When a University's Future Depended on Getting Integration Right

In This Case Study

Introduction
The Challenge
The Approach
Business Outcomes
See the Full Playbook
Download The Case Study

In This Case Study

Introduction
The Challenge
The Approach
Business Outcomes
See the Full Playbook
Download The Case Study

99.33%

Platform uptime since go-live, ensuring zero disruption for students and faculty

40,000+

Active students live on the new platform across 900+ courses

60%

Drop in help desk tickets post-migration, students stopped calling because things just worked

99.5%

Bidirectional data sync accuracy: no lost records, no broken workflows

Introduction

This is the story of a 175,000-student university that bet its next chapter on a digital transformation, and the integration challenge that nearly derailed it. It’s also the story of how the right technical partner turned a fragile middleware gap into a resilient, scalable backbone that the institution will build on for years to come.

The Challenge

Three Systems. Zero Common Ground. Millions of Student Moments at Stake.

The university’s Next Generation Learning Experience (NGLX) initiative was ambitious by design, modernizing the end-to-end student journey from first inquiry to graduation. But ambition isn’t enough when your modern front end, new microservices backend, and legacy operational systems can’t talk to each other.

A Modern Frontend, Stranded

A redesigned student experience platform built on current UI principles, but with no reliable data layer beneath it. Beautiful. Brittle.

Microservices With No Orchestration

A new scalable backend sat idle, waiting for the integration layer that would let it handle real student workflows: enrollments, assessments, coursework.

Legacy Systems That Couldn't Be Retired Yet

Staff and faculty still depended on legacy systems. Any integration approach had to bridge old and new, not rip and replace.

“The university envisioned a middleware platform, the Interoperator, architected as an Anti-Corruption Layer to enable reliable data flow, workflow orchestration, and seamless integration between modern and legacy systems. They just needed someone who could build it.”

The Approach

Adapt First. Build Trust. Then Deliver.

Sage IT entered with a recommendation. The university had a different vision. Most vendors dig in. Sage IT listened and pivoted.

When the client preferred a DIY approach using open-source Java frameworks over an enterprise integration platform, Sage IT built a working prototype in their preferred architecture and demonstrated it end-to-end. That moment changed the relationship.

From there, Sage IT was handed the keys to build the Interoperator, the integration backbone that the entire NGLX transformation depended on.

In the full case study: Learn exactly how Sage IT structured the milestone-based delivery, what the phased rollout looked like, and how a hyper-care support model ensured stability at every stage of go-live.

Deep Technical Discovery System documentation review, codebase analysis, and structured discovery workshops to map the full dependency landscape before writing a single line of integration code
Prototype-First Trust Building Developed a working proof-of-concept in the client’s preferred open-source stack, proving architectural viability before committing to a full build.
Integration Layer for Core Workflows Built enrollment, registration, assessments, and coursework integrations across UI, Domain Services, and CGP systems.
End-to-End Staging Validation Verified every NGLX workflow in a controlled staging environment before any student-facing deployment.
Structured Hyper-Care & Phased Rollout A defined support period and phased expansion plan to grow from pilot programs to university-wide deployment with zero disruption.

Business Outcomes

The Numbers That Told the Story

These results were measured post-deployment and represent the tangible impact of getting integration right the first time.

99.33% — Platform uptime since August 2025, an uninterrupted experience for students and faculty from day one.
40,000+ — Active students across 900+ courses now operating on the modernized NGLX platform.
2,000+ — Daily user sessions supported with enterprise-grade performance, every single day.
99.5% — Bidirectional data sync accuracy, integration errors, and data loss effectively eliminated.
60% — Reduction in help desk tickets for migrated NGLX programs. Less noise. More learning.

These results didn’t happen by chance. The full case study breaks down the decision points, technical tradeoffs, and delivery model that made them possible.

See the Full Playbook

The complete case study covers the technical architecture, delivery milestones, vendor selection rationale, and the phased rollout model, everything your team needs to benchmark a transformation of this scale.