BrightBytes Acquires Trusted IPaaS Provider Authentica Solutions

 BrightBytes adds Authentica to brand portfolio, providing educators with end-to-end data management to improve the way the world learns

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — June 29, 2017 — BrightBytes,® a learning analytics organization currently impacting one in five schools in the United States, today announced the acquisition of Authentica Solutions, developer of DataSense, an education data Integration Platform as a Service (IPaaS). Authentica, a 2017 Microsoft Education Partner of the Year Finalist, currently partners with top enterprise solutions in edtech to help educators at every organizational level meet data management requirements. It is this deep experience in data integration within the K-12 space and the shared dedication to use data to drive learning that makes the combination of BrightBytes and Authentica an unstoppable force.

As big data informs more and more learning decisions, this groundbreaking acquisition marks a major milestone for the industry. Bringing the two companies together will provide educators with fast, easy, and secure data integration, research-based analysis, and actionable recommendations. Big data has caused an undeniable shift across every industry, but many educators have struggled to participate in the data revolution due to widespread data disarray or extreme DRIP (data rich, information poor) conditions. Collection methods, variables, and captured information differ greatly within data sets and produce disparate results for limited analysis. Authentica's IPaaS solution, DataSense, solves many of these integration challenges by providing a single, unified approach to managing all data integration, transformation, and migration processes between all of an education organizations' critical applications, including SIS to APP, APP to APP, and APP to EDW. The solution quickly streamlines quality data flow and removes laborious data collection, rostering, and scrubbing on the user's end.

The widespread availability of accurate and usable data has the potential to unlock a universe of information for educators. However, without the most insightful lens to understand data, the right research to provide meaning, and the clearest methods to communicate results, data is simply a scatter of numbers. The BrightBytes Clarity® platform, the world's leading decision support platform for K-12 educators, provides research-based analysis and organizes and delivers data across engaging, easy-to-understand dashboards and reports. To date, BrightBytes has impacted 9.2 million students by helping schools use data analysis to address common education challenges. Across the platform's core modules, educators can easily gain access to actionable data to evaluate technology efficacy, improve graduation rates, ensure organization-wide data privacy and security, and develop effective leaders. Clarity connects each organization's data to relevant research proven to drive outcomes.

"Educators have always had a lot of data, the challenge is integrating data from multiple sources, analyzing that data against research, communicating the results in an engaging and educative way, and understanding what specific levers need to be pulled to drive effective change. Bringing these two companies together will, for the first time, give educators an end-to-end solution for data-driven decision making," said BrightBytes' Chief Executive Officer, Traci Burgess.

The addition of Authentica to the BrightBytes family will help education leaders cost effectively manage data integration and analysis, improve the quality of data collection, and free education institutions to use their data for the intended purpose of student achievement and success.

About BrightBytes
BrightBytes is a learning analytics organization that translates complex analysis and educational research into fast actions that drive student learning. Their flagship platform, Clarity, measures modern learning outcomes and provides visualized results that are educative, engaging, and actionable, allowing organizations to make evidence-based decisions that improve instruction and advance student achievement.

About Authentica
Authentica Solutions supports K-12 organizations no matter where they are on the data exchange spectrum. Their unique approach toward implementing, handling, and storing data from disparate systems provides school districts the freedom to select the software solutions that work best for them. With direct experience integrating their products with over 30 of the leading enterprise solutions in the edtech space, no other team has the hands-on experience to help all customers meet their data management requirements.

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Media Contact for BrightBytes
Kristal Ayres, 239.398.1770, kristal@brightbytes.net