“We have been pleased with the responsiveness and professionalism of the operation at FileBank. We now have over 2000 files in storage and have been impressed with theefficiency of retrieval of information when I need it. FileBank continues to superbly handle our archiving and storage needs. Weare very happy with their prompt service and outstanding commitment and look forward to continued business together.”

Marissa C. McKenzie, Human Resources Manager
East Orange School District, N.J.

“Anyone in education can tell you how difficult, and often scary, it is to make big changes in how we do things. Schools have so many moving parts, so that between different buildings and departments it is unfathomable how much paperwork must be saved: files, forms, and important documents.

Last March, as schools across the country reevaluated how they were going to operate, when the decision to go remote was made everyone said, “Well, thank God we have FileBank!”
I would be lying if I told you it wasn’t a very scary leap at the start, but now, I couldn’t imagine the situation we would be in if we hadn’t taken that leap. I am the Director of Special Services at West Caldwell Public Schools in New Jersey and have been in education for 20 years. When I need a file or a document, it’s usually urgent and it’s usually for a legal case or when something has gone wrong, so the idea of handing all my files over and not having the physical copy was daunting. The FileBank team advised me to speak with people in a district that had already gone digital, so I went to visit the Rutherford school district. They told me that before FileBank, the sleek conference room we were sitting in was a filing room packed with cabinets and boxes. They were clear that making the switch was the best thing they had done. Hearing this come from another district was comforting.

FileBank’s service was above and beyond my expectations. The process was seamless: not only did they come and take all our files in a single morning, but they were very clear about next steps and were responsive to all our questions and concerns. I had to convince my teams it was going to be okay, and the FileBank team was so on it. Everyone working from home, we were not able to go into the buildings yet, but we never felt untethered from the documents we needed. We knew we would be able to access our files and that there was always help if we needed it. Our FileBank reps are on a first name basis and always there when we need them. They take being there for their client to the next level.

We could not be more grateful that we digitized our important documents with FileBank. When we were hand-filing documents everything took endless hours to find, organize and edit, while now I have one person taking care of everything within minutes. We are streamlining our process and still able to customize, personalize, and organize in a way that works.

The FileBank team cares about customer service and they are passionate about what they do. You have to be willing to change, and I would recommend FileBank to anyone looking to make life easier and reduce the burden of paper, especially in schools.”

Jessica (Valentine) Abramovich, Director of Special Services
West Caldwell Public Schools, N.J.

Weehawken School District Opens Wellness Centers
By Daniel Israel, Staff Writer – September 8, 2021

“The Weehawken School District is supporting mental health at schools by going paperless,” according to Superintendent of Schools, Eric Crespo.

The paperless concept came about while Crespo and Jenna Wendolowski, Supervisor of Counseling Services, were seeking to open a Wellness Center at Weehawken High School.

“We were running out of space, so we went into our guidance suite and looked, and there was this huge counter with multitudes of paper and files,” Crespo said. “Some of it was ten years old. We knew there has to be a better way to do this.”

That’s where a partnership with FileBank came into play. FileBank digitized the paper files.

“We still have access to the files at our fingertips,” Crespo said. “But this opened up a whole new world.”

The files are accessible on demand in a digital database hosted by FileBank.

“We request it, and it just comes to us as a PDF,” Crespo said. “If we need a hard copy, or whatever the case may be, their turnaround time is within 24 hours. So, it’s really accessible to us.”

Soon, digitization spread to classrooms to help teachers make the most of their limited space amid social distancing guidelines, as well as other rooms that have been underused due to paper files.

“We started maximizing spaces in other places,” Crespo said. “Now, we’re going into different rooms, doing more work with [FileBank]. Those rooms in the near future are going to become other things for students for telemedicine, a student store, and etcetera. It all came because we’re now able to put these paper files somewhere secure and also have them at our fingertips.”

Crespo said this effort was part of many green initiatives the district is currently undertaking. Getting rid of the paper files storage area allowed for the Wellness Center to open in its place.

“The Wellness Center is designed not just for kids who have anxiety or some mental health issues, but really for everyone,” Wendolowski said. “If you’re having a bad day or anything like that, you can have that space to relax and de-stress. We don’t really like to target a certain student.”

“Maybe you left your house and got into an argument with your brother, sister, mother or father,” Crespo said. “Maybe, you’re really stressed, you’re in AP class, you’re trying to get into college, and you just need somewhere to unwind.”

“Teachers are allowed to get stressed,” Crespo said. “The Wellness Center is there for them, too.” The room is designed to be a calm and inviting space: relaxing murals and inspirational posters cover the walls, and there’s abundant comfortable seating.

Providing additional mental health support is crucial amid the pandemic. “We saw food insecurity. There’s homelessness. There are kids that, when it came to coming to school, that was such a big part of social interaction for them,” Crespo added. “School was always a safe place for them, where people care about them and where people believe in them. That got taken away because of the pandemic. So now, as we reintroduce our student body back in, what better place to have this as the district transitions back.”

