We have no funding for NearPod because of the other software we unexpectedly had to move into the general budget. This is a tricky set of circumstances and we appreciate all you are doing to help us.
On Tue, Mar 24, 2026 at 9:02 AM Darren Draper < darrendraper@alpinedistrict.org> wrote:
I'm most supportive of Option 3. We also do not have a district budget to cover the costs of Nearpod, so we would welcome licensing at a reduced rate, and would likely not pursue any options for whole-district licensing.
-Darren
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*Darren E. Draper, Ed.D.* Administrator of Technology and Digital Innovation Email: darrendraper@alpinedistrict.org Phone: 801-610-8564
On Mon, Mar 23, 2026 at 10:55 AM Justin Brooksby jbrooksby@uen.org wrote:
Chris thanks for your reply. Honestly, I have no idea how we would implement #1. It is so few license I just don’t think it is possible without leaving out a large number of schools. I also don’t see UEN managing the entire instance. It would be more like you get funding for one middle school… There is just not a whole lot we can do with that few licenses.
From what I have heard most districts don’t have funding for option #2.
So yes, option 3 seems more viable.
I would love to hear from everyone else. Thanks.
Justin Brooksby
Associate Director
Ed. Tech Solutions
[image: Image] *From: *Christopher S Larsen cslarsen@graniteschools.org *Date: *Monday, March 23, 2026 at 10:38 AM *To: *Justin Brooksby jbrooksby@uen.org, software-advisory-k12@lists.uen.org software-advisory-k12@lists.uen.org *Subject: *Re: Nearpod Licensing Options – Feedback Requested
Hi Justin,
Thanks for the update. Here is my feedback on the proposed paths forward:
- Option 1: If I understand this option correctly, it would require
one massive state instance of Nearpod (administratively) where UEN manages all licenses, permissions, and school assignments since it bypasses LEA admins. If true, that doesn’t seem manageable for UEN. Would it just be a first-come, first-served free-for-all until the 83,300 licenses ran out?
- Option 2: I don’t currently have district funds available for
Nearpod licenses, but this option would at least help individual schools secure a discounted price if they use their site budgets.
- Option 3: I’m interested in this route. A competitive RFP might
encourage Nearpod to be more flexible in their pricing. It also opens the door to alternatives like Pear Deck, which offers similar functionality at what might be a better value.
Thanks,
*Christopher Larsen*
Director of Educational Technology
Granite School District *From: *Justin Brooksby jbrooksby@uen.org *Date: *Monday, March 23, 2026 at 10:01 AM *To: *software-advisory-k12@lists.uen.org < software-advisory-k12@lists.uen.org> *Subject: *[Software-advisory-k12] Nearpod Licensing Options – Feedback Requested
We’ve continued discussions with the Nearpod team, but unfortunately, we have not made much progress. One of the primary challenges is how licensing must be structured. We had initially been told that Silver, Gold, and Premium subscription tiers were available; however, they have since clarified that those options are no longer being offered to us.
As things currently stand, we have a few potential paths forward:
Option 1: Use the $500,000 to purchase licenses directly. At the current rate, this would cover approximately 83,300 student licenses statewide. Because licensing must be applied at the school level, we cannot distribute smaller portions (e.g., 500 licenses) to an LEA. In practice, this means some LEAs—such as single-school charters—could be fully funded, while larger districts may only be able to cover one or a few schools.
Option 2: Apply the $500,000 as a subsidy and have Nearpod offer a reduced rate of $3 per student to LEAs. Licenses would still need to be purchased at the school level under this model.
Option 3: Issue an RFP to explore whether we can secure a lower cost from Nearpod or open the opportunity to other vendors. I believe this is a viable option, though we would need to confirm alignment with legislative requirements.
I would appreciate your feedback on these options. Since this funding is intended to support your needs, I want to ensure we move in a direction that is most beneficial and practical for you.
Thank you,
Justin Brooksby
Associate Director
Ed. Tech Solutions
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