New Three Rivers Systems case studies highlight how CAMS Enterprise ERP benefits four diverse institutions


St. Louis — August 26, 2013 — Three Rivers Systems Inc. is bolstering its library of informational materials with the addition of four new case studies highlighting the benefits of its flagship disruptive academic management solution CAMS Enterprise to diverse higher education institutions. A disruptive technology is an innovation creating a new market and value network to “disrupt” an existing market by displacing earlier technology.

Blackburn College, a unique four-year private liberal arts institution in Carlinville, Ill., with a history spanning three different centuries, has a decades-long relationship with hard-working CAMS. One of just seven federally recognized “work colleges” in the U.S., Blackburn is the only such institution with a student-managed work program. Dating to 1913, the work program was begun to help students of limited financial means.

Working harder and smarter are bywords at Blackburn, where the industrious beaver is the school’s mascot. According to Blackburn College Provost Jeffery P. Aper, Ph.D., “CAMS is a system that offers us ongoing opportunities to learn how to work smarter, not just harder. We continue to grow our institutional capacity to maximize the benefits of the system.”

On its scenic 80-acre campus near Detroit, faith-based Rochester College’s specialized programs prepare graduates for productive careers in the marketplace and for advanced studies at graduate and professional schools, including its own master’s degree option in religious education.

Registrar Rebekah Pinchback, who spearheaded the college’s move to online registration on CAMS Enterprise, said that step ignited a revolution on campus to look at the ERP system differently. “We dug deep into student and faculty portals. Today we are doing even greater portal customization and have moved all our applications to an applications portal. Our financial aid and business offices have made tremendous strides in getting all their information online, and my office continues to seek out areas of process improvements in degree audit and graduation.”

University of the Ozarks, Arkansas’ first co-educational college, some 100 miles west of Little Rock in the picturesque foothills of the Ozark Mountains, is consistently among the region’s top-rated higher-education institutions by publications and surveys including U.S News & World Report. Three Rivers Systems has supported the University of the Ozarks for more than 15 years, a longevity fueled by a perfect match of shared values including service, innovation and stability.

“I believe Three Rivers Systems is head and shoulders above most software vendors in terms of customer service and technology support,” Registrar Wilma Harris, said. “Their project managers respond to any issues or concerns we have, and also invest in teaching the client along the way.”

CAMS Enterprise’s Degree Audit module has been particularly valuable for the university. “It allows us to track quite effectively course completion for our students as they progress toward degree completion and share that information electronically with our faculty advisers and division chairs who have a need to know,” Harris said.

Web-based CAMS Enterprise is easy to use and requires far less IT support than other systems. “The fact that we were able to install CAMS Enterprise out of the box on our campus and just use it the way it was intended to be used without having to change our business processes says a tremendous amount about this product,” Harris added.

Chicago’s unique VanderCook College of Music, the only U.S. college devoted exclusively to training music educators for more than 100 years was admittedly behind the times when Dr. Charles Menghini was appointed president of the college. Bent on automating the college’s administrative and learning systems, VanderCook’s faculty and staff committee reviewed at least five programs, including Blackbaud, EDC Technology and EMPOWER. But the decision to select CAMS Enterprise was unanimous.

CAMS® Enterprise is the only totally integrated, Web-native academic ERP system with everything in one place for the entire student lifecycle — admissions through alumni relations. CAMS Enterprise removes all barriers to success seen with conventional systems. “What impressed us most about CAMS Enterprise was Three Rivers Systems’ interest in us. We didn’t invest in just an integrated academic ERP for our college, we invested in a relationship, one where we feel that we have a support network to help us think through and make our operations more efficient,” Dr. Menghini said.

All four case studies are available at: http://goo.gl/XMBkUk

About CAMS Enterprise
CAMS Enterprise’s disruptive technology makes it a fundamentally different academic ERP unlike all others that were designed for the past and are incapable of operating efficiently in the modern world. CAMS Enterprise is an easy-to-use and implement, totally integrated, Web-native management system with everything in one place — admissions; student information; financial aid; student services; fiscal management with HR and payroll; fund-raising; alumni relations; document management, learning management, a full suite of portals, and more for managing the entire student life cycle. With an out-of-the-box configuration and self-service customization, CAMS Enterprise removes all barriers to success seen with conventional systems

About Three Rivers Systems Inc.
Three Rivers Systems Inc. is the only privately held, independent, debt-free, one-stop company focused solely on high-quality academic ERP solutions exclusively for higher education institutions of all sizes. For more than 25 years from its St. Louis headquarters, the company is keenly focused on innovation and service to its worldwide customers of all sizes.

Contact: Ron Kalb, Three Rivers Systems Inc., Director of Communications, 636-779-1518 (office), 702-498-8916 (cell), ronk@threeriverssystems.com

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