The district began work on centers at two other schools. Crespo said, “The Wellness Center at Theodore Roosevelt School just finished. In about a year, we would like to have one at Daniel Webster School, so all three schools have a center.”

Crespo continued, “We’re excited about the Wellness Center. We think that we are going to see a tremendous amount of foot traffic in it. We know we’re going to see benefits from it when it comes to our social and emotional well being and our mental health. And, it’s for everyone.”

Be sure to read the full article covering this story in The Hudson Reporter in our Press section.

“There is something to be said for the force of personality and careful attention to detail that Greg brings to the business that makes it feel more like a personal relationship than a business relationship. That is what has served the MET well over the last 30 years.”

“Greg and FileBank’s attention to detail, with respect to safety of the physical environment, fire suppression, lighting, health and well-being of the staff, really stands out compared to other vendors. It gives us comfort, especially when we have so many valuable assets stored at FileBank.”

“We wrote initial terms and conditions with FileBank and the MET in the 1990s and we just keep re-upping that same contract because we have nothing to worry about. We know we have Greg looking out for our stuff and Greg trusts that we are going to pay on time — nothing has changed. It has been an overwhelmingly positive experience. The level of service, accessibility, and availability is unparalleled. The service we receive is far beyond what is in our contract.”

“It is remarkable that Greg knows how I take my coffee, he has it ready for me every time I come out there.”

Jeff Mace, Director of Production Operations
The Metropolitan Opera, N.Y.

“FileBank provides an efficient, user-friendly system that has been instrumental in modernizing our office. We can safely store records off-site, free up space for active records, while easily retrieving archived records when needed.”

Sandra Martin, RMC, CMR, Municipal Clerk/Registrar
Borough of Seaside Park, N.J.

“FileBank has always provided necessary training and we receive professional and courteous assistance from the entire staff. They consistently make themselves accessible to any inquiry or issue at hand. They show pride in working with our district and attempt to be proactive whenever possible.”

Mark J. Delcher, Director of Human Resources
Pleasantville School District, N.J.

“The Nutley Board of Education engaged the services of FileBank, Inc., to convert microfilm and microfiche files. Their service was highly satisfactory and provided as scheduled. FileBank successfully worked with our Guidance Department to complete the project.”

Karen A. Yeamans, Business Administrator/Board Secretary
Nutley Board of Education, N.J.

“Our move toward cloud-based technology was triggered, in part, by Hurricane Sandy…We now manage more than 4,800 files using FileBank’s V-Cabinet®. The electronic document management system has reduced the time it takes our staff to find files and has streamlined our in-house operations.”

Nicholas Sacco
North Bergen Township Mayor

Christopher Pianese
North Bergen Township Administrator

Erin Barillas
North Bergen Township Clerk
North Bergen Township, N.J.

“FileBank has saved us thousands of hours in employee time. By helping us organize and review records online, instead of physically storing and retrieving documents, our integration of FileBank has allowed us to expand our offices, hire for strategic new positions, and make our processes far more efficient.”

Homere Breton, Executive Legal Assistant
Newark Board of Education, N.J.

”Millburn Township contracted with FileBank in 2014 for assistance with records management for town hall records and we are all very pleased with their services. The staff at FileBank is always reachable, diligent, professional and open to new ideas on how best to satisfy our needs as a municipality. Records management is a huge task for Municipal Clerks Offices and with our limited resources FileBank has been exactly what we were looking. FileBank has stored, identified, inventoried and properly purged records for the township and I would recommend their services.”

Christine Gatti, RMC, CMR, Township Clerk
Millburn Township, N.J.

“Utilizing FileBank for off-site data storage allowed us to expand and use the added space for needed teacher conference rooms, not to mention the added sense of relief that all of our critical data was safe from fires, floods, power failures, theft and unauthorized access.”

Melissa Simmons, Business Administrator
Harrington Park School District, N.J.

“We are so grateful to have worked with FileBank, especially during the pandemic. It was such a relief to not have to worry about getting locked out of the files we needed when our buildings were closed. By digitizing our documents, we cleared space in our office that was overflowing with paper, and are now using that space for other things.
Every Filebank representative is extremely accommodating, kind, and knowledgeable about their products and how they could help our needs. Their professional service is complemented by their personal touch. Jeannette treats you like an extended family member, not like a customer.

Jeannette [Castro] was consistent and persistent in making sure our workspace was the way we wanted it. When things got chaotic in the office, it was reassuring to know that Jeannette was taking care of what needed to happen.

The FileBank facility is immaculate, from the workspaces to the storage area; everything is pristine. I would absolutely recommend FileBank to anyone!”

Takeema Rutherford, Records Manager
City of East Orange, N.J.