printed and bound copies of the board book for use during meetings, which simplifies the preparation and distribution process.
“OnBoard gives Saint James an opportunity to store and organize historical records and new documents on one digital platform, accessible from anywhere,” Margaret said. “OnBoard ensures that future access will be less dependent on one person’s skills and more dependent on your platform structure. So, whoever succeeds us will have all past and current materials available in OnBoard.”
“Shout out to Karina (Collins, implementation manager at OnBoard) as well. She was extremely helpful and responsive to my many questions,” Margaret said. “Because I was having trouble working the build into my schedule, we set up a weekly meeting to break the steps of implementation into manageable sections. This proved to be an excellent method and ensured that each step was done thoroughly and properly.”
With OnBoard, Saint James School found practical solutions to its board management challenges. It wasn’t just about problem-solving; it was about making ongoing operations more straightforward and collaborative. OnBoard has become an integral part of the institution’s governance journey, providing a more efficient and cohesive experience for board members and administrators alike.
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