CommSuite

Interactive messages and complete survey module

SchoolMessenger includes numerous interactive features including "Push '*' to repeat message," capturing recipient responses through touch-tones and/or voice response.

SchoolMessenger even enables authorized district and school administrators to "poll" their message recipients to learn the community's views on certain topics. Recipients simply enter a numeric touchtone on their phone to respond to the district's survey. In addition, the district can choose to supplement a phone-based survey with a survey delivered through the web, giving recipients the choice to respond on their own schedule, in the manner that works best for them. SchoolMessenger will make sure that only one response will be counted.

Unlimited Questions, Optional Randomizer

As an example of this module's sophistication, our surveys can accommodate an unlimited number of questions. Similarly, our service enables you to randomize survey questions, so that an equal number of people are likely to answer each question, despite the normal tendency of some respondents to give up after a couple of questions . Randomization is a feature that is unique to SchoolMessenger and one that has been proven to improve a survey's statistical accuracy.

Administrative Control

Like many features in SchoolMessenger, the survey module is configurable by role, so the district administrator can choose who has rights to send a survey message. Users who are authorized to send survey messages simply key in their questions or record voice prompts for their questions, adjust a few options, select their list, and send. Numerous reports are then available during and after the survey.

Contact Manager gives parents control

Districts have the option of providing web-based access for parents, staff and other recipients, so that they can manage their notification preferences and review previous messages. The district sets the policy about the quantity of supported phone numbers and email addresses (no limit), and the types of notification jobs. The Contact Manager feature enables recipients to associate any or all of their delivery points (each phone number and email address) with one or more notification types (e.g. attendance, emergency, survey, etc).

Delivery point options

For example, a parent can choose to have their work phone called only for emergencies, while selecting other delivery points, such as home email, to receive surveys. Recipients can even use Contact Manager to review messages that were previously sent to them. When parents use Contact Manager, the automatic updates from the student information system which feed into SchoolMessenger don't overwrite parent preferences (unless the district administrator chooses to). For those parents who don't use the Contact Manager, delivery point contact data is still automatically updated from the student information system.

Preferences and accuracy

Contact Manager not only empowers parents, but saves staff time and ensures that the best contact information is in the notification database. In the past, it was difficult or impossible to satisfy the specific notification preferences of each and every parent or guardian. Now, most any contact scenario is supported-from dual custody arrangements to multiple child homes. Each recipient is appropriately and accurately contacted, even when he or she has multiple work/home/cell phones and email addresses.