There’s no such thing as too much communication—or is there? Parents of school-age children are often inundated with information, from newsletters and emails to the school’s website, PTA directory, information on clubs and activities, and updates on social media. And then there are the myriad platforms for keeping up with everything from tracking test scores and web-based resources to adding funds to a student’s meal account.
“The communications parents receive is like drinking from a fire hose." — Brent Holuta
“The communications parents receive is like drinking from a fire hose,” said Brent Holuta, director of business development and co-founder of Lexington-based startup Legit Apps. “We’re helping schools communicate with more precision.”
Working with Lexington’s Cassidy Elementary School, Legit Apps developed a mobile-based application that effectively aggregates and streamlines a variety of information and resources into one easy-to-use platform. The application looks slightly different and includes different information depending on who’s using it—administrators and teachers, parents or students—and users can tailor notifications, groups and subscriptions to their preferences.
From left, Brent Holuta, Cassidy Elementary School assistant principal Susan Hart, Brock Klein and Zach Whelchel worked to refine Legit Apps’ K–12 communication app prior to its release.
Susan Hart, Cassidy’s assistant principal, worked closely with the development team over the past year to beta test and refine the K–12 communication app. “Legit Apps has created an entirely revitalized experience,” Hart said. “As our lives become more attached to our cellphones, this app has helped us enter into the 21st century and connect with parents in a more relevant way that fits with their lifestyles.”
The app is supported by sponsorships from local businesses, which allows the app to be customized for different schools at no cost. The company is actively seeking more sponsorships so that the app can be donated to every school within the Fayette County Public Schools system.
While the sponsorships are limited to Lexington for now, the company hopes to grow and scale its model to include schools across the country.
“This model of giving away apps to schools may seem a little crazy—it’s definitely more work—but it makes a big difference in whether a school can have an app or not,” Holuta said.
Brent Holuta, Brock Klein and Zach Whelchel in front of the company’s office on National Avenue.
In 2010, Legit Apps’ co-founder and chief technology officer Zach Whelchel, who grew up in Wilmore, Kentucky, had created a similar app to organize the schedule for the Christian music festival Ichthus, coming up with the name Legit Apps at the same time. “Each year they would print a thick booklet, and you’d carry that thing around and always flip back and forth cross-referencing the pages for each stage’s schedule,” Whelchel said of his inspiration. He graduated from Asbury University with degrees in media communication and mathematics.
He later met Holuta, and in 2013, the two built an organizational app for K Week, a five-day orientation period at the University of Kentucky with at least 100 events for matriculating students. The next year, 15 additional colleges came on board. When Holuta graduated in 2015, with degrees in accounting and finance, he joined the Legit Apps team full time.
“As a business owner, it feels like Lexington wants us to succeed — that it’s built to help us succeed." — Brock Klein
CEO Brock Klein completes the Venn diagram of Legit Apps’ ownership team. Like Holuta, he studied finance and economics, earning a degree at Centre College. As a developer himself, he and Whelchel had run in similar software circles over the past half-dozen years. In 2015 Klein was intrigued by the K Week app and contacted Whelchel about his interest in turning the project into a full-fledged company. “That was the start of Legit Apps in its current iteration,” Klein said.
Three years later, Legit Apps has grown to include nine employees working on the company’s proprietary software in a new office space on National Avenue. Intern Jacob Compton, a STEAM Academy student, was also instrumental in helping develop the K–12 app. The team has also expanded its product base to include customized apps for colleges, schools, conferences and festivals across the country. They’ve also benefited from resources, mentorships and friendships among the local community.
“As a business owner, it feels like Lexington wants us to succeed—that it’s built to help us succeed,” Klein said. “It is an extremely pleasant place to do business.”