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FAQ: How can I simplify the process of obtaining signatures on teacher contracts and filing them in K12Docs?

Below are the two most common options that can be used to obtain signatures on teacher contracts and file the contracts in K12Docs:

Option 1:  Uses Web Link in addition to K12Docs

With Option 1, the contracts are uploaded and filed in K12Docs for the employees to access from within Web Link by using the View/Add File Documents option.  The employees sign the contracts in Web Link using the E-Sign feature available with K12Docs, and the employees also update the document attribute for Employee Signature to reflect the contract has been signed.

1.  Verify the setup has been completed within the Web Link Setup Options and User Security options in order for employees to access their contracts in Web Link.  (Note:  This step must be completed by a user defined as a supervisor or Web Link administrator within the School Accounting System.)

  • In the Web Link Setup Options (accessed under the Utilities menu on the main School Accounting System screen), click the Document Management tab and verify the following:  (1) the Allow Employee Subfolder Access field is selected, and (2) the Contracts subfolder in the SUI_PR_Employees Subfolders List is selected.

  • In User Security (accessed under the User Controls icon on the main School Accounting System screen), verify the View/Add File Documents option under Web Link in the User Permissions List is set to Full Access.  If needed, use the View/Adjust Users option to quickly change the rights for that option for a group of employees (refer to the Viewing/Adjusting Users topic in the Help File for detailed instructions for completing the option).

2.  For each applicable employee, scan and then upload and file the contract in the Contracts subfolder in the SUI_PR_Employees application in K12Docs.  (Tip:  For best results, upload the contract as a .TIFF file so that only one copy of the contract will be included in the Contracts subfolder when using the E-Sign feature in Step 3 below; otherwise, if the contract is uploaded as a .DOC or .PDF file, a copy of the file is created when saving the e-signature so multiple files of the contract will be included in the Contracts subfolder, including the original file without the signature and a copy with the signature.)

  • If desired, include (or obtain) the appropriate school staff signatures (for example, the superintendent signature) on the contracts prior to scanning and uploading the contracts to each employee’s folder.  For example, if using the Mail Merge feature in Word to print contracts, add the school staff signatures to your template before merging to print the contracts; or if using the Agreement Form Setup – Contract Employee option and the Agreement Form Setup – Unit Employee option in Negotiations, be sure to complete the Signature Line 1 Image Path field and the Signature Line 2 Image Path field in order to print the school staff signatures on the contracts.  (Note:  If the school staff signatures are not included on the contracts uploaded to the employee folders, then the applicable staff will need to log into K12Docs directly and use the E-Sign feature to sign the contract at a later time; click here to refer to the Training Tidbit for using the E-Sign feature in K12Docs.)
  • If the contracts for all employees are scanned as one batch to an indexing list, use the document indexing features in K12Docs (or the K12Docs GX application) to index and file the contracts (from the indexing list) separately for each employee.
  • If using the Agreement Form Setup – Contract Employee option and the Agreement Form Setup – Unit Employee option in Negotiations, click the Upload to K12Docs button (located on the top of either the report printing options screen or the preview screen) to upload the contract for each employee directly into K12Docs.  When completing the Upload to K12Docs screen, be sure to select the Upload Individual Pages to Selected Entities field and select Employees in the Entity Selection section.
  • When adding the contract to the Contracts subfolder for the employee (in either K12Docs or GX, or when uploading the report to K12Docs if using the Agreement Form Setup – Contract Employee option and the Agreement Form Setup – Unit Employee option in Negotiations), be sure to complete the Document Description attribute field consistently (for example, enter 2024-2025 Teacher Contract as the document description for teacher contracts) and also enter Not Signed in the Employee Signature attribute field (and if applicable, entered Signed in the School Staff Signatures attribute field).

3.  The employees log into Web Link and use the View/Add File Documents option (accessed under the Employee Information menu and then Personal Information) to view their contract.

