Updated the Gradebook so it now includes all features of the Gradebook Categories & Assignments screen and the Gradebook Configuration screen, in addition to many new features.

The new Gradebook screen houses several tabs in the top left, which can be clicked to determine what information is displayed on the screen. The “All” tab displays all assignments and categories (if set up), while “Totals” displays average points/percentages per category for each student.

Added the “Category” tab, which displays all categories in a panel that contains the ability to edit, add, and import categories.

• Updated so assignment categories can be edited from the “Edit Category” pop-up window linked to multiple marking periods, now displayed in the “Linked Marking Periods” pull-down. The current marking period and future marking periods default to selected (note that the current marking period cannot be cleared). Marking periods can be added or removed from the pull-down. 
• When creating a new category, the current and future marking periods default to selected. When editing a category, and removing at least one marking period, there is a warning before saving the change.

• Updated so when users click the Delete button on a category, the category is now checked for assignments, instead of grades. If the category currently has an assignment in the current section, a message displays telling the user to remove the assignments first.
  • When a category does not have any assignments in the current section, a delete confirmation pop-up displays all section groups linked to the category. Any section groups that contain assignments will show the amount of assignments, which cannot be selected for deletion.

Added the “Assignment” tab, which displays Assignments in the selected Category, as well as all assignment Details, Grades, Rubric, Resources, Standards, and Options. Here you have the ability to edit assignments, add new assignments to a category, import assignments to a category, and import grades to an assignment.

• Updated so after saving an assignment, users now get the option to grade with a .csv file by clicking “Import Grades.”
  • Once the .csv file is uploaded to a given assignment it can grade that assignment for any student assigned to that assignment and specified in the file.

• Updated so the entered Publish Date for assignments can now pre-date the Due Date.
• Entering zero or leaving the Points field null now designates it as an Extra Credit assignment when viewing in the UI, and stores zero points.
• Added the plus sign (+), which displays next to the tabs and can be clicked to quickly add an assignment to the gradebook for a selected category. 

Added an “Assignments” panel, which displays categories and assignments in the gradebook. The panel can be shown or hidden by clicking the slider arrow.

• While viewing the Assignments panel, users can click the student icon to view a list of students in the course, and then click the student to view and enter grades by student.

Added the Settings feature, which allows users to view and enable additional options, configure the gradebook, create custom grades, create gradebook groups, select grade colors, and enable Third Party Systems (i.e. Google Classroom).

• Added the “Automatically save all changes to student grades” settings to the Configuration tab, which defaults to enabled ensuring that teachers do not have to click Save upon entering and saving grades. If teachers do not want grades automatically saved upon being entered, this setting can be disabled. This setting has also been added to Setup > System Preferences > Default User Preferences > Gradebook Configuration / Default Gradebook Configuration.
  • When this setting is enabled, the Save button no longer displays because changes save automatically.

• Added an icon to indicate that a student has inactive enrollment stating This student isn't actively scheduled in this class when users hover over the icon with the mouse. This is helpful when the setting to display Include Inactive Students is enabled from the View Options tab. Note: The row for inactive students is also dimmed as an added indicator. Grades and comments can still be entered, as needed.

Assignments now have attached web pages, which includes the following tabs: Details, Grades, Rubric, Resources, Standards, and Options.

• Details: The Details tab includes an Image Option, Title, Points, Questions, Marking Period, Assignment Category, Publish Date, Publish Date Time, Due Date, Due Date Time, Linked Sections, Autofill, Assessment Links and Imports, Google Classroom Assignment (if Google Classroom is enabled), Assignment Description, and Posts.

Added a crossed out eye icon to the assignment header on the All tab to indicate that Parents and students cannot see this assignment until [Publish Date]. When viewing grades for an individual student, the crossed out eye icon displays in red stating Parents and students will not see this assignment. The rows for these assignments are dimmed, but teachers can still enter grades and comments, as needed.

• Grades: The Grades tab allows users to view and enter grades by assignment.
• Rubric: The Rubric tab allows users to create rubrics in the gradebook for use with one or multiple assignments. Teachers can create a new rubric, clone an existing rubric, or add an existing rubric to the selected assignment. Once created, rubrics can be used to grade assignments.

• Resources: The Resources tab mirrors the Resources tab included on Web Pages, which allow users to create resources linked to the assignment, including links, folders, files, and calendar events.

• Standards: The Standards tab allows users to attach standards to the assignment. (Note: The section selected must have at least one standard linked to its course for this tab to be available in assignments. Standards are assigned to courses from Assessment > Assign Standards to Courses.)

• Options: The Options tab allows users to set additional settings for the assignments, such as Requires Completion Of, Allow Student Uploads, Don’t Allow Late Submissions, Exclude From Average, Hide From Excluded, Allow Comments, Comments Require Moderation, and gives students the ability to reply to other students.

• Added the “Assigned Students” pull-down, which is enabled when the added option “Assign to Individual Students Only” is not selected allowing users to select the students to which the assignment should be assigned and/or the Custom Group of students who should be assigned.
  • Added an “Assign Groups” button/icon to the Assigned Students pull-down, which allows users to quickly select the custom group of students who should be assigned to the selected assignment. Note: When students of a custom group are updated, users must re-assign the group to ensure all students in that group are assigned the assignment.
  • If students have not been assigned an assignment, the grade field displays as grayed out and is inactive not allowing the teachers to enter grades.

The Assignment web page can be viewed by students by clicking on the Course name from the Grades tab or by clicking the Grade from the Grades tab on the Student Portal.

• Clicking the Course navigates to the web page, where the student can navigate through the Details tab, Rubric tab, Resources tab, etc.
  • Clicking the Grade navigates to the Grades (Assignments) screen; from here, they can click the Assignment link to open the assignment.

