Rethinking Communication in Education: Vodia Smart School
Published on:
August 28, 2025
Digital communication is now woven into daily school life, from classroom platforms to how parents and teachers connect. Vodia Smart School takes this further with a VoIP-powered system that provides fast, secure, and documented communication for consent forms, sick notes, and routine notifications. In urgent situations, it enables automated alerts to staff, parents, and first responders, ensuring rapid responses when time is critical. Fully GDPR-compliant and offering features such as caller ID masking, MS Teams integration, and control of bells, announcements, and school systems, Smart School gives schools a modern, reliable alternative to legacy systems while improving both safety and everyday operations.
Private or professional, digital communication has become endemic to our everyday lives, particularly when it comes to the flow of information. Whether it’s texting friends, posting on social media, shopping online, booking travel…even ordering pizza, there are very few corners of our daily lives where digital communication doesn’t play a role. And there’s no denying its prevalence in education. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) makes all of this possible.
In school environments, Google Classroom has become the go-to program for students and teachers, alongside tools such as IXL, iReady, and other specific programs for subjects such as math, reading, and science. Beyond the classroom, digital communication has changed how schools communicate within their buildings, with bells doors, lighting, and HVAC systems controlled via phone systems; teachers and administrators are also taking advantage of cloud phone systems, which enable BYOD - calls can be made to parents from personal devices with the school’s main number displayed on a parent’s phone, rather than the administrator’s or teacher’s private number. Schools with digital communication ecosystems can also avail themselves of the convenience and speed they provide when it comes to consent forms, notifying parents if their child is ill, or cancelling classes. And when it comes to emergencies.
Vodia CEO Christian Stredicke, PhD, knows how schools can efficiently implement emergency protocols with digital communication. “Schools have already had positive experiences with VoIP telephone systems,” he says, “but there are plenty of tools that can enhance digital communication, particularly in emergencies. There’s still room for improvement, thanks to the advantages and security VoIP systems bring to school environments.”
With analog or legacy communication, a lot of valuable time can be lost before information from the office reaches parents, teachers, and students. VoIP systems enable digital communication, giving schools fast, flexible everyday communication with comprehensive data and privacy protection.
VoIP in everyday school life
Vodia has developed a toolkit for schools, the “Smart School” platform, that leverages VoIP for digital communication in school environments.
“Who hasn't experienced these types of events during school?” asks Dr. Stredicke. “Illness, cancelled classes, or some other information needs to be conveyed immediately to parents, students, or teachers…with legacy systems it usually takes a long time to reach someone.”
This is especially true in emergencies, where every second counts - the rapid distribution of information is essential. This is precisely where VoIP systems can make the most difference: with digital call acceptance or automated processing using voice messages and AI, information can be forwarded, recorded, and documented in seconds.
Smart School in Germany
With Smart School, Vodia has integrated its VoIP system into a school communications platform that gives schools a digitalization boost. Smart School was first implemented in Germany in 2024.
Vodia’s EMEA headquarters are located in Berlin (the company’s USA headquarters are in Boston, MA), and the company is an industry leader in the DACH IT market. In 2019, Germany adopted its “Digital Pact for Schools” to improve IT infrastructure in the nation’s schools to help students and teachers become “digitally ready”; to date Germany has invested more than €3B in Wi-Fi and endpoint devices in its educational institutions (Digital Pact 2.0 is scheduled to be implemented this year). Digital Pact for Schools includes strategies for data protection, digital identities, reflective use of media, and secure communication. The Vodia Smart School solution meets the needs and requirements of Digital Pact and has been deployed in a number of German schools.
Smart School is a cloud platform that enables schools to send consent forms, notifications, and sick notes quickly and securely with templates and voice functions from the Vodia PBX. These templates and voice functions replace insecure channels, such as email or messenger services; teachers can thus legally document all communication processes at any time. The platform’s voice communication functions include Microsoft Teams integration, school bell and announcement control, and teacher caller ID. The system's application possibilities are flexibly adaptable, depending on the size of the school.
