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ParentSquare

Welcome to ParentSquare!

ParentSquare


Dear Families,

We are excited to announce that we adopted a new form of school-to-home communication at Caledonia-Mumford Central School called ParentSquare. This unified communications platform is designed to keep parents and guardians informed and encourage greater engagement and connection with [school or district name]. It provides a safe way for district administrators, school principals, teachers, staff, and parents to

  • Send and receive school and class information

  • Share pictures and files

  • See calendar items

  • Sign up to volunteer

  • Schedule parent-teacher conferences

  • and much more . . . all in one centralized place!

Parents—Getting Started Video Before viewing the video, parents must activate their ParentSquare accounts. You should have received an email over the summer inviting you to activate your ParentSquare account. Please contact Wendy Villone at CMCS, 585-538-3498 or email at wvillone@cal-mum.org if you need assistance.

 

All district and school, grade level and classroom information will now be sent to your computer or phone via email and/or text. For even more convenience, download the ParentSquare app (available for free for iOS and Android devices). 


Have questions? Click the question mark in the top right corner of the desktop version or the Help tab on the app (tap the triple bar icon at the top left) to find answers to most of your questions.

ParentSquare Frequently Asked Questions

 

  • Q: What is ParentSquare?

  • A: ParentSquare, is a new communication platform that will allow CMCS to unify all parent and guardian communication from the district, schools, classrooms and school activity groups under one umbrella. Click HERE to watch a short video.

  •  

  • Q: Is ParentSquare replacing Mass Notify and the CMCS Mobile app?

  • A: Yes, ParentSquare is replacing the robo platform Mass Notify. We found that there were multiple platforms being used across the district because they provided different functions. For example, Remind101. With this new platform, every method of communication will be in one place to make it easier for our teachers, students, and families.
     

  • Q: How do I activate/register my ParentSquare account?

  • A: ParentSquare invites have been sent to parent/guardian email at the addresses at the email address that we have on file in our student management system, Schooltool. If you did not receive a ParentSquare invite, please check your email's spam folder. If you don't locate it, please contact the Director of Technology Wendy Villone at wvillone@cal-mum.org
     

  • Q: Why doesn't my ParentSquare invite link work?

  • A: Those invitation links only last for 24 hours. You do not need to wait for a new invitation! You can proceed to the ParentSquare log on page and create your account with the same email address at which you would have received an invite.
     

  • Q: Do I have to use ParentSquare on my SmartPhone?

  • A: No, if you prefer, you can navigate to https://www.parentsquare.com/signin from a computer and do all of the same ParentSquare activities.
     

  • Q: How do I find the ParentSquare app?

  • A: To download, search for ParentSquare in the App Store.
     

  • Q: Will all teachers be using ParentSquare for home-to-school communication this year?

  • A: Starting in Fall 2023, ParentSquare will be the main source of communication for the district.
     

  • Q: So is it possible to contact my child's teacher directly and privately? How does that work?

  • A: Yes, once the feature is enabled, and teachers start to use the platform, parents and guardians can contact their child's teacher privately by using the direct messaging tool. On the home page, click on "Messaging" in the left sidebar. From here, you can send a direct message to your child's teacher that only you and the teacher can see. You can also send messages to other staff members at the school, such as your child's coaches and club leaders. HERE is a link to help you understand the features of direct messaging.
     

  • Q: Who will ParentSquare contact?

  • A: ParentSquare will notify those contacts listed as a Primary Parent, Parent, or Guardian. These would be the people you listed as your child's contacts in our student management system, SchoolTool (we ask you to complete this information at the start of every school year).
     

  • Q: My babysitter/grandmother/uncle wants information about inclement weather closures/delays but can’t create an account. Can I share my username/password with them?

  • A: No. Sharing a password will allow a user to see personally identifiable information about the student. Since Parent Square is an all-in-one tool, the information an end user would see would be attendance notifications, lunch balance information, direct messages, and, in the near future, behavioral content and report cards.
     

  • Q: We are a split-family with restrictions. Will my ex see my contact information?

  • A: No. Each contact has the functionality of creating their own private account. They will, however, see everything related to the shared student. They will NOT see contact information on the other parent.
     