The Gradebook Configuration screen has been removed and merged with the new Gradebook screen where gradebook configuration, custom grades, grade colors, and additional viewing options take place.

Updated so that Gradebook Configuration is syear specific. 

• In Setup > System Preferences > Default User Preferences > Gradebook Configuration tab, settings are now syear specific. 
• In Setup > Rollover, when the “System Preferences” option is selected, Gradebook Configuration settings will roll over to the new school year.
• All teacher Gradebook Configuration settings are syear specific, and will roll over, except when Gradebooks are configured separately for each section. For teachers who configure Gradebooks separately for each section, the district or school’s default Gradebook Configuration settings will be applied to any new course the teacher is scheduled for, and the teacher can update the configuration settings. 
• The preferences “Configure Gradebooks separately for each section,” “Combine sections in the same period for taking attendance,” and “Combine sections for gradebook” in My Preferences for teachers are now syear specific.
• When a teacher changes a Gradebook Configuration setting, the setting will only be changed for that syear and not all years. 

Added the option to “Only print/email students with Missing/Failing assignments” to the Progress Reports tab.

• Users must perform a Progress Report student search with “Show only: Missing assignments” and/or “Show only: Failing assignments” selected. On the screen of resulting students, the new “Only print/email students with Missing/Failing assignments” check box displays in the header. Select the check box to omit any students who do not have any missing/failing assignments from the preview/printouts/emails.

Added the "Print Assignments On Single Line" option to Progress Reports, which allows users to determine how assignment names are displayed. Selecting the check box ensures that assignment names display in one continuous line; this applies to assignments with longer titles.

Added the Honor Roll Setup screen to the Grades menu to allow a number of honor roll tiers to be set up with differing criteria.

• Three computed student fields have been added to Students > Student Fields. For each field, assign the field to a category and assign the profiles that are allowed to view the field.
  • Current Quarter Honor Roll - Displays the student’s Honor Roll title for the school year and quarter marking period selected in the top-right.
  • Current Semester Honor Roll - Displays the student’s Honor Roll title for the school year and semester (based on the quarter marking period) selected in the top-right.
  • Current Year Honor Roll - Displays the student’s Honor Roll title for the school year selected in the top-right.
  • These three new student fields can be used in the Advanced Report. 

• Honor Roll Setup - Access to the Honor Roll Setup screen is controlled by View and Edit profile permissions. 
  • The previous honor roll settings are migrated to the new screen. 
  • To add a new honor roll tier, enter the information in the blank row. The Sort Order determines the hierarchy of the honor roll tiers when the system calculates honor roll. 
  • The GPA Type, Grade Levels, Min GPA, Max # of each letter grade, Excluded Courses, Min Credits, Max Referrals, Max Daily Absences, Max Unexcused Daily Absences, Max Period Absences, Max Unexcused Period Absences, Max Period Tardies, and Max Unexcused Period Tardies are defined for each honor roll tier. 

• When honor roll is calculated, the Current Quarter Honor Roll, Current Semester Honor Roll, and Current Year Honor Roll student fields are populated with the title of the honor roll tier the student earned. 

• The honor roll system preferences were removed from Setup > System Preferences > Grading tab, as honor roll criteria are now set up in Grades > Honor Roll Setup. 
• In Grades > Honor Roll, the report has been updated to use the new Honor Roll Setup settings. 
• The “Honor Roll Students” search option under More Search Options > Grades/GPA/Class Rank/Honor Roll has been updated to use the new Honor Roll Setup settings.

• Updated to use the short names for the ESE and ELL codes on the report instead of the full names. 
• Added a period pull-down to the Additional Info options. When a period is selected, the active teacher of that period displays in the Teacher column. Also added a Growth Needed column that displays the number of points the student needs in their overall score to meet Learning Gains.

Added the Attendance Bulletin screen, which allows users to conduct a student search or click Search to view all students at the selected school. Once a search is conducted, the bulletin displays attendance data by the Report date (editable) and school including the following columns: Student Name, Grade Level, Student ID, Local ID, Daily Attendance Code, Time in, Time Out, Consecutive Absences, and Cumulative Absences.

• The "Time in" and "Time Out" columns represent data which can be entered via the Late Check In / Early Release screen for the entered Report date.
• The "Cumulative Absences" column represents the number of absences since the beginning of the full year marking period to the Report date entered.

The Attendance Bulletin screen is enabled by the View and Edit permissions added to Users > Profiles.

Added a “Staff ID” column to the report.

Added the Room number to the header of the printed sheet/roster.

Updated so that the Detention List can be used to track multi-day detentions. The Length of Action and Days Completed columns have been added to indicate how many days of detention the student has been assigned and how many days have been completed. When the student completes a day of detention, selecting the Completed check box and saving the screen will increment the Days Completed field by one. The student will remain on the Detention List until the Days Completed equals the Length of Action. The student is then removed from the Detention List (the student can be viewed again by selecting the Show Completed check box). 

Added the “Locked” column to the Detailed Report, which locks the marking period's grade and prevents automatic recalculation upon a grade change being performed. Note: Automatic recalculation is dependent on the setting, “Recalculate parent marking period grades and GPAs when a teacher posts grades or a grade change request is approved” enabled via Setup > System Preferences > School Preferences / Default School Preferences > Grading.

Updated so grades are now entered using pull-downs populated from grading scales for applicable standards; previously grades were entered using text boxes.

Restored the tooltip that displays on the column headers that show the scale's description.

Updated so that credit bearing courses taken in 6th grade that are in Course History are included on the student’s progression plan. 

Updated so the Effective Date entered upon generating report cards now applies to attendance fields in determining attendance totals printed on report cards. Previous functionality generated current marking term attendance totals and ignored the Effective Date entered.