"We implemented our VoIP system into Smart School,” says Dr. Stredicke. “Among its many features, it integrates seamlessly with school administration systems and digital class registers.” Vodia is offering free registration to German schools for the 2025-2026 school year. The program is compliant with all EU and national regulations and GDPR.
Real-time crisis management
Digital communication systems are the best solution to have in place at schools in emergency situations. Vodia has equipped a number of schools in the U.S. with its cloud phone system - these schools want the best in emergency response management.
"In emergencies, every second counts,” says Dr. Stredicke. “Teachers can immediately trigger an alarm using emergency buttons in the classroom. The Vodia PBX then automatically notifies the school administration, emergency services, and the police. At the same time, teachers receive warnings via loudspeaker or via a discreet text message, depending on the threat level."
In emergencies, legacy systems just can’t move as quickly as digital systems. With the Vodia phone system in place, school administrators can make an initial assessment and immediately alert the entire school and emergency services. Once the threat is over, administrators can instantly inform the entire school, as well as parents and other caregivers.
Data protection: the problem with email and messaging applications
It’s not just during emergencies that a school needs a reliable, robust, and secure communications infrastructure; even during day-to-day school operations, there are significant disadvantages to using email and messaging platforms such as Messenger, Viber, and WhatsApp. Dr. Stredicke believes sending messages over these channels is risky.
"Many teachers and students have been writing via chat groups and email for several years,” says Dr. Stredicke. “It's quick and, in addition to texting, images and documents can also be sent with just one click. This isn’t secure, however, and it can lead to unstructured communication processes that ultimately cannot be documented clearly or legally. There’s no guarantee of data protection with these applications, because these apps are often set up on teachers’ and administrators’ personal devices.”
With WhatsApp, for example, all of the contacts from a user’s smartphone are transmitted to the provider. With sensitive topics, such as learning progress, social problems, and other personal data, the utmost caution is required; with these channels, however, there’s no guarantee of privacy. The solution?
"Connection data must not leave the internal platform. With the Smart School platform and the integrated Vodia PBX, teachers can use the services on any device without exposing themselves to legal liability.” The Vodia PBX also protects schools from security breaches.
Digital communication for everyone
Schools need a secure alternative for the digital exchange of information, one that’s easy to use, as school communities comprise children and adolescents, as well as teachers and parents, and the latter may not have “grown up” with devices and other digital tools. For these users, modernization sometimes requires an initial adjustment, but in most cases this brings considerable relief, even in the short term.
“User-friendly operation is essential,” says Dr. Stredicke. "The service doesn’t require a lengthy period of familiarization. Our reduced web interface is self-explanatory and brings immediate advantages to everyday school life. We also provide extensive onboarding and ongoing white-glove support."
A dynamic backbone for school administration
Vodia Smart School is also the perfect choice for schools looking to integrate a VoIP communication system into their administrative systems, including those already using Microsoft Teams - the integration is easy, fast, and doesn’t disrupt operations. As long as a school has a stable network, an internet connection, and a professional IT system, it can deploy the feature-rich Vodia PBX on-premises (locally hosted) or in the cloud. This is particularly advantageous for schools still using complex, expensive, high-maintenance analog and legacy systems.
"Thanks to migration tools and existing telephones, setup is quick. Integration with alarm systems, digital class registers, doors, HVAC systems, lights, single sign-on - and our AI solutions - ensure smooth processes at every turn."
Vodia Networks, Inc. provides B2B cloud communications solutions for enterprises, contact centers, and service providers. Its PBX software offers a broad range of business telephony features for on-premise and cloud deployments on Windows, Linux, and Mac. Fully SIP-compliant, Vodia integrates with numerous SIP devices and trunking providers for flexible telephony. Its multi-tenant platforms support desk phones, softphones, APIs, and third-party CRM integrations. Vodia empowers partners and users with world-class cloud PBX and personalized support to ensure success. The company has headquarters in Boston, USA, and Berlin, Germany. Visit Vodia on LinkedIn, X, and YouTube.
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