  • Once the contract is displayed, the employees use the E-Sign feature to sign (and date) the contracts; and then save the changes.  Click here to access the Viewing and Signing Contracts Tutorial demonstrating how the employees can view and sign their contract within the View/Add File Documents option in Web Link.  Click here to refer to the Training Tidbit for using the E-Sign feature in K12Docs.

4.  When viewing and signing their contract in Web Link, the employees change the document attribute field for Employee Signature to be Signed, and then save the changes.

  • To change the attributes while viewing a document, click the Menu button (the button with the three lines) located in the upper left corner of the preview screen and select Attributes; then click the down-arrow button for the Employee Signature attribute field, select Signed, click the Save button to save the changes, and then click the Close button to close the Edit Attributes screen.  (Note:  If an employee does not change the Employee Signature attribute field to be Signed, then the Business Office will need to log into K12Docs directly and edit the attribute field for the employee’s contract at a later time.)

5.  Use the search activity workflow feature with K12Docs to create a workflow to view the employees with a teacher contract that is not signed.  For example, create a search activity workflow to view the teachers with a document containing an exact document description of 2024-2025 Teacher Contract with a Contract Document Type of Contract – Employment and Employee Signature and School Staff Signatures of Not Signed (or blank).  Click here to refer to the Training Tidbit on using the search activity workflow feature in K12Docs.

Option 2:  Uses Negotiations in addition to K12Docs

With Option 2, the Agreement Form Setup – Contract Employee option and the Agreement Form Setup – Unit Employee option in Negotiations are utilized to print the contracts, and then the employees are emailed their individual pages for their contract.  The employees print their contract from the email, sign it, and then return the signed contract to the Business Office.  The signed contracts are then uploaded and filed in K12Docs.

1.  Print and email the contracts to your employees by completing the Agreement Form Setup – Contract Employee option and the Agreement Form Setup – Unit Employee option in Negotiations.

  • To have the appropriate school staff signatures (for example, the superintendent signature) print on the contracts, be sure to complete the Signature Line 1 Image Path field and the Signature Line 2 Image Path field in the Agreement Form Setup – Contract Employee and/or Agreement Form Setup – Unit Employee options.  (Note:  If the Signature Line 1 and 2 Image Path fields are not completed, then the applicable staff will need to log into K12Docs directly and use the E-Sign feature to sign the contract at a later time; click here to refer to the Training Tidbit for using the E-Sign feature in K12Docs.)
  • Then generate the Standard Agreement Form – Contract Employee report and the Standard Agreement Form – Unit Employee report to print the contracts for the desired employees and pay codes.
  • When generating the reports, click the Email button (located on the top of either the report printing options screen or the preview screen) and then complete the Email Report screen by selecting the Email Recipients Individual Pages field, specifying the email address to use (such as those with the Other Communication usage selected), selecting Employees in the Send to Recipients section, choosing Portable Document Format (PDF) as the File Type, and selecting the applicable employees.  This will email only the applicable pages of the report to each employee for his/her contract.

2.  The employees then print the contract from their email and sign (and date) the contract.

3.  The employees either physically return the signed contract to the Business Office, or else scan the signed contract and email it to the Business Office.

4.  The Business Office scans the signed contract if needed, and then uploads and files the signed contract for the employee in the Contracts subfolder in the SUI_PR_Employees application in K12Docs.

  • When adding the contract to the Contracts subfolder for the employee, be sure to complete the Document Description attribute field consistently (for example, enter 2024-2025 Teacher Contract as the document description for teacher contracts) and also enter Signed in the Employee Signature attribute field (and if applicable, entered Signed in the School Staff Signatures attribute field).

5. Use the search activity workflow feature with K12Docs to create a workflow to view the employees with a teacher contract that is not signed.  For example, create a search activity workflow to view the teachers with a document containing an exact document description of 2024-2025 Teacher Contract with a Contract Document Type of Contract – Employment and Employee Signature and School Staff Signatures of Not Signed (or blank).  Click here to refer to the Training Tidbit on using the search activity workflow feature in K12Docs.