Buffalo school district needed an SIS that works for everyone
When Lonnie Brungardt took on the role of superintendent and technology lead at Buffalo School District in Merino, Colorado, he knew something had to change.
With more than 300 K–12 students, the district had spent too many years wrestling with an SIS that demanded constant workarounds, outside help, and hours of manual effort. PowerSchool, their previous system, had promised integration – but failed to deliver. “We were always trying to make it work, and it just wasn’t built for a district like ours,” said Brungardt. Between unsupported Google Classroom syncing, reporting bottlenecks, and a clunky user experience for families and staff, it became clear that something better was needed.
“It’s the thing I’m proudest of bringing to this district. It’s made everyone’s job easier – from the teachers to the parents.”
Lonnie Brungardt
Superintendent & Technology Lead
Buffalo School District
Merino, Colorado
The tipping point
What finally prompted the shift? A combination of broken promises and escalating time sinks. Generating reports, sending urgent communications, even updating basic records – all of it required technical workarounds that fell largely on Brungardt’s shoulders.
The final straw came when Brungardt realized that even simple changes to PowerSchool required paid outside support. “I told our former superintendent that Alma would save us so much time – and that time was worth more than anything.”
A measurable difference
The difference since switching to Alma has been nothing short of dramatic:
- – Reports that used to take days now generate in 20 seconds
- – Parent engagement is up thanks to intuitive tools and mobile-friendly access
- – Teachers can message families directly – no middleman or extra steps
- – New staff adapt quickly due to Alma’s intuitive design
When a new elementary principal joined the team with no prior SIS experience, they were using Alma’s discipline tracker and navigating student records independently within days. That kind of ramp-up time was unheard of under their old system.
A shared win, driven by trust
Brungardt credits Shantel, the district’s administrative assistant, as the real hero of implementation. “She’s the saving grace,” he said. With Alma’s weekly check-ins and detailed onboarding checklist, the team worked through the data migration from PowerSchool together.
Streamlined communication & district-wide coordination
One of Brungardt’s favorite features? Alma’s messaging system. “I can cancel school from my phone if I need to,” he said. With PowerSchool, even urgent district-wide communications were cumbersome. Now, whether it’s alerting parents about weather closures or following up with specific student groups, communication is seamless and targeted.
And integration? Game-changer. Alma syncs cleanly with tools like Apogee for their website and bus ride management, eliminating data silos and duplicate work.
A better experience for families, too
Parents – many of whom struggled to use the PowerSchool portal – are now regularly logging in to check grades and message teachers. “The engagement is totally different now,” said Brungardt. “They’re using Alma every week.”
Brungardt’s question to other districts still using legacy systems:
“Why aren’t you with Alma?”
Looking ahead
The district plans to expand Alma Start’s online enrollment to the high school, building on its success at the elementary level. They’re also exploring ways to streamline payment processing through Alma.
A personal highlight
From implementation to daily operations, Brungardt calls Alma the most meaningful tech decision of his tenure. “It’s the thing I’m proudest of bringing to this district,” he said. “It’s made everyone’s job easier – from the teachers to the parents. Even I am doing less tech troubleshooting now.”
With Alma, Buffalo School District didn’t just adopt new software. They changed how their entire community connects, communicates, and supports student learning.
