In the past, Wabash City Schools (WCS) has used several methods to communicate with parents and guardians across different grade levels. Tools such as Class Dojo, Remind, paper newsletters, Skyward, and School Messenger are just a few examples. While these tools were effective, they created communication barriers when students moved to new buildings or grade levels that used different communication methods.
A new era in school-home communications begins soon at Wabash City Schools. We are utilizing grant funds to make a significant communication upgrade to ParentSquare, which is widely regarded as the premier school-home communication tool in education. ParentSquare replaces School Messenger, which we used to make calls and send texts, but ParentSquare offers much more. ParentSquare functions somewhat like a dedicated Facebook platform, but exclusively for our schools.
School Messenger | ParentSquare |
Sends calls, texts, and email | Sends Calls, texts, direct messages, emails, posts, and documents |
Requires guardians to opt-in to text messages and only sends to Family 1 | Guardians automatically receive text messages and sends to all guardians in Skyward |
No app and no website | Mobile app and website |
Teachers don't have access | Teachers can post about class or send a direct message to 1 or all parents |
No ability for parents to control notifications | Parents have complete control on how many notifications they get |
One-way communication, from school to home | Two-way communication, allowing parents to reply or respond |
No RSVP | Allows parents to RSVP to events |
On Wednesday, May 22nd, WCS will send an invite code via text and email to all guardians who have a mobile number or email in Skyward. After downloading the ParentSquare app, they can click on the link to join the WCS ParentSquare account and sign in to the app or website. Parents and guardians do not need to download the app; they will still receive texts and calls from the district or building. It is important that we have the correct phone number and email in our database (Skyward), so please contact the central office if you do not receive an invite. We can resend invite links throughout the year.
When guardians log into ParentSquare, they will not see any class information for their student(s) initially. We will push class data around mid-July with the 2024-2025 class schedules. ParentSquare is a very user-friendly platform, but we have created a webpage with a basic overview of the program, a guide to get started, and some additional tips and training videos. You can use the button below or find the webpage under Resources > ParentSquare.
The only communications that will not go through ParentSquare are those related to school buses. The bus system allows for bus route group messages, notifications, and GPS tracking of bus locations.
ParentSquare pulls all of its data from Skyward, our student information system. It is also worth mentioning that we will still use Seesaw and Canvas—these platforms are called learning management systems. These are essentially digital classrooms that students use for assignments and classroom resources. The graphic below might help explain the school software programs. LHC and OJN use Seesaw, while WMS and WHS use Canvas.
