K–12 Schools
The Learning Management System helps teachers manage both large and small group instruction, communicating deadlines, posting assignments, and administering tests.”
Founded in 1845, Calvert Hall College High School is a Catholic college preparatory school for boys serving grades 9–12 in the Baltimore area. With a strong focus on academic excellence, mentorship, and whole person development, the school offers a wide range of academic programs, athletics, and extracurricular opportunities designed to prepare students for success beyond graduation.
To support their mission, Calvert Hall recognized the need for a connected technology foundation—one that could simplify operations while strengthening engagement across students, families, faculty, and staff.
Over time, Calvert Hall accumulated a patchwork of systems to support enrollment, academics, athletics, health records, billing, accounting, and advancement. While each tool served a purpose, the lack of integration created data silos, manual workarounds, and limited visibility across departments.
As Director of Technology Austin Ewachiw explained, “We used to have many siloed systems. Athletics had its own schedule, the nurse had a separate database and advisors had their own notes. Bringing those systems together was a large undertaking—but the benefits were immediate.”
The school needed a unified platform that could support students from first inquiry through graduation and beyond—while improving efficiency for faculty, staff, and families.
“We used to have many siloed systems. Athletics had its own schedule, the nurse had a separate database, and advisors had their own notes. Bringing those systems together was a large undertaking— but the benefits were immediate.”
One Platform Supporting the Entire School Community
Calvert Hall adopted Blackbaud’s Total School Solution, a unified system for admissions, academics, tuition, billing, fundraising, and fund accounting.
Anchored by Blackbaud Student Information System with it’s built-in Learning Management System, it provides a single, consistent experience for students, parents, teachers, staff, and admins.
“I was with CHC when we first brought the new SIS and LMS on board,” shared Marc Parisi, director of student activities. “This change allowed us to keep one student database. When student information changes, families can make the edits themselves, and every department can see it in real time.
Now, each department is working together, and we are ‘one school’ instead of different offices.”
The connected platform also supports Calvert Hall’s structured mentorship model for incoming freshman. Each faculty mentor is assigned a small group of freshmen, creating a more personalized onboarding experience. Mentors can share documents, post communications, and track student progress using Blackbaud’s integrated SIS and LMS.
“It allows the mentors to have ‘their’ students front and center. They can easily keep tabs on grades, involvement, and more. Parents and students can find their advisors and communicate easily,” said Parisi. “We have found that there is much peace of mind for parents in knowing who to contact as their son starts someplace new, and mentors are able to keep an eye on their newest students.”
For teachers, Blackbaud’s integrated SIS and LMS simplifies daily workflows. “Calvert Hall is unique in our offering of team-taught, lecture-style courses,” said Lauren Urban, dean of curriculum and instruction. “The LMS helps teachers manage both large and small group instruction, communicating deadlines, posting assignments, and administering tests. The system helps improve efficiency and communication for our teachers, students, and parents.”
“The LMS helps teachers manage both large and small group instruction, communicating deadlines, posting assignments, and administering tests. The system helps improve efficiency and communication for our teachers, students, and parents.”
A Connected Lifecycle—from Admissions to Advancement
The connected Calvert Hall experience begins even before a student enrolls. Prospective families submit initial inquiries through the school’s website, powered by Blackbaud School Website System, with data flowing directly into Blackbaud Enrollment Management. Families use a personalized portal to complete applications and throughout the admissions process.
Once enrolled, that same login becomes the family’s single point of access to the SIS and LMS, providing 360-degree visibility into grades, schedules, assignments, communications, activities, and bills across multiple students.
Student and family records also integrate with Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT, the AI-powered CRM supporting Calvert Hall’s alumni engagement and fundraising efforts. As Ewachiw explained, “Those records flow from our SIS into the graduate profile used by our advancement team. Blackbaud’s Common Records Engine will make that process even more seamless and accurate.”
On the financial side, Calvert Hall implemented Blackbaud Billing Management, allowing families to select tuition payment plans and make payments through the same portal they use for academic information. As a true accounts receivable sub-ledger to the school’s general ledger— Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT— Billing Management streamlines financial processes in the business office, reduces manual reconciliation, and improves visibility into tuition revenue.
“It is a massive time savings,” said Ewachiw. “Our finance office has better insight and a more direct relationship with the tuition payment process.”
“Every school is unique. The ability for third-party systems to talk to each other securely and still maintain a single source of truth for students, families, and staff is incredibly powerful.”
Built to Evolve with the School
As a longtime Blackbaud customer, Calvert Hall values the ability to evolve without rebuilding its technology foundation. Open APIs and partner integrations allow the school to extend its ecosystem with specialized solutions for health services, emergency communications, and reporting.
“Every school is unique. The ability for third-party systems to talk to each other securely and still maintain a single source of truth for students, families, and staff is incredibly powerful,” said Ewachiw.
Looking ahead, Calvert Hall is optimistic about how emerging technologies can continue to improve efficiency. “There’s obviously a lot of excitement with the inclusion of AI into these products—being able to process tasks more efficiently, get work done faster, and buy back time to spend with the students,” concluded Ewachiw.
Reflecting on the school’s long relationship with Blackbaud, he added, “It’s been impressive to see how our experience with Blackbaud has matured over the years. The offerings have truly grown with us.”
Ready to power your passion?
Request a customized demo to see how Blackbaud is made for your unique challenges and needs.
All fields required