ForwardPass Wins Best Overall IT Solution Provider for Education
Jun 10, 2026 11:52:20 AM
A device issue should not cost half a class period.
That belief sits at the center of ForwardPass. It is why we build systems designed to turn common 30-minute device disruptions into 2-minute, self-serve handoffs — and often less.
ForwardPass by LocknCharge is proud to announce that it has been named the 2026 EdTech Breakthrough Award winner for Best Overall IT Solution Provider for the Education Market.
ForwardPass brings LocknCharge’s long-standing experience in education device management into a new generation of smart locker automation, built for self-serve access, accountability, and measurable time savings.
With more than 3,000 nominations submitted from around the world, this year’s program recognized companies and products advancing education technology across a competitive global field.
ForwardPass is honored to be recognized alongside leading names across the sector, including Canva, LEGO Education, PowerSchool, Cisco, Carnegie Learning, and D2L.
Why this recognition matters
Education IT teams are under pressure to support more devices, more users, and more daily requests — without adding unnecessary complexity.
A forgotten laptop, an uncharged device, or an unclear repair handoff may seem small on its own. But device management already consumes a major part of the school day. More than 50% of school IT teams spend over 4 hours every day managing devices — time that adds up quickly across classrooms, libraries, service desks, and campuses.
ForwardPass was built to reduce that burden.
The platform automates the core workflows education teams manage every day: Loaners, Repairs, Deployments, Replacements, and Charging. Students, faculty, and staff get self-serve access to the device they need, while IT teams maintain visibility, accountability, and exportable records across every exchange.
This award recognizes the shift ForwardPass is helping education teams make: from manual device management to self-serve access with the controls IT requires.
From manual handoffs to measurable time savings
When a device is missing, broken, uncharged, or waiting for pickup, the impact extends beyond the device itself. Each delay can affect instructional time, staff productivity, and IT workload.
ForwardPass is designed to reduce that impact by simplifying the exchange. Users authenticate, access the right device through a smart locker, and continue with their day. Each event is recorded, giving IT teams the visibility they need without requiring every handoff to be managed manually.
This is how schools and universities can move common device disruptions from 30 minutes to 2 minutes or less.
Not by asking IT teams to do more, but by giving them a system built for the way device access works in real education environments.
Built for schools, campuses, and the teams that support them
ForwardPass is more than a smart locker. It is a device handoff system designed around the daily realities of education IT.
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In K–12 environments, ForwardPass can help students access a charged loaner before the morning bell and return to class without creating a front-desk line.
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In higher education, the system can support after-hours device access for students and faculty while giving IT a clear chain-of-custody record across locations, service desks, and departments.
For education IT leaders, the value is operational consistency. Device access becomes easier to scale. Workflows become easier to manage. Records become easier to trust. Teams can support more users with fewer interruptions and less manual effort.
A win shaped by our customers
This recognition reflects the work of the schools, colleges, universities, partners, and IT teams who have helped shape ForwardPass.
Our customers have shown us where daily device exchanges create friction. They have helped define the workflows that matter most: bell-time loaners, repair intake, deployment days, replacement handoffs, charging access, exam periods, and after-hours support.
Their insight has helped ForwardPass build beyond charging and storage toward a more complete system for self-serve, accountable device access.
We are grateful for that trust and proud to build alongside them.
What comes next
Winning Best Overall IT Solution Provider for the Education Market is an important milestone for ForwardPass. The mission remains the same.
We will continue building systems that help schools and universities simplify device access, improve accountability, and give time back to the people doing the work.
Thank you to EdTech Breakthrough for the recognition, and congratulations to all of the 2026 winners.
When device access works the way it should, learning keeps moving — and IT gets time back.
It’s about time.
About ForwardPass by LocknCharge
ForwardPass by LocknCharge automates device handoffs for schools, universities, and workplaces. Built on LocknCharge’sexperience supporting device management at scale, ForwardPass helps teams manage Loaners, Repairs, Deployments, Replacements, and Charging through self-serve smart locker workflows with visibility, accountability, and exportable records.
See how ForwardPass helps schools and institutions turn device handoffs into self-serve, accountable workflows.