Cimarron, a Houston-based information technology company that provides contract support to the US Space Program, has teamed with The Cambridge Group, a Montgomery-based planning corporation, to create a high technology strategic planning tool. The Strategic Performance System (SPS) will allow the local school system to be in control of itself.
At the heart of SPS is the Cambridge Planning System, which vertically integrates planning throughout an entire school community. By utilizing SPS, school communities can expect:
- Increased student achievement
- Embedded accountability
- Retention of community culture
- Maximization of existing resources
- Monitoring and reporting progress toward determined objectives
- Tracking federal, state, and local funding to meet Federal Accountably Requirements
- Building a community team that goes above consensus and moves to a "Total Gain" mentality
- Formatting your plan with ease
- Utilizing Gantt charts to monitor schedules
- Adapting easily to a network system
- Managing multiple users throughout your district and ties to a central database
- Graphing multiple years of performance data
SPS is centered on a "Total Gain" planning approach which will allow school communities to manage their strategic plan instead of the plan managing them. Cimarron developed the SPS software that accompanies the Cambridge Process. SPS will expedite the strategic planning process and the implementation of the plan. The focus of control is at the local level while complying with all state and federal requirements.
The Cambridge Group has worked with public and corporate clients around the world in strategic system design and action. Well-known in education, this firm has facilitated over 700 strategic plans and trained over 4000 facilitators in strategic planning.
Support
If the solution to your problem could not be located in the FAQ, technical support is available by emailing Cimarron technical support at support@spsplanning.com or calling the technical support line at 1-800-875-8501. Technical support is available Monday-Friday, 8:00am-5:00pm CT.
FAQ
Answers to commonly asked questions and reported problems can be found in the Frequently Asked Questions.
System Requirements
SPS is offered with two options for database installation: Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Desktop Engine (MSDE 2000) or SQL Server (7, 2000, and 2005).
MSDE 2000 Database Installation Requirements
- Windows 98*, ME*, NT 4.0 (server or workstation), 2000, 2003 (server or workstation), XP Professional
- Pentium II - 300 Mhz
- 8MB RAM in addition to what is required by MSDE 2000 (32MB Ram) and the operating system
- 110MB available hard drive space
- CD-ROM drive
SQL Server Database Installation Requirements
- SQL Server 7, 2000, or 2005
- Windows NT 4.0 Server, 2000, or 2003 Server
- Pentium II - 300 MHz
- 8MB RAM in addition to what is required by SQL Server and the operating system
- 110MB available hard drive space
- CD-ROM drive
Client Software Requirements
- Microsoft Windows 95, 98, ME, NT 4.0(Server or Workstation), 2000, 2003 (Server or Workstation), or XP Professional
- Pentium II - 233 MHz
- 64MB(128MB or higher recommended)
- 100MB available hard drive space
- 800x600 screen resolution or higher
- Microsoft Project 2000 or 2002(optional, for tracking Action Step Details)
Macintosh Requirements
SPS does not run directly under the MacOS Operating system but has been successfully tested under Windows emulation software on the Macintosh running Microsoft Virtual PC, VMWare, or Parallels.
