Amelia County Public Schools

Amelia County Public Schools
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School Messenger FAQ

  1. What is SchoolMessenger?

    2. SchoolMessenger is a notification system that enables school administration to efficiently communicate with parents and staff via an automated system. This system enables the district to disseminate information in the most time efficient manner possible in a variety of methods - including phone calls, email, and text messages. A major reason the district uses SchoolMessenger is to contact parents in emergency situations such as early dismissals when quick notification is critical.  Many school districts now use this or a similar type of notification system.

     

  2. How will the system be used?

    • School Closings / Delayed Openings / Early Dismissals / Inclement Weather

      In the event that schools will be closed, open late or dismiss early this information will be conveyed to parents as soon as possible. In addition to using SchoolMessenger for this purpose, the district will continue to communicate school closing announcements via our Website, Facebook, and local news channels.

    • Important Communications

      In the event that a school bus should run late, an event should be rescheduled at the last minute or other critical information should need to be conveyed to parents as soon as possible, and we cannot be reasonably assured that families will receive the information by mail in enough time should action be required on the part of the parent, a call will be placed to the contacts you designate within the system.  In some situations, an e-mail or written letter will be sufficient.  Cancellation of after school activities and events re-scheduled days in advance are examples.

    • Emergency

      In extreme emergency situations, the message may provide critical information and/or emergency instructions. Messages of this nature will be distributed to all available contacts entered into the system.

    • Safety Drills

      Occasionally our schools may participate in planned drills for the purpose of practicing safety procedures. For example schools may take place in lockdown drills, earthquake drills, and tornadoes drills in which cases parents may be notified of the drill.

    • Attendance

      SchoolMessenger may be used to place attendance calls in the case of unexcused absences.

       

  3. What other ways are parents and staff informed of school closings, delays, news, and events?

  4. I have multiple children in the school system will I get repetitive notifications for each child/school?

    5.  

    It depends on the nature of the event/notification. Whenever possible notifications are sent from the division level, these notices are not duplicated for each child you have in our system.   However, some notifications are school specific and are sent from the related school. In the latter case it is possible to receive “similar messages” from each school your children attend.  However, it is important to always listen carefully to each message as each may include school specific details.  For example: The Middle School may send a message about early dismissal. While the High School may send a similar message with additional details about canceled sport events.

     

  5. I’m not sure if my contact info is correct how do I check?

    6. Contact your child’s school

    ES: 804 561-2433 MS: 804-561-4422 HS: 804-561-2101

     

  6. What contact numbers are used?

    7. Contact information is uploaded from our student information system, PowerSchool. We upload the following information:   Home phone, up to 2 cell phone numbers and two emails from the primary home.  Also, if applicable 2nd home phone, 2nd home cell, and 2nd home email. We have not uploaded work phone numbers since the system will not call extensions. If you have a direct line work number that you would like to be contacted on, please contact you school and have it added.

     

     

  7. Can I change how I am contacted based on the type of notification?

    8.  

    YES, there are 4 classifications.  You can customize which numbers are called based on the type of message sent. For example you might want to add your work number for “emergencies during school hours” while only listing you home number for “attendance” and “general” notifications.  You will need to contact your school and request the appropriate changes.

     CLASSIFICATION TYPE  DEFAULT CONTACT NUMBERS LISTED OPTIONS AVAILABLE
    Emergency during school hours home phone, father cell, mother cell Add additional contact numbers
    Emergency outside of school hours home phone, father cell, mother cell Add additional contact numbers
    Attendance home phone, father cell, mother cell Add/Remove -Must keep at least one contact number listed
    General - Principal Announcements, Event Notices, etc.  home phone, father cell, mother cell Add/Remove -Must keep at least one contact number listed


  8. How do I make changes to my contact information?

    9. Contact your child’s school

    ES: 804 561-2433 MS: 804-561-4422 HS: 804-561-2101

     

  9. Who can I contact if I have additional questions on SchoolMessenger notification system?

    10.  

    Please contact your child’s school first, alternately you can contact:

    Sherry Pettis, Division Coordinator of Data, Testing, and Accountability

    [email protected]     804-561-2621

     

     

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