Configuration of Independent Study Agreements
Deleting a Signatory/Signed Document
Digitally Sign from Portal Account
Send an Email Reminder to all Eligible Signatories
Independent Study Agreement Status Report
Overview
Navigate to Student Data > Programs > Independent Study Agreements.
The Independent Study Agreements page allows Independent Study Agreements to be documented by office staff and uploaded into Aeries. A Signatory tab identifies all Stakeholders who are required to sign the Agreement. Signatory records can be digitally signed by Parents, Students, Teachers and Staff. Teachers and Supervising Teachers can maintain the Work Product Evaluation records for an agreement which allows for recording Independent Study hours/days completed by the student and tracking the student's satisfactory progress for work assignments.
Security ↑
Table | Permission | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Independent Study Agreements (ISA) | Read Insert Update Delete | View Independent Study Agreements page. View Agreement Documents and Signatures, Digitally Sign Documents Add a new Agreement. Update to ISA is required for Insert to be allowed. Edit Agreement details and upload documents. Delete Agreements. Delete documents. Update to ISA is required for Delete to be allowed. |
| Independent Study Signatures (ISG) | Read Insert Update Delete | Not used No special permission when used alone. When given Insert and Update, user can Add Signatories. View and Access the Signatories tab in Edit mode. Update Signatories and documents, Mark Supervising Teacher (must have read, insert and update to be able to add and edit; Read and Update will only allow editing Signatories, no Add New Signatory button unless Insert is given). Send a Reminder email button or Email Reminder alert. Delete Signatory records and documents. |
| Signing Documents - Parent/Student/Teacher/User | ISA- Read | View Agreement Sign and View Signature District Setting options must also be enabled. |
| Work Product Evaluation (ISW) Teachers need Update Supervising Teacher would need all permissions | Read Insert Update Delete | Inherits from ISA Add WPE Records View WPE tab, Edit WPE Records Delete Records |
Tables ↑
The following tables are used in setting up the configuration for Independent Study Agreements.
| Table | Field | Description |
| District Settings | AllowDigitalSignature (NM) | When selected, the value will be set to 'true' |
| School Options (OPT) | PortalTeacherExternalURL (NM) | Teacher portal login URL used for identifying the link in the "Send a Reminder" email for staff |
| School Options (OPT) | PortalExternalURL (NM) | Parent portal login URL used for identifying the link in the "Send a Reminder" email for parents/students |
| Independent Study Agreements (ISA) | Table used for adding an agreement to a student's record | |
| Signatories (ISG) | Table used to store signatories for the student's agreement record | |
| Work Product Evaluation (ISW) | Table used to store Work Product Evaluation records for students |
Configuration of Independent Study Agreements ↑
District Settings
An Allow Digital Signatures option is available that is used in conjunction with the Independent Study Agreements page, so Signatories can digitally sign Agreements. See District Settings for more information.
School Options in District
In order to Send a Reminder email to Parents, Students and Staff that an Agreement is awaiting their Signature, the following fields must be populated:
- External Parent/Student Portal URL: Indicate the Base URL link that is used for the Parent/Student Portal login.
- External Teacher Portal URL: Indicate the Base URL link that is used for the Teacher portal login.
NOTE: Hosted districts will need to contact support to populate these fields.
Adding an Agreement ↑
To create a new Independent Study Agreement, click on Add Agreement.
In the form, add the Agreement information.
Agreement Details options
- Status - The Status options in the list are meant to be used progressively as the Agreement is Drafted, Read, and Agreed to by the Parent, Student, Teachers and Staff. This field is Required.
- Draft - This is the beginning phase of the Agreement. Documents are uploaded for Stakeholders to review. When adding an agreement, the status always defaults to Draft.
- Pending- Agreement is waiting to be signed. Stakeholders cannot sign until the Agreement is placed in Pending Status. Once any Signatory has signed, if the Status is changed back to Draft for edits or Cancelled Prior to Activation, all existing signatures are deleted. It is important that all signatories are added prior to signing agreements.
- Cancelled Prior to Activation - The Student may have decided not to take Independent Study. Choosing this Status clears all signatures. This may also be set back to Draft or Pending in order to edit the Agreement.
- Activated- Agreement has been signed and is Active. When all Signatures are complete, the Agreement is automatically Activated and no changes can be made to the Document or Signatures. From this Status the Agreement can only be Revoked. The Add Signatures button is now hidden.
- Revoked- The Agreement has been voided. Perhaps the Student did not fulfill the terms of the Agreement or decided not to continue in the Independent Study program. Once an Agreement is Revoked it cannot be changed, reactivated or deleted. It is kept for historical purposes. A 'super confirm' message displays when an agreement is revoked. To cancel out of this process, select the 'X' in the upper right corner. Once the record is Saved, it can not be un-done.
