Designing Smarter, More Connected School Experiences: May 2026 Product Update Highlights

Lauren Barker

At Blackbaud, we believe education is at an inflection point. 

For decades, school technology has primarily acted as a system of record—capturing data, storing information, and helping you manage operations. But today, schools are being asked to do more with less: serve more families, manage more complexity, and deliver more personalized experiences, all while staying focused on what matters most—your students. 

That’s why we’re evolving toward something new: a system of action. 

AI plays a critical role in that shift—but our stance is clear. 

• This is about human augmentation, not human replacement 
• AI shouldn’t be used to abdicate thinking—it should amplify it 
• The most important work—exercising judgment, building relationships, and delivering on your school’s mission—remains deeply human 

Our role is to support you in that work. 

We’re building AI-powered tools that thoughtfully solve real problems—designed to reduce administrative burden, streamline workflows, identify trends, and give your teams more time to focus on students and families. Not to replace what makes your school special, but to strengthen it. 

And that philosophy shows up across everything in this latest Product Update. 

Streamlining Everyday Workflows for Staff and Teachers 

Saving time for educators and administrators is one of the most meaningful ways we can support your school community—and this release delivers across key workflows. 

With enhancements like the Grading Hub, schools now have a centralized place to manage grading settings throughout the academic year, making updates faster and more consistent. At the same time, the new Assignments experience in Learning Management will help teachers spend less time creating and grading work by simplifying the user experience and reducing clicks. 

Attendance workflows are also becoming more efficient. With Parent-Submitted Attendance, families can directly input attendance through the portal, reducing manual entry for staff while improving communication and accuracy. 

These updates work together to reduce administrative burden—freeing up valuable time so educators can focus on teaching and student engagement. 

Improving Financial Clarity and Reducing Complexity 

With the introduction of Refunds in Billing Management, schools now have a dedicated way to track returned funds without relying on offsetting transactions. This creates cleaner financial records and reduces reconciliation complexity for business offices. 

In Tuition Management, Truth in Lending Statements provide an easy way for schools to generate and share clear, accessible documentation for families—helping improve transparency and trust. 

Together, these updates help schools manage financial processes with greater accuracy while creating a clearer, more confident experience for families. 

Creating a More Seamless Experience for Families 

With improved Admissions Progress: Decisions, schools can deliver a more polished, branded experience when communicating admissions outcomes—making this critical moment more engaging and aligned with the school’s identity. 

Even more impactful is the continued progress toward integrated workflows with Enrollment Management + Financial Aid. Families can now move through financial aid applications more seamlessly, with a single login experience and real-time visibility into their application progress directly within the admissions checklist. 

These improvements reduce friction across the enrollment journey—helping families feel more supported from their first interaction through enrollment. 

Building a Stronger Foundation for Data and Community 

Enhancements to Directories give schools more control over how names are displayed across online, printed, and exported formats. With options for preferred names and privacy-conscious configurations, schools can better reflect the needs and preferences of their communities. 

These updates may seem small, but they play a meaningful role in ensuring accuracy, respect, and consistency across school communications. 

Looking Ahead: AI, Insights, and Smarter Decision-Making 

As we look forward, the next wave of innovation focuses on helping schools move from reactive operations to proactive, insight-driven decision-making. 

New capabilities in development include: 

• Student Success Insights, which will help schools identify at-risk students using data from across systems and enable earlier, more targeted interventions 
• Attendance Thresholds, automating notifications and actions when students reach key milestones 
• Course Reporting, giving educators and leaders clearer visibility into performance across classes 

AI will also continue to support your teams in meaningful, practical ways: 

• The Feedback Generator will help teachers create personalized student feedback more efficiently 
• The Collections Assistant will use AI-driven insights to help billing teams prioritize outreach and recover revenue faster 
• Blackbaud AI Chat for Education will streamline everyday tasks—retrieving data, creating lists, and completing workflows without switching contexts 

At the same time, deeper integrations like Microsoft 365 LTI will bring familiar tools directly into the learning experience. 

A Continued Focus on What Matters Most 

Across all of these updates—from workflow improvements to AI-driven insights—the goal is the same: 

👉 Reduce complexity so schools can operate more efficiently 
👉 Improve experiences for families, students, and staff 
👉 Enable more intentional, data-driven decisions 

Each release is shaped by feedback from schools like yours, and every enhancement is designed to support the real work happening across your community every day. 

Our Commitment to You 

As we move through 2026, we remain focused on helping schools navigate change with confidence. Whether it’s simplifying administrative processes, improving family engagement, or unlocking new insights through AI, our goal is to support you every step of the way. 

Thank you for being part of the Blackbaud community—we’re excited to continue building the future of K–12 education together.