GESD ParentSquare for School Communication
The Gloversville Enlarged School District has launched ParentSquare – a simple and unified school-to-home communication platform – to reach and engage every parent. All important notifications, such as school closings and delays, news, and upcoming events, will be sent to parents through this platform.
ParentSquare is a simple and unified school-to-home communication platform. All important notifications, such as school closings and delays, news, and upcoming events, will be sent to parents through this platform.
Here’s what you can do with ParentSquare:
Receive notifications from school via email, text, or push notifications
Choose to receive information as it comes (Instant) or all at once at 6:00 p.m. (Daily Digest)
Communicate in your preferred language
Comment on school postings to engage with your school community
Direct messaging between staff and families
Attendance notifications with the option to send in a digital note to excuse your student’s absence
Sign up for parent-teacher conferences
Send payments, sign forms & permission slips, receive report cards, sign up to volunteer and more all from your desktop or mobile device
How to Activate your Account:
All parents should have received an invitation to join ParentSquare. The invitation was emailed to parents based on current data in PowerSchool. Once you receive that invitation, click the link to activate your account. It takes less than a minute. You can also activate your ParentSquare account by visiting www.parentsquare.com/signin and using your current contact information on file with the district.
Download the Free App:
Click here to download it for Apple
Click here to download it for Android
Resources:
Videos
Getting Started Video (2:43)
Parent Self-Paced Training Module – designed to take 15 minutes and covers the things you need to know about using ParentSquare as a parent or guardian!
Prerecorded Webinar: Parent Training – a replay of a webinar (about 20 minutes) that introduces ParentSquare from a parent/guardian’s perspective.
FAQ:
Q: What is ParentSquare?
A: ParentSquare is one central tool for all school-to-home communication. It provides two-way communication that fosters awareness and keeps parents informed of all the happenings in their child’s education. Notifications are sent via email, text, phone calls, and push notifications.
Q: Is ParentSquare replacing SchoolMessenger?
A: Yes. ParentSquare will now be used to send important notifications such as emergency closings as well as to share news from your child’s school.
Q: Do I need to sign up for ParentSquare?
A: All parents were sent an invitation via email earlier today to join ParentSquare and activate their account. You can also visit www.parentsquare.com/signin. Parents who do not sign up will still receive Alerts via email, text, and phone calls, but they won’t be able to fully interact with the platform (e.g., view classroom photos, etc.).
Q: How do I download the ParentSquare App?
A: Visit your phone’s app store and search “ParentSquare.” Then you can install the free mobile app for iOS or Android.
Q: How do I change or stop notifications?
A: ParentSquare allows users to customize their notifications based on notification type and select their preferred delivery method for each school. You can choose between “instant” and “digest” notifications or choose to turn off notifications altogether (excluding emergency alerts and notices). The “instant” setting will send all post notifications in real time. The “digest” setting sends direct messages, alerts, and time-sensitive posts instantly, but sends all non-time-sensitive posts at the end of the day, reducing the number of notifications you receive daily.
If you are using the web browser: On your home page, click your name and select “My Account.” Then, select “Customize your settings” under Notification Settings.
If you are using the mobile app: From your home screen, click the triple bar in the top left corner. Click on “Account,” then “Preferences,” then “Notification Settings.”