- Planned Start Date/Planned End Date - The proposed Start and End Dates for the Agreement. When the Agreement is initially Saved, the Planned Start and End Dates populate the Actual Start Date and Actual End Date. The Actual dates can be updated when the Agreement goes into effect.
- Actual Start Date/Actual End Date - Initially populated by the Planned Start/End Dates, but should be updated when the Agreement goes into effect. If the Actual Start/End Dates are changed, changing the Planned Start/End Dates does not affect them.
- Length Type - Long Term or Short Term.
- Type - Traditional or Course Based Independent Study drop-downs are hard-coded in this field. User defined codes can be added to the COD table for ISA.TY and appears in the drop-down on the Agreements page for use with identifying and managing Agreement types.
- Evaluation Period
- Unique - The Student has an evaluation pattern different from the Standard School Evaluation periods.
- School Pattern - The IS Evaluation periods follow the standard School policies.
- Reason - Enter a reason for the agreement. This is code based and allows for the school to define the drop-down information in the field. An example would be: Self-enrolled; Dropped from Program by Parent, etc.
- Notes - Additional Comments. The Notes are visible to Parent, Student, and Teacher Portals so they should not contain confidential information.
Agreement Document options
- English PDF File - This is the Agreement in PDF format and is required to be uploaded and must be a PDF file. The Agreement cannot be digitally signed until there is at least one document uploaded.
- Language(s) - The Agreement document can be uploaded in different languages. Stakeholders sign a specific language version of the Agreement. Confirmation Text for the languages can be configured in District Settings. When uploading documents in other languages, an English document must be added as the default document.
Agreement Workflow ↑
Once an Agreement has been created and Signatories assigned, it should be in Draft mode for review. Once the Agreement text is finalized the Status should then be set to Pending. This indicates awaiting signatures. The Signatures can be a hand-signed copy that is scanned and uploaded manually, or digitally signed if enabled in District Settings. Once the Signatures have been completed by all Signatories, the Status automatically changes to Activated.
Once Activated, the only action that can be taken is to Revoke the Agreement, at which point it is no longer editable.
A workflow chart has been provided to help with guidance on the process. Agreement Workflow Chart.
NOTE: Once an Agreement is Pending, Activated or Revoked, the Agreement Documents cannot changed.
Signatories ↑
The Signatories section is used to manage all Stakeholders who are required to sign the Independent Study Master Agreement. Begin by selecting the Add Signatory button. This button can be pressed multiple times if you have multiple signatures currently being added. Enter all stakeholders who require signatures on this form. Select an Account Type and Account Details which automatically inserts the username into the Name field and the type of account into the Relationship. If a required field is left blank, an error message displays.
Check the box Supervisor Teacher if the signatory record is for the Supervising Teacher. Only account types of Aeries.net will have this option available.
Selecting an Account
Selecting the Account type has options for selecting from Aeries.net (UGN), Student/Parent (PWA), or None.
When selecting Aeries.net, the Account Details displays Staff that have an association with the Student either by classes, as a Counselor or a student's Special Education case carrier. The field allows for searching any Staff member that may not be associated with the student but may be required to sign the Agreement. When a search is made, the record displays in the drop-down list temporarily. Select the staff to insert the record into the Account Details field.
When adding the Parent/Guardian signature, select the Account Type (Parent/Student), then select from the Account Details drop-down the appropriate signatory that is required to sign the Agreement. If no email is found in the drop-down, change the Account Type to None, then proceed to Account Details where the email can be manually entered. Only signatories that have a login account for the Aeries Portal are able to Digitally Sign the agreement.
NOTE: If a Teacher is added that is not associated with the student they can only sign manually by uploading the signed document.
Manual Signatures ↑
To manually upload the signature, first select the Signed Language field to identify the language of the agreement that the signatory was given to sign. The Agreement must exist in the Agreement tab for that language in order to identify this language in the signatories tab.
Next, populate the Date Signed, then select the Upload Signed Doc button and select the signature file. The allowable file types are listed on the District Settings page.
Deleting a Signatory/Signed Document ↑
Use the delete icon to permanently delete a signatory from the Agreement record. Use this button with caution. If an agreement is in Active status, it can not be deleted.
When deleting a signatory record, a 'super confirm' delete message appears. The User must enter the provided code in order to delete the record, then select Confirm Delete.
Digitally Sign from Portal Account ↑
A signatory can submit the signature from within their portal account as long as they have READ permissions to ISA. The agreement displays with a Please Sign button if a signature has not been submitted (manually or digitally). The button is only available if the Agreement is in Pending status and the District settings option is enabled. Parents, Students and Staff can sign the agreement. Teachers can only digitally sign an agreement for a student they are associated with or have access to.
Upon selecting the Please Sign option, a form displays with the text defined on the District Settings page. The signatory can select the appropriate form in the preferred language. An option to View Agreement PDF is available and should be selected and read prior to submitting the Digital Signature. Check the box "I have reviewed the Agreement PDF, and agree to the above statement".
