Integrations

What is OneRoster,
and why does it matter?

OneRoster is one of those technical acronyms that sounds boring but shapes what your SIS can actually do. Here's the plain-English explanation.

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The short answer

OneRoster is an open technical standard from 1EdTech that defines how student, teacher, and class data should be structured for integration between systems. If your SIS is OneRoster certified, it can share roster data with LMS platforms, Clever, ClassLink, Google Classroom, and hundreds of ed-tech apps in a standardized way. If your SIS is not OneRoster certified, each integration is custom, more brittle, and often more expensive.

What OneRoster is

A shared language for rostering data.

Before OneRoster, every SIS and every app had its own way of representing student, class, and enrollment data. Integrations required custom mapping for every combination. OneRoster (developed by the nonprofit 1EdTech Consortium) defines a common structure that all compliant systems use, which makes integrations cleaner and more portable.

What OneRoster defines:

  • How student records should be structured for integration
  • How teacher and staff records should be structured
  • How courses, sections, and enrollments should be represented
  • How rosters should be shared via CSV files or REST APIs
  • Standard fields for demographics, contact information, and identifiers

What OneRoster enables:

  • Plug-and-play integrations between the SIS and ed-tech apps
  • Cleaner data flow to LMS platforms like Google Classroom and Canvas
  • Reduced vendor lock-in because your data is in a portable format
  • Simpler district onboarding for new tools
  • More reliable, standards-based rostering pipelines

Common questions, answered directly.

1EdTech Consortium, formerly known as IMS Global Learning Consortium. It's a nonprofit that develops open standards for education technology. Their standards are widely adopted across K‑12 and higher education. OneRoster is one of several standards they maintain, along with LTI (Learning Tools Interoperability) and QTI (Question and Test Interoperability).

No, but they solve similar problems. SIF (Schools Interoperability Framework) is an older standard for K‑12 data exchange. OneRoster is more modern, simpler to implement, and has broader industry adoption. Some districts still use SIF for state reporting or specific integrations. OneRoster is the current direction for rostering.

OneRoster 1.0 (basic), 1.1 (added gradebook data), and 1.2 (expanded features and gradebook support). Look for OneRoster 1.1 or 1.2 certification when evaluating an SIS. Version 1.0 alone may not support everything you need.

No, and this matters. A vendor can claim to "support" OneRoster without being certified. Certification means 1EdTech has independently verified the vendor's implementation meets the standard. Non-certified implementations may work most of the time but fail on edge cases. Ask specifically for 1EdTech certification, not just OneRoster support.

Alma holds actual 1EdTech OneRoster certification rather than an uncertified "support" claim - ask any vendor, including Alma, to show their certification listing directly on the 1EdTech site rather than taking a marketing claim at face value.

Because OneRoster-certified platforms integrate more cleanly with the ecosystem. Onboarding new ed-tech tools is faster. Data flow is more reliable. Vendor lock-in is reduced because your rostering data is in a portable format. Some districts require OneRoster certification as a procurement requirement for exactly these reasons.

Both Clever and ClassLink can use OneRoster to pull data from certified SIS platforms. Some SIS platforms feed Clever or ClassLink through OneRoster; others use proprietary connections. OneRoster is the more portable option. It also enables direct SIS-to-app integrations without needing Clever or ClassLink in the middle, though most districts still use one of them for the app library and SSO.

Yes. Alma is certified for OneRoster and supports the standard for rostering integration with LMS platforms, Clever, ClassLink, Google Classroom, and other ed-tech tools. Ask specifically about OneRoster version and certification status during evaluation.

Ask Alma to demonstrate OneRoster integration with the specific ed-tech apps and LMS platforms your district uses.

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Related guides

Clever vs. ClassLink for K‑12 Rostering
SIS Google Classroom Integration
What IT Directors Need From an SIS