Added the ability to track attendance taken early enabled via the new setting called “Minutes before period attendance is considered early,” which can be enabled via Setup > System Preferences > School Preferences / Default School Preferences > Attendance.

• Once enabled, a new “Show teachers who took attendance early” check box displays. When selected, sections where the teacher took attendance before the time denoted in period setup and system preferences. The applicable periods display with a clock icon. Users can hover over the clock icon to show when attendance was taken including the date and time.

Updated the report when it is exported to now include the following values as a way to help distinguish between attendance not taken, attendance taken late, and attendance taken early.

• X: The section is missing attendance.
• L: The section attendance was taken late.
• E: The section attendance was taken early.

Added the “Course Table Font Size,” which allows users to select a font size. The font size selected can be saved as a default when selected and the “Save Settings as Default” button is clicked by administrative users. The font size saved will be applied to transcripts printed by Parents and Students.

Added the “Course” column to the student/parent customer ledger which displays when the district enables the “Show Course Title” setting via ERP > Setup > Settings > Accounts Receivable.

Added the translation in Spanish, Creole, and Portuguese for the three options displayed on the main registration screen, “I DO NOT have an Account Registered on the Parent Portal but my child is Actively Enrolled,” “I have an Account Registered on the Parent Portal but would like to ADD A CHILD,” “I have Forgotten My Password and would like to generate a new one.”

Added two system preferences to accommodate changing the text of the 2nd and 3rd links on the parent registration page (/auth) set via Setup > System Preferences > Default School Preferences > Parent Registration.

• Updated the setting for the “The introduction text displayed to users for account registration” so it has been broken into three different settings.
• Added a setting for “Changes the text used for the add a child button for account registration.”
• Added a setting for “Changes the text used for the password reset button for account registration.”

Added the student Portfolio screen, which mirrors Web Pages and contains the following tabs:

• Posts: The Posts tab allows students to create as many post entries as preferred. This tab functions just like the About tab in all other Web Pages screens. If students create resources, they can be attached to posts. The image displays the Posts tab for an additional created page (from the Pages tab).

• Pages: The Pages tab allows students to add additional pages to the portfolio. These new pages appear in a right side menu. Once created, each Page contains their own information page, which allows students to enter a description, create Posts, and add Resources.

• Resources: The Resources tab allows students to create resources attached to the portfolio, such as files, links, and folders. Note: Students do not have access to Calendar Events and do not have the ability to share resources.

Added the “Portfolio” permission for students to Users > Profiles, which must be enabled in order for students to have access to the Portfolio screen.

Updated so the school name displays in bold.

Updated so clases are removed from Purchase & Pay including the Shopping Cart once the class Publish End Date has passed; the Publish End Date is established by the district via SIS > Scheduling > Classes for Sale.

Updated so classes for sale are listed in alphabetical order.

Added the “Date Created,” “Last Used,” and “Comments” columns to both the My Reports tab and the Published Reports tab.

Updated the default order of the options in the school year pull-down to descending (most recent year on top).

Added the ability to configure the number of years displayed in the syear pull-down, which currently defaults to 10 years. The function SSRSBatch::getCompletedSyearOptions(), now accepts a parameter called 'function_param' in the ssrs_config.php file: 

• 'function' => 'SSRSBatch::getCompletedSyearOptions', // Optional: send a function parameter // For this function, the parameter configures how many syears back to retrieve; if no function_param is set, it gets the last 10 syears 'function_param' => 50,

Added profile permission checks to individual SSRS Reports. If the SSRS Report was generated from the ssrs_config.php file, then edit permission is controlled via Users > Profiles (Admin and Teacher). If the SSRS Report is created from Reports > District Reports, then edit permission is controlled from the District Reports screen using the profiles selected from the “Profiles” pull-down for each report. Note: If no profiles are selected from the pull-down, the report will be accessible to all profiles.

• If users (profiles) do not have edit access to an SSRS Report, upon navigating to Reports > SSRS Reports, the report will not display in the “SSRS Report” pull-down.
• Added a migration to automatically add edit permissions for custom SSRS Reports defined in ssrs_config.php to all users who currently have edit permission for the SSRS Reports screen.

Added the Course Limits column to the Teacher Constraints tab of the Master Schedule Builder. This allows a limit to be set for how many sections of a particular course a teacher can be assigned. Click Edit to select a course and enter the limit. 

The Course pull-down is limited to the courses the teacher is allowed to teach as set in Allowed Courses. In the Assign Teachers tab, the system will respect the limits set when suggesting teachers for unassigned sections. If a user manually tries to assign a teacher to a section that goes beyond the limits set, an error message will display. 

Updated so that when a teacher is changed on a section on the Master Schedule Report, the teacher history pop-up window is displayed, the same as when changing a teacher in Courses & Sections. The information entered by the user is saved in the History tab in Courses & Sections. 

Added the “Zone” and “Sub Zone” columns to the Address Catalog and the Parse Addresses scheduled job. 

Added the “Zone Group” column to the Address Catalog.

Updated so that the First Name and Last Name fields in the System Contacts fields are not set as required by default. Select the Required check box on the fields to make them required, as needed. 

Added the ability to set the maximum number of addresses and contacts that can be added by the applicant when using the Address Group and Contact Group. After selecting the “Allow Additional Addresses” or “Allow Additional Contacts” check box on the Address Group or Contact Group, enter the maximum number of addresses or contacts that can be added by the applicant in the Group Count field. Leaving the Group Count field blank will allow unlimited addresses or contacts to be added. 

Added the “Suppress Approval Emails” option to the Form Settings. When enabled, the user will not receive an email when the form is approved. 

Added the ability to use the “{instance_id}” variable in Form Builder action queries that are run upon submitting and approving the form. 

Added the Priority field to the Actions tab in the Form Builder. When there are multiple actions set up for the form, the priority dictates which action runs first. 

