Phone System Notification

Published August 8, 2007

Whether it’s an early dismal from school due to bad weather or a notice about an upcoming meeting, Williamson County Schools will continue to use its phone notification system this school year to keep parents informed.  In addition, schools may also use the system to notify parents daily if their child is absent from school.
    
“We continue to receive positive feedback about the phone system,” said Director of Schools Dr. Rebecca S. Sharber. “We are able to contact thousands of parents in a matter of minutes, and principals say the phone system has become an essential communications tool.”
    
Because the system continues to improve with new features, principals, assistant principals and attendance secretaries at each school participated in training on the system in July. If school is closed or will dismiss early, the notification will come from the Central Office. Other calls will be made by school principals, and new this year, assistant principals will also be making the calls. If the school has an email address for parents on file, an email with the message will also be sent along with the phone call.

Parents can expect to hear from principals who call with reminders of upcoming events, and the system will also be used to communicate with parents in case of an emergency. After the first several weeks of school, the transportation department will use the system to notify parents if buses will be running more than 15 minutes late in the afternoon.
    
The phone system uses the student information that is put into the school’s student information database. Sharber encourages parents to keep their phone numbers and email addresses current with the school. 

“We want to encourage parents to make sure schools have the correct student data on file, including phone numbers and email addresses, and make sure parents update student data as soon as it changes,” said Sharber. “Working together, we can keep our children safe and our parents informed.”