  • Q: I am not a direct parent or guardian but would like to be notified about school closings. How can I be notified?

  • A: The district uses many different communication platforms when it comes to snow days and non-emergency announcements.


  • Caledonia-Mumford CSD uses social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram for those types of emergency announcements.
     

  • Facebook: www.facebook.com/calmumcsd
     

  • Cal-Mum CSD school closings will be announced on the following broadcast outlets:
     

  • WHAM 1180 AM, WBEE 92.5 FM, TV channels 8, 10, 13 and Spectrum News.
     

  • Q: Is ParentSquare for students as well?

  • A: Yes. Even though it’s called ParentSquare, there is a platform specifically for students called StudentSquare. The platform is the same as what the parents see, just named differently for students.
     

  • Q: What grades can see StudentSquare?

  • A: StudentSquare will be turned on automatically for students in grades 6-12. This includes ParentSquare's Direct Messaging feature, which allows a teacher, club advisor, and/or coach to send a message to an individual student or a group of students.
     

  • Q: Will ParentSquare be used for classroom assignments?

  • A: No. ParentSquare is not the main resource for classroom assignments. However, teachers can utilize the platform to remind families and students of due dates if they choose.
     

  • Q: If I change my contact information (phone number, email address), how long does it take until that change is in effect?

  • A: It can take up to 24 hours for your contact information to be synced from Schooltool to ParentSquare. Please contact the Cal-Mum CSD Registrar Shannon Laursen with your contact information changes slaursen@cal-mum.org or call 585-538-3445.
     

  • Q: My email is correct in ParentSquare. Why am I not receiving emails?

  • A: Please check your spam to see if any ParentSquare messages ended up there, and mark them as "Not Spam." Also add donotreply@parentsquare.com to your email contacts so your server recognizes our messages. If you still are not receiving emails, please contact support@parentsquare.com.
     

  • Q: How do I change my ParentSquare password?

  • A: Please go to parentsquare.com and on the login page click "Forgot Password." Put in your email or phone number and you will be sent a link to reset your password.

    Q: Can I change the email and/or cell phone number on my account?

  • A: If you wish to change your contact information, please contact the Cal-Mum CSD Registrar Shannon Laursen at slaursen@cal-mum.org or by calling 585-538-3445. ParentSquare does have an option for parents to change their own contact information. However, any contact changes that you make in ParentSquare will not sync with SchoolTool. It is very important that we have correct parent/guardian contact information in SchoolTool so we ask that you speak to Mrs. Laursen and report your contact changes to her, as well as update them in ParentSquare.

    Q: English is not my first language. How can I receive content in my native language?

  • A: You can customize your language settings by going to My Account and clicking Change This under language settings. From there, you can choose any language you prefer from the dropdown menu and you will start to receive content in that language. HERE is a help article on how to change your language settings.
     

  • Q: I am getting too many messages from ParentSquare. Is it possible to receive fewer notifications?

  • A: Yes, you can customize your notification settings by going to your homepage and clicking on your name in the top right corner and selecting My Account from the drop down menu. On your account page, you can find your notification settings in the top right corner and click Change This to customize your notifications. If you are receiving too many notifications, try changing to the Digest setting, where you will only receive one condensed message in the evening. HERE is a help article on changing your notification settings.

    Q: Do I have to create a ParentSquare account?

  • A: No. But what a registered user can see and have access to and what a non-registered user can see and have access to will be different. For a detailed list of registered vs non-registered privileges, please click HERE to view an article on registration settings.
     

  • Q: I can’t sign in to ParentSquare. What is the first step?

  • A: If you can't sign in to ParentSquare with your email or phone number, please contact the Director of Technology Wendy Villone to make sure your contact information is correct in Schooltool. Phone 585-538-3498 or email wvillone@cal-mum.org.
     

  • Q: Why am I not getting notifications?

  • A: Check your Notification Preferences on My Account page. Are your notification preferences on?


  • Check your spam folder for emails from donotreply@parentsquare.com.

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  • Add the domain ParentSquare.com or the email address donotreply@parentsquare.com to the safe senders list in your email client (Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, etc.) You can Google how to do this.