Added the Student Barcode component that can be used when creating a custom header.

Added “Available to Profiles” field, which limits templates access by profile/role. 

• If the Available to Profile pull-down is left blank or set to null, the template will be available to all profiles.
• These changes impact any screens that use letterhead templates to print as well as the Print icon located in the footer.

Added a job called “Online Course Req. Populate Student Field,” which copies Focus’s existing data that populates the Online Course Requirement field present to Grades > Report Cards and Grades > Graduation Requirements Report. Field options include No, Yes, and Exempt.

Added a job called “Recalculate Daily Attendance,” which can be used to recalculate attendance on a scheduled basis instead of using the Recalculate Daily Attendance tab in Attendance Setup. When setting up the scheduled job, the school(s) are selected and the number of past days to consider are defined. 

Added a “Grades” pull-down, which allows users to select grade levels for the scheduled job “Populate Graduation Requirements Summary.” If no grade levels are selected, the job will run for all grades 9-12.

Added an “End Date” column to the Choice Student List tab.

• Added an “End Date” column to the school_choice_application_status table via Setup > RunQuery.

Added a green check mark to the View Files column to indicate that there are files attached for the student. 

Added a new system field to Students > Student Fields, “ESE Model Choice,” with the alias ese_model_choice. The district can move the field to the desired student category. The district can create the select options and set the view and edit permissions for the field. In addition, two new columns were added to the Programs tab of School Choice Setup, Include ESE and Exclude ESE. The columns will display the select options that were set up for the ese_model_choice field. If a program has values selected in Include ESE, the program will only appear on the School Choice Application as available for the student to apply to if they have an equal value in the student system field with the alias “ese_model_choice.” If a program has values selected in Exclude ESE, the program will not appear to any student if they have an equal value in the student system field with the alias “ese_model_choice.”

Updated the “Installation Completed” email that is received after updating the state reporting version to include the release notes for the update. 

Added a new system preference “Make Required Re-Enrollment Forms Student Specific.” When this preference is enabled, parents who have multiple students can access the Portal for the student whose required re-enrollment form was completed. Parents cannot access the Portal for other students who didn’t have their required re-enrollment forms completed.

Added a new system preference, “Kiosk Barcode Format,” with the options “STANDARD” or “QR.” This determines whether a standard barcode or a QR code is printed on the tardy slip from the kiosks or handheld devices. 

Added a new system preference “Attendance Kiosk Print Slip upon Check-In.” This preference is enabled by default, maintaining the previous functionality where a slip was always printed upon check-in. When this preference is disabled, a slip will not print upon check-in.

Added a new system preference “Automatically confirm check in/out for the student.” When this preference is enabled, the confirmation step after a student scans their badge to check in or check out is done automatically, so the student does not have to tap Confirm. The student sees the message “Student Automatically confirmed! Redirecting” after checking in or out.

Updated the Attendance Mobile Alert system preference from a select one to a select multiple. This allows multiple attendance codes to be selected. This preference is used with the Attendance SMS scheduled job to send an SMS message to parents when the student receives one of the selected attendance codes.

Added a setting called “Restrict percent of extra credit,” which allows users to limit extra credit on assignments to XX percent over the points assigned. If the field is left blank/null, any amount of extra credit is allowed.

• If a teacher tries to enter a value that exceeds the limit set, a pop-up displays altering the teacher that they have exceeded the maximum amount of extra credit. The value will then default to the maximum amount of credit allowed.

Added the “Allow Students/Parents to email Teachers” setting, which controls whether the Teacher's name becomes a hyperlink in the Student Grades Portal Block for Students/Parents to click and email the teacher.

• By Default, this setting is enabled if “Display Communication Options on the Parent/Student Portal” is enabled.

Added a new system preference “Restricted Periods.” Options populate based on periods set up in Setup > Periods. Select the period(s) that will be restricted for scheduling. This new feature may be used, for example, to restrict aftercare staff to only have permissions to schedule sections and students for the designated aftercare period(s). 

• Users who have the new profile permission “Restricted Access” under Student Schedule can schedule students into sections assigned to restricted periods. Users with this profile permission cannot add, edit, or delete sections for student schedules for any other period. 
• Users who have the new profile permission “Sections - Restricted Access” under Courses & Sections can add sections into restricted periods. Users with this profile permission cannot add, edit, delete sections from any other periods. 

Updated the settings to reflect the new Configuration tab of Settings for teacher Gradebook; as a result, the following settings have been added: Automatically save all changes to student grades, Display points in the gradebook, Display letter grades in the gradebook, Display assignment points possible and total questions in column headings, Display assignment icons in column headings, Display student alert icons, and Include inactive students.

Added three new settings “Use SASL,” “Realm,” and “Authorization Identity” for LDAP profiles.

Added the Blackboard APIs screen, which allows Focus to integrate with Blackboard. Student and teacher enrollment information can be transferred for courses and sections in Focus and Blackboard.

Added two new scheduled jobs in Setup > Scheduled Jobs: Transfer Blackboard API Data (transfers records from Focus to Blackboard) and Load Data from Blackboard API (loads data from Blackboard to link user and course records to Focus).

Added the Blackboard Transfer Logs screen. 

Updated so that when the system preferences “Show username/password fields on Add a User/Student” and “Hide fields from Add a Student from users that don't have edit permission” are enabled, users who only have the view permission to the student Username field can still search for students using the Username on the Add a Student screen.  

Added the “Zip Code” column to the report.

Added an “End Date” column to the Choice tab.

Added “Primary Contact: Last Name” and “Primary Contact: Title” to the Primary Contact fields category of Insert a Field which pulls in information from Students > Student Info > Addresses & Contacts.

Added two new Relationship options that can be used when linking students in the Linked Students section of Addresses & Contacts: “Cousin” and “Step-Sibling.”

