School districts buy EASI through Northern Speech Services (NSS), the only company that sells EASI. For a team of 10 or more, ask NSS for a group quote. Before anyone puts student information into EASI, your team can review our privacy and security documents, including NDPA documentation and a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) for programs where HIPAA applies.
The paperwork that comes with buying software for a district can feel like it stands between your speech therapists and the children they serve. It does not have to feel that way. Here is how the process works, step by step.
Who sells EASI to school districts?
EASI is built by iTherapy, LLC, a company founded in 2013 by two speech language pathologists, Lois Jean Brady and Matthew Guggemos. Northern Speech Services is the only distributor of EASI. That means every purchase, whether for one therapist or a whole department, goes through NSS.
Individual speech therapists can buy access right on the NSS listing. Districts, clinics and staffing groups with 10 or more users can ask NSS for group pricing.
What are the steps to buy EASI for a team?
- Start with your speech therapists. Ask the people who know the children best what gets in the way of their time with them, and what would help: caseloads, therapy notes, measurable SMART IEP goal drafts, progress reports, evaluation reports (in beta) or scheduling (in beta).
- Ask Northern Speech Services for a group quote. Email info@northernspeech.com and share how many users you need.
- Review privacy and security. Request our current documentation through the EASI security and procurement page. Your technology and legal teams can read it before any student data goes into the system.
- Sign the agreements your district needs. That may include a student data privacy agreement and, where HIPAA applies, a BAA.
- Purchase through NSS. NSS accepts district purchase orders, so you can follow your usual steps for approval and payment.
You can read more about what EASI offers whole teams on our page for school district speech therapy teams.
What is an NDPA, and can EASI provide one?
The National Data Privacy Agreement (NDPA) comes from the Student Data Privacy Consortium. It gives schools and vendors one shared starting point for how student data will be handled, so each district does not have to write a new contract from scratch (Student Data Privacy Consortium).
Districts can request EASI's NDPA documentation and current state specific agreement information. Ask which agreement applies in your state when you request documents. Every district has its own rules, so your team decides what you need signed.
Do we need a BAA?
It depends on who you are and what information you handle. Under HIPAA, a Business Associate Agreement is the written contract a covered entity, such as a health care provider, uses when a vendor will create, receive, keep or send protected health information on its behalf (HHS). Student records kept by a school are usually covered by FERPA, the federal law that protects the privacy of education records (U.S. Department of Education). Some districts and many clinics deal with both.
EASI is HIPAA and FERPA compliant, with a BAA and insurance. A BAA is available for organizations that use EASI with protected health information. Your district's counsel decides which rules apply to you.
What should we ask before we buy?
Good questions protect children. Here are a few we welcome:
- Where is our data stored? EASI runs on AWS.
- Is the data encrypted? EASI encrypts saved records and uses HTTPS for data in transit.
- How do users sign in? EASI uses two factor authentication.
- Is there an audit trail? EASI keeps audit records for security and clinical work.
- How long is data kept, and how is it deleted? Ask for the retention and deletion terms that apply to your agreement.
- Who makes the clinical decisions? Your speech therapists do. EASI drafts, and the clinician reviews, edits and signs.
What will our speech therapists actually use?
EASI is a clinician controlled system for the work around a caseload. It helps with caseload management, scheduling (in beta), therapy notes, measurable SMART IEP goal drafts, progress reports and evaluation reports (in beta). MySLP is included for session plans, data sheets, talking core boards in English and Spanish, the SETT framework and Spanish transcription. Lightspeed Literacy, a lesson and drill curriculum modeled after the Orton Gillingham approach, tracks progress for each client.
For language samples, EASI calculates measures only after the clinician reviews and attests the transcript. See how EASI language sample analysis works, or compare EASI and SALT if your team already uses SALT.
Behind every purchase order is a child who deserves a therapist with time to listen. We built EASI so speech therapists stay in charge of every clinical choice, and the software stays in its place.
Ready to talk about a group quote?
EASI is sold only through Northern Speech Services. For groups of 10 or more, email info@northernspeech.com. For individual access, visit EASI at Northern Speech Services.
FAQ
Can our district buy EASI directly from iTherapy? No. Northern Speech Services is the only distributor of EASI. All quotes and purchases go through NSS.
Is there group pricing for districts? Yes. Groups of 10 or more can ask Northern Speech Services for a quote at info@northernspeech.com.
Does EASI sign a BAA? A BAA is available for organizations that use EASI with protected health information. EASI is HIPAA and FERPA compliant, with a BAA and insurance.
Can we review privacy documents before we buy? Yes. Districts can request NDPA documentation and current security and procurement materials through the EASI security page before any student data goes into EASI.
Does EASI make clinical decisions? No. EASI drafts. Your speech therapists review, edit, decide and sign.
Sources
- Student Data Privacy Consortium. National Data Privacy Agreement. https://privacy.a4l.org/national-dpa/
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Business Associates Frequently Asked Questions. https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/privacy/guidance/business-associates/index.html
- U.S. Department of Education, Student Privacy Policy Office. FERPA. https://studentprivacy.ed.gov/ferpa