An additional field displays to enter the Name of the person submitting the digital signature. Enter the name, then select Accept and Sign.
Upon digitally signing an agreement, a confirmation email is sent to the signatory's email as shown below. The email includes a Confirmation ID which is stored in the ISG.DSS field.
Documents with pending signatures display on top. All signed documents are grouped by Language. An option to view the signature is available.
Send a Reminder Email ↑
An option is available to Send a Reminder email to the Parent, Student, or Staff who are required to sign the agreement digitally. Only accounts that are linked to a PWA or UGN account can be signed digitally and have this button available next to the record on the Signatories tab. This generates an email reminding the stakeholder that the agreement is awaiting their signature. The email text is not editable.
The email is sent in English for Students and Staff. Parents who have a Correspondence Language (CON.CL) of Spanish receive the Reminder in Spanish. At this time, only the alternative language of Spanish is available for parents.
The Email Reminder will display the Student ID and Student Name to indicate who's agreement needs to be signed. The Email Reminder includes a hyperlink to the Independent Study Agreements page for the Student. The link is determined by the URL Settings in the District's School Options page as described in the above section Configuration of Independent Study Agreements. When the link is selected, the signatory will be navigated to the appropriate URL and upon logging in, will be taken directly to the Agreements page for the appropriate student.
Send an Email Reminder to all Eligible Signatories ↑
An email reminder can be sent to all eligible signatories with one button when the status of the agreement is changed to Pending. An Email Reminder alert will popup when the Save button is clicked and the status is Pending and there is at least one signatory needing to be signed. When the alert displays, selecting Yes, will send the email reminder to all signatories that have not signed the agreement yet. This includes all stakeholders with a UGN or PWA account. Stakeholders with a signed digital signature or a signed document that has already been manually uploaded will be skipped in this process. Also, if an account type is set to None, the signatory will not be included in the email reminder process.
The user can choose to not send the email notification to all eligible signatories by selecting the No option. Any changes will still be saved and a green message will display in the corner to indicate the agreement has been saved.
If there are no signatories needing to be signed when the user selects Yes, a failed message will indicate that there are no eligible signatories found.
Viewing a Signature ↑
Once a signature has been uploaded either manually or digitally, it can be viewed. A View Signature button displays to the right of the Date Signed. If a signature was manually uploaded, the file is downloaded. If the signature was digitally submitted, the page displays the Digital Signature Agreement text, the E-Signature as it was entered by the signatory and the Signed Date.
Work Product Evaluation ↑
The Work Product Evaluation feature allows for recording Independent Study hours/days completed by the student and tracking the student's satisfactory progress for work assignments. The CDE recommends at least one completed work product for each subject every two weeks.
In order for Work Product Evaluations records to be created, a Supervising Teacher record must exist on the signatories tab.
On the Work Product Evaluations tab, select Add Work Product Evaluation button. A Start Date and End Date is required to begin the process of adding the courses that will be included for the evaluation period. Enter dates that match the timeframe of the evaluation period as identified by the district. For example, the evaluation period may take place every two weeks or monthly. Once dates have been entered, select the SAVE icon.
A record for each class based on Course Attendance (CAR) that falls within the evaluation date range will be inserted into the evaluation page. The first record (highlighted in blue) will be the master record for the Work Product Evaluation period. This is the record managed by the supervising teacher. All other records will be managed by the teacher of record for the class. With proper permissions, the teacher will be able to document the hours, days, student's progress and any notes for each evaluation period. The supervising teacher will indicate the ADA days for the evaluation period on the master record as well as the overall satisfactory progress for the evaluation period. The ADA days is informational only and does not automatically get triggered into the Attendance table.
Individual courses can be deleted if needed. Deleting a master record will delete all courses for that evaluation period. To delete a record, select the edit icon, then select the delete icon. A warning message will appear "Are you sure you want to delete this record". Select OK to delete the message.
NOTE: Work Product Evaluation records should only be maintained in the school where the agreement and classes are managed for the independent study program.
Work Product Evaluation start dates can not be changed once added. If a date is added in error, the master record will need to be deleted, all subsequent course records will be deleted too, then the new evaluation records can be added again with corrected dates. Be cautious when deleting evaluation records. Records should not be deleted if data has already been populated.
Work Product Evaluations will appear on the Agreement home page and will display the master record for each evaluation period. Clicking on the down arrow or anywhere on the record will expand to display all courses for the evaluation period. The page will always default to only display the master record in each evaluation period when the page is loaded.
To collapse the list, select the up arrow.
Independent Study Agreement Status Report ↑
The Independent Study Agreement Status report is designed to print information from the Independent Study Agreement page for students with Independent Study Agreements or Work Product Evaluation records. More information regarding this report can be found on the following page Independent Study Agreement Status Report.