Added new Pattern options when setting up a recurring event, Monthly Forward and Monthly Backwards. 

• If the user selects Wednesday in the Days Scheduled and selects Monthly Forward in the Pattern pull-down, the system will look for the first available day of the week (Wednesday) after the start date. 
• If the user selects Wednesday in the Days Scheduled and selects Monthly Backwards in the Pattern pull-down, the system will look for the first available day of the week (Wednesday) before the start date.

Added a new profile permission for administrators for the Portal Messages screen, “Allow Push Notifications & Public Messages.” When this permission is enabled, the profile is able to send push notifications and to create public messages. 

Added a new profile permission for administrators for the Standard Grades Report Cards screen, “Edit Template Settings.” When this permission is enabled, the profile can view and edit the report card settings, and save the settings as the default for a letterhead template. When this permission is disabled, the profile cannot view and edit the report card settings, and can only select the letterhead template to use.

Added a “Mass Update” button to the Permissions tab, which allows users to update all the fields in the selected column.

Added a new search option “Only Show Most Recent Enrollment” when searching for users on User Info or on any other user search screen (Mass Assign User Info, User Action Log, Advanced Report, Print Letters & Send Email). The most recent enrollment is first determined by start date, then end date, and finally by user_enrollment id. When this option is selected:

• A new user with no profiles assigned (enrolled) at all will show up as an “Invalid Profile” in User Info and not at all in the Advanced Report and Print Letters & Send Email (because there is no enrollment to show).
• If a user has multiple profiles at one school, it will return the most recent enrollment at that school (there will be one record row for that user).
• If a user has profiles at multiple schools, it will return the most recent enrollment at each school (there will be one record row for that user at each school).

Updated the “Primary,” “Payment,” and “Mailing” check boxes to radio buttons so users can only select one of each for all logged addresses.

Added a pop-up window that displays when users request Direct Deposit in order to enter the name of the bank.

Added the ability for users to add a calendar event regarding an approved leave request by clicking “Add to Calendar.” Clicking the button downloads a file and automatically opens the calendar programs on the user’s computer where the calendar event will be added.

• All users who are a part of the approval chain of the leave request will also have the option to click “Add to Calendar” in order to create a calendar invite on their calendars, as well.

Added the “Course Title” column to the Create Invoice tab and the generated invoice for printing. The Course Title displays when the settings “ Show Course Title” is enabled via ERP > Setup > Settings > Accounts Receivable.

Updated the receipt that generates for online payments, which now displays outstanding deferrals to match the Point of Sale receipt when a payment is applied to an invoice with a partial deferral. I.e., when a partial payment is applied to an invoice with a deferral using Point of Sale, the outstanding deferral is reflected on the receipt.

Updated so Credit Card Convenience Fees are automatically added when generating receipts if enabled via Setup > Settings > Accounts Receivable.

Updated so all invoices generated from SIS Fee Templates now include the Item number in the fee allocation Notes field.

Added the “Original Transaction Number” column when issuing credit.

Updated the “Auto Zero EFC Flag” field so it is now a pull-down displayed on the worksheet. Users can now manually select Yes (Y) or No (N) from the pull-down which defaults to No (N). Additionally, this field has been added to the available filter and fields options in Advanced Reports.

Added the “Do not generate a 1098-T for students if Box 1 = Box 5” setting to the 1098-T tab, which, when enabled, anytime the amount in a student’s box 1 and box 5 are identical, a 1098-T is not generated and this 1098-T is not included in the file to the IRS.

Added the following two settings to the Accounts Receivable tab: “Use Sales Ref #” and “Use Refund Ref #,” which displays the “Sales Ref #” field in the Payments section of Accounts Receivable > Point of Sale > Sales tab. The “Refund Ref #” field displays on the Transaction History tab, as does the “Sales Ref #” field.

Add a setting called “Allow ‘Other’ Funding Source Refund” to the Accounts Receivable tab, which allows users to include “Other” as an option in the “Refund Type” pull-down via Accounts Receivable > Point of Sale for Funding Source Refunds. 

• Other refunds can now be selected from the pull-down to record when a student receives a check directly from the funding source refund.

Added a new system check box field “Available on the Online App” to School Fields. Set the applicable profile permissions to view and edit this field, and set the field category. When the check box is selected and saved in School Information, the school is available for applicants to select in the Desired School pull-down on the online application. 

When “Use Max Amount on Vouchers” is enabled, users can no longer split allocations into two invoice when a voucher does not cover the entire service period (applied via Students > Student Info > Vouchers tab). The one cost tier used will be the student’s applicable tier when a voucher is present.

Added a setting called “Disable Voucher Auto-Defer,” which disables auto-deferral of vouchers for fee templates and invoiced payments. Current functionality removes the auto deferral for reauthorized schedules only. Schedules that are manually created could have the invoice created prior to or after vouchers are applied, at which point, deferrals should not be created. This change applies to both Purchase & Pay and Point of Sale payments.

Added a setting called “Allow the Sale of Sections.” When enabled, the Section for Sale field is available on the section in Courses & Sections and the Master Schedule Report.

Updated the “Require School Selection” system preference to “Allow School Selection,” with the pull-down options None, Optional, and Required. When Optional or Required is selected, the Desired School pull-down displays on the online application. When Optional is selected, selecting the school is optional. When Required is selected, selecting a school is required.

Added a new system preferences called “Allow Individual Invoice GL Accounts on Fees.” When enabled, the Fee Templates (district, school, individual and limited fees) allows users to enter credit and debit accounts on each fee for invoice purposes. 

