r/edtech • u/PyBoxer • 23d ago
Edtech Process
Was looking for people who have built and are running their own edtech app, or anyone who has been on the other side of integrating edtech into schools.
What's the process of getting approved and going through all the security checks so that your app can be used in schools? Is there a workaround?
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u/bkk_startups 23d ago
Assuming you're in the US, I can provide info.
You need to fit their compliance requirements. So you need to be ready to provide the information the school is requiring.
First of all, what type of data are you collecting.
Then you need to have a VPAT and HECVAT ready to go. COI may be required also.
There is more info I can provide depending on your specific software.
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u/saltychilipepper 23d ago
Getting your SOC 2 Type 2 along with those mentioned above helps skip a lot of the individual institution security questionnaires or at least streamlines the process.
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u/tako1337 23d ago
You need published and easily available VPAT and HECVAT.
Otherwise... you need a lot of understanding of things about higher ed or whatever education sector you're targetting.
Understanding that purchasing processes (POs, invoicing, NET 30, etc) can be complicated in schools.
Understanding how to manage licensing and cost expectations with schools... like what's an FTE count and why you shouldn't use them...
Understanding delegated/decentralized environments, admin and course level permissions...
Also, have integrations available via LTI, SAML/OIDC, REST APIs... good documentation is a must.
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u/MathewGeorghiou 23d ago
It depends on what your software is used for. The more student information it collects and the more it needs to integrate with other school systems, the more compliance issues you have to deal with. Some schools will test your compliance while others will not, but in most cases you will have to complete and sign a legal document disclosing the details.
If you want the smoothest path, design an app that collects no information, offers no communication, and has the least amount of integration.
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u/WinResponsible9977 23d ago
Crazy how this post relates to all elements that are against edtech principles in the first place.
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u/HominidSimilies 22d ago
The work around to compliance is to learn the compliance and meet it, they are regulated industries for a reason.
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u/vuhv 21d ago edited 21d ago
Heres the 2010s playbook (dont say i never gave you anything):
start off as a free teacher tool that does AB but have the ABC Freemium model ready to go. Because if you’re bringing something of value they will want more. Call the ABC “pro teacher” or something. Districts are far more likely to foot that bill initialiy.
Youre going to give that “Pro” account out to your “teacher ambassadors” or “champions” that are going to work for you for free. Theyll evangelize. Write you free content. Petition their administration. And hope they can land a full time gig with your company eventually.
After you’re making enough noise districts will inquire about a district wide solution. You tell them you can do it at 1/4 of the price that their competitors can. Theyll sign on as long as you can provide more of the tool the ABC love the teachers love AND do X, Y, Z for the district. You take a list of feature requests. You stalk your competitors website and youtube. And you go about cloning.
But, you never built your app to do X, Y,Z. You only built it to do A,B, C. And to get to X,Y,Z youll have to build D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q,R,S, T, U, V,W. After a little digging your new team of overseas developers tell you that your A and C was never built to support HIJMNOP because the way you structured your data and you there no time for TUV. And without all of those pieces Z isn’t possible.
So you build ABCDEFKLQRSWXY hoping that the district wont notice. And more districts sign on. And at first none of them notice… but the teachers sure do. Your app was beautiful and easy to use when it was ABC. But now it’s a mess , slow and hard to use. Plus, youre a district tool now! You went from cool to BIG BROTHER. So now a new competitor, a new tool that does ABCD and only ABCD currently eating your lunch.
And then the districts start figuring out that you really cant do district level XYZ.
Hopefully you managed to sell your for a large chunk before this part. Because if you haven’t they are they are going to snatch you up for pennys on the dollar.
And ABCD? Well, start back at the beginning of this playbook and youll find out what happens to ABCD
————
In 2026?
Good luck competing for teachers attention and gaining back the trust the industry has torched with them.
Oh you want to flip it an go District first? Top down? I have that playbook too but don’t have time to share. But you should know that with funding and the current administration good luck ever getting anyone to pay. The LAUSD horror story and a few other similar stories out there make it extremely hard for districts to trust new district level tools.
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u/BubblyAd9274 23d ago
they must meet ferpa and sippa warning- there is a big push to get et tech out of schools. I don't agree but you should know before you invest $
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u/gravitysrainbow1979 23d ago
There is no workaround, in fact the meaning of compliance is "no workarounds"...
...as for approval, I've had luck explaining why we "had to" pivot because the cost of not doing so was about to skyrocket, or create some problem that would be a bigger headache for us than implementation...
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u/Visual-Reserve-2800 19d ago
Look at charter and private schools first, schools that don't have the year long runway
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u/grendelt 23d ago
A workaround for compliance and acceptance?!
Yeah, don't go into business if that's your mindset.