Want to learn more about Whetstone but are short on time?

Want to learn more about Whetstone but you’re short on time? Let us make it easy!

• Check out our website - It’s a short intro to who we are and why leading schools like Uncommon Schools, YES Prep, KIPP, and Relay GSE all use Whetstone.
• Request a video demo - We’ll send you a short video tour of Whetstone. No phone call required!
• Schedule a 30 minute demo - Take a tour of Whetstone to see how the platform can help streamline your observation and coaching process.  
• Try it for yourself - Like what you see? We will send you a link to the platform so you can see how easy and intuitive it is, and have your co-workers give their input.
• Ready to say YES to Whetstone? Great! We’ll send you a contract and you’ll be on your way to using the platform this school year!

Find out how you can make the most of your coaching time!

CEO, Libby Fischer to Attend the Forbes 30 Under 30 Summit

A member of the Forbes 30 under 30 in Education class of 2016, our CEO, Libby Fischer will be representing Whetstone at the 3rd Annual Forbes 30 Under 30 Summit in Boston, Oct. 16 to 19. Recognized as the "greatest gathering ever of young entrepreneurs and game-changers," this event brings together alumni of the Forbes 30 under 30 recognition with over 5,000 of the brightest in Science and Technology, Finance and Investing, Media and Creativity, and Policy and Social Good.

New End-of-the-Year Product Feature Designed for YES Prep Public Schools

We have released a new a feature, developed for YES Prep Public Schools, that streamlines the end-of-the-year process and provides data that helps identify teachers who should be promoted or receive raises. The benefits include:

• allows the district to set effectiveness thresholds for multiple levels of teachers, in order to auto-generate a suggested “placement” for the following year based on teacher performance metrics.
• Simplifies end of year HR processes for the district
• Gives teachers real-time transparency into how they’re tracking toward performance goals
• Streamlines a process that used to require dozens of spreadsheets
• Promotes conversation between teachers and their school leaders around support and professional development

This feature will be available to all of Whetstone’s customers, which include over 300 schools and organizations nationwide, in the fall.

Learn more about how this end-of-year feature is helping YES Prep Public Schools!

Why does “norming” matter for teacher evaluations?

One of the most critical components of teacher evaluation is often the most overlooked: norming. From a compliance-based perspective,when teacher evaluations are tied to high stakes outcomes like pay raises, promotions, etc., it is imperative that all evaluators within an organization, whether an entire district or a single school, evaluate teachers with the same expectations and interpretation of the rubric. If one evaluator has a tendency to be generous and another tends to be strict, then the system is completely unfair.

Our CEO, Libby Fischer, explains how schools can ensure their evaluators are normed on EdTechDigest.com

Whetstone Hires New Customer Success Manager!

We are excited to share that we are growing our team! We have hired Maria Plotkina as our second Customer Success Manager. Maria comes to us from one of our partners, Firstline Schools in New Orleans, where she was the Talent Coordinator. This means she is already an expert Whetstone user, ready to hit the ground running and support our customers!

A little more about Maria! She originally comes from Brooklyn, and is currently getting a Masters in Arts Administration from University of New Orleans. She is also fluent in Russian and an avid reader and artist in her spare time.

If you would like to get in touch with Maria, email maria@whetstoneeducation.com.