Background

The district previously utilized SwiftK12 for its communication needs, which served as a reliable tool for reaching out to parents and guardians. However, as the district's needs evolved, it became clear that a more unified and comprehensive platform was necessary to enhance engagement and streamline communication.

To address these needs, the district is transitioning to ParentSquare. This platform offers a more robust set of features that are designed to improve parent and guardian involvement, making it easier for them to stay informed and engaged with their child's education. Key reasons for this move include:

Unified Communication Platform: ParentSquare consolidates all communication channels into one platform, reducing confusion and ensuring that all stakeholders receive consistent and timely information.

Increased Parent/Guardian Involvement: With features that encourage active participation, ParentSquare allows parents and guardians to be more involved in school activities, events, and their child's progress.

Robust Engagement Features: ParentSquare provides tools that enhance communication, such as announcements, event reminders, and volunteer sign-ups, all within a single platform.

Mobile App for On-the-Go Access: Recognizing the need for convenience, ParentSquare offers a user-friendly mobile app, allowing parents and guardians to receive notifications, communicate with teachers, and access important information from their smartphones.

Two-Way Language Translation: To ensure that language is not a barrier to communication, ParentSquare includes a two-way translation feature, making it easier for non-English speaking families to stay connected and engaged.

Additionally, to alleviate any concerns about the onboarding process, it's important to note that the platform is already set up for teachers. Their class lists will be pre-loaded, minimizing the effort required to get started and allowing them to focus on utilizing the new tools to enhance communication and engagement with their students' families

About ParentSquare

ParentSquare is a unified communication platform that offers a whole host of tools that allows district, school administrators and teachers to more effectively communicate and engage with families and students. Some features include:

• Mass notifications and Urgent Alerts
• Mobile application for administrators and parents (iOS and Android)
• Attendance notifications
• Teacher and classroom communication
• Direct Messaging with two-way translation
• Social (Facebook and Twitter) and website share
• Forms and Permission Slips
• Appointment Sign Ups (parent-teacher conferences, technology pick-ups)
• Calendar and RSVP
• Volunteering and classroom supply sign-ups
• StudentSquare
• And so much more!

Communication to Parents

Parents will receive an activation email for their ParentSquare account. Those who do not register will still receive text, email, and phone notifications. Parents who do create an account can interact by viewing photos, downloading attachments, leaving comments, messaging teachers, signing permission slips and managing their communication settings and preferences.

ParentSquare Resources

The district will provide a variety of resources to ensure an effective launch at each site, including: training videos, flyers, PowerPoint presentations for parents and more.

Training Resources

For users who already have a registered ParentSquare account, modules and webinars to learn more about the platform and its features can be found here.

For training courses that can be accessed without a registered ParentSquare account, please Click here to open..

ParentSquare User Group on Facebook

Once you are set up on ParentSquare, feel free to join the ParentSquare User Group on Facebook. This group is specifically for customers to provide feedback to the product team and interact with other ParentSquare users. You can join here.