• If the setting is enabled, the accounts used are those from the configured fee template. 
• If the setting is disabled, the accounts fallback to the default configured in ERP > Setup > Settings > Internal Accounts.
• If the setting is enabled and the credit/debit account is configured on one fee in the template, then the fee with the credit/debit configured will create the invoice with the selected options in the template. All other fees (blank credit/debit) will use the default accounts defined in ERP > Setup > Settings > Internal Accounts.

Updated the system preference name from “Allow Individual GL Accounts on Fees” to “Allow Individual Receipt GL Accounts on Fees.” Note: The functionality of this setting has not changed.

Added the “Display WDIS Start and End Dates when adding a section” setting, which, when enabled, displays WDIS Start/End Dates when adding a section through “Search for a section to add” via Scheduling > Student Schedule.

Added a setting called "Use previous attendance to calculate Estimated Course Completion Date.” This preference is enabled by default, and maintains the current functionality. When disabled, the Estimated Course Completion Date is calculated without taking prior attendance into account.

Added a “Comment' column to the schedule. 

• If Individual Schedule Field Permissions are enabled, then the display/editability of the new “Comment” column is controlled by the “Comment” schedule field permission via Users > Profiles > Permissions tab > Permission Type: Schedule Fields.

Added the “Show All Schools” check box to the Unprocessed Applications tab of the Online Enrollments screen to view unprocessed applications from all schools, including the Applicants school. The School column is added to view the applicant’s selected school. When the “Show All Schools” check box is selected and the user navigates away from the screen, the “Show All Schools” check box remains selected when the user returns to the screen. 

Added a “Voucher Note” column to the Vouchers tab, which allows users to include additional notes for vouchers. This column can be enabled by the “Voucher Note” permission set via Users > Profiles.

Updated so voids can no longer be performed on cashouts linked to cash drawers that have been Portal Enabled on the Cash Drawer Setup screen.

Updated so Accounts Revenue receipts that aren't tied to an invoice must credit revenue.

• Added the warning, “Revenue receipts that aren’t tied to an invoice must credit revenue,” which displays if a receipt is posted and hits 1130 but is not attached to an invoice.

Added a “Close” button to the Current Invoice tab, which allows users to close invoices that have a balance.

• The ability to close invoices can be enabled via Setup > Profiles: Close Invoice.

Added "EFT Bank" to the receipt description in the first section while viewing the Current Receipt tab. This enables users to compare and verify the EFT Bank with the Cash/Debit accounts before posting the receipt. 

Added the “Encumbrance Audit” report. 

• As a result of the report, Focus has added a new GL (general ledger) classification called “Reserved for Encumbrances.” 
• The report displays the Fund, Project, Encumbrances Balance, Reserved for Encumbrances Balance, and the Difference. The report calculates and functions just like the current Trial Balance Audit report with the difference being Encumbrances minus Reserved for Encumbrances.

Added a Fiscal Year pull-down to allow users to view bank reconciliations broken down by FY, as opposed to viewing all bank reconciliations for all years.

Added detailed rows enabled via Setup > Profiles > “Allow Detail Rows.” When enabled, users can add detail rows to be created to the program by clicking the green plus sign.

• When the Amendment/Revision is submitted and approved the accounting strip will be added to Setup > Settings > Accounting Strips tab.

Added a “Send Back to Originator” button to the Pending Approval tab, so users part of the approval chain can now approve, deny, or send back to the originator with notes for changes before approval takes place.

Updated so if a manual journal draft fails and one of the errors include "Invalid budget," a budget amendment is now created that comprises every missing budget for $0. The amendment will be titled "Auto-Budgets for [mjd_title]-[mjd_id]." If a draft amendment already exists, any additional missing budgets will be added to the existing amendment.

Updated functionality so when users click “Toggle More Information” from the Current Asset tab, the information remains viewable when switching assets or screens so users no longer have to click the button to view additional information for each asset.

Added a “Reject” button, which allows users to reject an asset transfer; previously, users could only Receive an asset transfer. Once rejected, users will be prompted to enter a Reason for Rejection. Once rejected, the line item disappears from the screen and returns to the originating facility. The Receive History tab displays the asset with a Request Status of Rejected.

Added the “View All Users” feature, which allows users to view transfer requests made by all other users including their own. Once clicked, users can revert back to viewing only their own requests by clicking “Hide All Users.”

• This feature is enabled by the new profile permission “View All Transfer Requests” set via Setup > Profiles.

Added a “Recalc month” and “Calendar year” pull-down to the Plans tab so when the calculator gets to the end of the year, users can select the next year to recalculate properly.

Updated so users have 30 days in the previous contract year to end an employee's deduction via the Dropped field on the Deductions tab.

Added the vendor number to the Vendor pull-down located in the Calculated by Job section of the Deductions tab.

Added the Filters feature and sort options to the Pay History tab.

Added a “Scan For New Employees” button to the View/Create Agreements tab for each created agreement, which allows users to look for new employees and assign them the agreement automatically.

• Added a scheduled job via SIS > Setup > Scheduled Jobs called “Update Employee Agreements,” which must be run in order to update the agreement and add new employees. 
  • Upon creating the scheduled job, you must select the agreement from the Document pull-down in order to specify which agreement should be updated.
  • The scheduled job uses the Published Date instead of Deadline Date when determining eligible employees.

Added the “Created at” column to the Manual Adjustment Audit report generated from the Leave History tab, which displays the date and time the adjustment was created.

Added a “Hide balance when negative” check box to the Buckets tab, which displays no balance when the balance is negative.

Added the Print Employee Information screen, which allows users to select the information they want to print as it pertains to the select(ed) employee(s). The optional categories include categories from User Info set up via Users > User Fields.

• Permission for the new screen is enabled via Users > Profiles > Print Employee Information.

Added the “State Job” code column to the report, which pulls from Setup > Government Codes > State Job Codes.

Added the Filters feature and sort options to the View Paystubs and Pay History tab and the Stipends tab.

