SUCCESS STORY SUMMARYChallenge: Ithaca City School District (NY) needed an efficient, unified way to manage IT, HR, and service requests, reduce silos, and keep the focus on teaching and learning. Solution: They implemented Let’s Talk as a districtwide service platform, automating IT ticketing, device assignments, HR workflows, and community feedback in one place. Results: Teachers and staff spend less time troubleshooting, new students get devices faster, and leaders use daily customer service data to build trust and drive improvement. |
Ithaca City School District (NY), needed a better way to serve students, staff, and families. As digital learning expanded and operational demands grew more complex, traditional help desk systems fell short. The district sought a modern approach to streamline support, break down silos, and build trust through excellent service.
Superintendent Dr. Luvelle Brown, who spent much of his career leading K-12 IT, wanted to ensure that daily interactions — whether about technology, enrollment, or HR — aligned with Ithaca’s mission to keep students at the center.
“I wish I’d known as a CIO years ago what I know now: it’s not just about test scores. With Let’s Talk, we track customer service every day. That data has changed how we lead,” Dr. Brown said.
At the same time, with rising costs and families weighing more schooling options, Ithaca saw the urgency to drive operational efficiency, using fewer resources while maintaining high-quality, responsive service.
“IT leadership in schools is not limited to managing devices and networks. It is to lead on the imperative of digital transformation to fully bring our schools into the 21st century. This means 21st century processes, efficiencies, reliability, precision and a 21st century customer experience.”
– Dr. Brown, superintendent, Ithaca City School District
Ithaca adopted Let’s Talk in 2013 as a districtwide service platform, beginning in IT and quickly expanding to HR, enrollment, and other key areas. What started as an effort to modernize technology support evolved into a unified approach to customer service.
With Let’s Talk, the district:
“Let’s Talk isn’t just a ticketing system for us, it’s become the backbone of how we support teaching and learning. Every workflow we’ve built is about taking problems off our teachers’ plates so they can stay focused on students,” said Zach Lind, assistant superintendent for HR and technology at Ithaca City School District.
Today, Ithaca is seeing measurable improvements in efficiency, transparency, and service quality. With Let’s Talk as a shared platform, district leaders can see trends across IT, HR, and other departments, using data to solve issues early and improve how the district serves its community.
Key results include:
“We’ve made Let’s Talk the hub for everything from IT to HR, and we’re just getting started. As we keep automating, we’re freeing up more time for staff to do what matters most: supporting kids,” Lind said.
Looking forward, Dr. Brown sees Let’s Talk as essential to the district’s strategy.
“This is about more than fixing systems, it’s about building a culture of responsiveness and trust. Let’s Talk gives us the data and tools to keep improving how we serve students, families, and staff,” Dr. Brown said.
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