Updated so when a check is voided via the “clear history” button from the Check History tab, the benefits associated with that check are also voided.

Updated so Focus annually increments pay steps from the “Individual : Increment Steps” tab or rolls them when they have not been created yet from the “Individual: Change Step Pay” tab. Note: This only applies to Min/Max employees.

• If the step has already been rolled to the new year then it will use the “Step Code Beg of the Year” from the current year set via Human Resources > Employee > Jobs tab > Min/Max Pay section. Otherwise, it will use the “Current Step Code” from the previous year to create the “Step Code Beg of the Year” and will increment that selection.
• Note: In order to create the steps for the employee, the employee’s job must have been worked more than ½ the days in the employee’s pay type calendar in the previous year. If the employee’s job doesn’t have a hire date then the system won’t assign or increment the employee’s step for the job. If the employee’s staff job has a hire date after last year’s cutoff date for the pay type, the system won’t assign or increment the step for the job.

Added the “Annual” salary column and the “Hourly” wage column to the Wages tab.

Added the ability to award retro pay on step increases when users aren't awarding pay raises from the Step Wages: Increment Steps tab. Previously, retro pay was given when raises were given. Now if users decide not to award pay raises, they can award retro pay when they increase the employees steps.

• Users must select both a run and an adjustment code to calculate the retro and add it as an adjustment to the run via Payroll > Run Payroll > Adjustments tab. Both the run and the adjustment code must be entered. Note: The adjustment codes listed are the codes defined as non-supplement adjustments that impact the contract.

Added a “Payroll Run” pull-down, which allows users to create an export for each payroll run separately.

Added the Page Size feature to all reports so users can control the amount of records that display per page.

Readded the “Rollover Errors” pop-up window which displays when there are errors that need to be addressed before rolling the module.

Added a “Negative Checks” check box to the Details pop-up window from the Runs tab.

• When the “Negative Checks” check box is selected, Focus will process negative checks that result from negative gross pay adjustments.
  • Based on circumstances, some deduction amounts will compute as negatives. These negative deductions will decrease the Accounts Payable invoice.

• It will allow negative gross pay to handle repayment of salary overpayments.
  • Example: -$1000.00 gross pay (negative)
  • Depending on TSRI flags of gross pay, Federal Withholding, Social Security, Medicare, Retirement, etc., Taxable Grosses will be reduced which will result in negative deduction amounts for these taxes.
  • Federal Taxable Wages -$1,000.00 - (-$30.00) = -$970.00 [FRS 3% Deduct reduces]
  • Social Security, Medicare and Retirement Taxable Wages -$1,000.00
  • Federal Withholding = for this example assume -$15.00
  • FRS 3% Deduction = -$30.00
  • FRS 10% Contribution = -$100.00
  • Social Security deduction and contribution = -$62.00
  • Medicare deduction and contribution = -$14.50
  • Net Pay = -$1,000.00 - (-$15.00) - (-$30.00) - (-$62.00) - (-$14.50) = -$878.50

• It will allow positive deduction adjustments with no gross pay.
  • Example: $50 deduction adjustment
  • Depending on TSRI flags of deduction, Federal, Social Security, Medicare, Retirement, etc., Taxable Grosses will be reduced which will result in negative deduction amounts for these taxes. In the example of $50 deduction adjustment, if the deduction reduces Social Security and Medicare Taxable Grosses, Social Security deduction and contribution would be -$3.10 each and Medicare deduction and contributions would be -$.73 each.
  • To compute Net Pay:
    • Begin with $0.00 Gross Pay
    • Subtract $50.00 deduction
    • Subtract -$3.10 Social Security deduction
    • Subtract -$.73 Medicare deduction
    • $0.00 - $50.00 - (-$3.10) - (-$.73) = -$46.17

Updated the Checks tab so when an Employee is selected, the Deductions pull-down now only includes options for deductions that pertain to that employee. When multiple employees are selected, the Deductions pull-down includes all deductions that apply to all selected employees.

Added a Warning message that displays when payroll is calculated from the Checks tab if the employee has changed positions logged via Human Resources > Employee > Jobs tab but still has active deductions based on the previous job’s wages.

Added an “Unpost Payroll” button to the Checks tab which displays and can be clicked after the payroll has been run.

• The Unpost Payroll button displays when the permission “Unpost Run” is enabled via Setup > Profiles.

Added a “Find Employee’s Adjustments” pull-down to the Adjustments tab, which allows users to select employees in order to quickly add a standard adjustment without having to select a batch.

• As a result, the new buttons, “Show Batches” and “Hide Batches” have been added to the screen as well allowing users to decide if they want to display batches or not.

Added a “Find Employee’s Misc Pay” pull-down to the Misc Pay tab, which allows users to select an employee by whom misc pay can be added, as opposed to adding misc pay using batches. 

• As a result, the new buttons, “Show Batches” and “Hide Batches” have been added to the screen as well allowing users to decide if they want to display batches or not.

Added the new buttons “Show Batches” and “Hide Batches” to the Reimbursements tab, which allows users to decide if the batches display or not, as well as “Show Details” and “Hide Details,” which allows users to decide if reimbursement details display.

Added the “Hide/Show Details” button which displays when batches are displayed and allows users to hide adjustment or misc pay details as it pertains to employees, such as the Standard Adjustments section on the Adjustments tab.

Updated so all applicable tabs now contain the “Toggle Columns” feature, which allows users to customize the columns displayed in each table, as well as the “Page Size” feature, which allows users to control the number of records displayed in the table.

Updated the Leave tab so users can now perform manual adjustments and save changes using the new Save button.

Added the Save button to the Timecards, Overtime, Leave, Subs, Misc Pay, Adjustments, Terminations, and Reimbursements tabs which requires users to enter employee information, press Enter, then click Save in order to save changes. Previous functionality allowed users to save data upon pressing the Enter key.

• Added an undo button to select tabs when fields are edited allowing users to view the original entry and click the yellow circular undo button to revert back to the original data. In order to proceed and keep changes, users can click Save. The undo button is only available on select fields; it is not available on fields that have allowed options based on the field such as accounting strips or on the insert.

Added the ability to print W2s to Z-fold forms, such as Tri-Fold forms.

Updated the Object column of the report to include “Internal Accounts.”

When voiding checks that include the void of the invoice, Focus no longer uses the invoice date to determine the journal date. There is now no impact to a previous FY when voiding checks/invoices for both district and internal accounts. Previous functionality used the best available journal date in the invoice's fiscal year on void unless otherwise specified.

Updated so Focus retains information on checks written prior to vendor address or name changes updated via Purchasing/Accounts Payable > Vendors/Customers. I.e., if a vendor’s information is updated and a check that was generated before the change date, the check can be printed or reprinted with the vendor’s original information.

Updated so voiding end of year checks has no impact on previous fiscal year; i.e. a check written in the current fiscal year but expended in previous fiscal year cannot be voided.

Added a new journal source “Void AP Warrant GL Balance Only,” which ensures that Focus does not update the journal table for collected or expended when reverse journals are created upon voiding checks. Focus previously uncollected/un-expended when voiding a check and the revenue/expenditure GL was overridden.

Updated so users are now required to create reverse journals prior to voiding a check for a previous fiscal year. Previously functionality allowed users to void checks and invoices from a previous fiscal year without creating reverse journal entries, which caused a negative commit value in the current fiscal year.

Added the “Reissue Check” option when voiding checks from a previous fiscal year. When the Reissue check box is selected, the following will occur:

• Create Journals
  • Journal Source
    • Void AP Balance Only Check
  • Debit to cash
  • Credit to Accounts Payable
• A replacement invoice/batch is created
  • The invoice/batch will be available in new check runs
  • Invoice/Batch to be called Reissue Check XXXX
  • There are no committed journals for the replacement invoice

Updated the Error message that displays so it is more descriptive and now includes the Invoice number; i.e. when an invalid Program number is entered, the Error message displays: “Invoice 32423 is invalid. A Program element is required.”

Updated when “Create an invoice based on a PO” is used so it defaults to the remaining encumbrance amount. Previously functionality defaulted to the full PO encumbrance. Note: Submission of the invoice still depends on settings enabled by the district, such as Maximum Invoice Variance (Setup > Settings > Accounts Payable).

Updated so Focus only encumbers or unencumbers the amount of the increase or decrease on the allocation line that is changed. Previously, when increasing or decreasing a PO, Focus unencumbered & re-encumbered every allocation line on the PO.

Added the “Requester Staff ID” column to the Employee Requests Flow Type, which allows users to include “employees” who have a Staff ID but do not have an EIN.

Added the “Requesting Facility” and “Sponsoring Organization” properties to be added as signposts to the Field Trip Request flow type.

• Sponsoring organizations are set up via Transportation > Setup > Sponsoring Organizations tab. Facilities are set up via Setup > Settings > Facilities tab.

Added the “Restrict User to Facility Bank” permission, which, when enabled, restricts the Bank selection via Budgeting/General Ledger > Internal Account Manual Journals to select Banks for Facilities the User has permission to access.

Added the “Override Approval Flow” permission, which allows users to override the approval flow for purchase requests and orders via Purchasing/Accounts Payable > Purchase Requests/Orders and Internal Purchase Requests/Orders. Note: There is a separate permission for each screen.

• Once enabled, users can override the approval flow when they click View from the Request History tab. From the Current Request tab, select the approval flow user from the provided pull-down and click Approve in order to approve the PO for the selected user.

• The substitute approvers do not display in the pull-down with primary approval chain users.

Added the “Opt Out of Paper W2” setting to the Payroll tab, which allows users to remove the option to select Opt Out of Paper W2 from Employee Self Service > Employee Requests.

Added the “Depreciation threshold amount” setting to the Fixed Assets tab, which allows users to enter a value that is used to calculate asset depreciation at a threshold that is equal to or greater than the amount entered.

Added the “Custom Purchase Order Options” section to the Accounts Payable tab, which allows users to customize and include an additional pull-down on the Purchasing/Accounts Payable > Purchase Requests/Orders and Internal Purchase Requests/Orders screen depending on the options selected (District check box and/or Internal check box). 

• When these fields are added and marked as Active, users will be required to select an option from the pull-down in order to submit the PO.

Added the Additional Expenses section to the Billing tab, which includes the following settings: 

• Enable Additional Expenses: Selecting the check box allows users to enter 3 types of billing upon finalizing a field trip request including SunPass, Other Expenses, and Meal Reimbursement. 
• Breakfast Cost, Lunch Cost, and Dinner Cost: Allows users to enter the number of meals (Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner) and calculate from per meal cost from “Billing” setup.

Added a setting called “Enabled Catalog Alerts,” which allows users to determine whether or not warehouse catalog alerts display on the Portal.

Added a “Allow All Facilities” check box to the Request Types tab, which allows users to select from all facilities on location regardless of permissions.

• When the “Allow All Facilities” check box is selected, users can select from all facilities from the Facility pull-down upon creating a new Work Order Request. Note: This setting does not impact on allocation permissions.

Updated so an email is sent when a work order is marked as Complete from the Assigned Requests tab based on the E-Mail Address entered on the Current Request tab in the Request Info section.

Added the ability to cancel approved work orders when the new permission “Cancel Approved Requests” is enabled via Setup > Profiles.

Added the “View” button to the Assigned Requests tab, which allows users to view the request from the Current Request tab.