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Lincoln County SD2 pilots parent bus-tracking app; route-by-route rollout underway
Summary
District transportation staff said they are rolling out a parent mobile app that shows bus locations and receives student scan notifications; pilot has covered 15 of 36 routes so far with about 50 parents using the app, and access is limited to vetted primary Infinite Campus contacts.
Transportation Director Ty Lancaster and district staff told the Lincoln County School District No. 2 Board of Trustees that a mobile app for parents to track buses has been piloted and is being rolled out route by route.
Lancaster said the system integrates with Infinite Campus so only verified primary contacts can access a student's bus information. "It is vetted through Infinite Campus, which is our student information system, so that only legal parent or guardians who are the primary contact in Infinite Campus can get access," Lancaster said.
District staff reported that about 15 of 36 routes had been invited to participate and that approximately 50 parents were actively using the app at the time of the report. Parents can set a notification radius and receive texts or push notifications when the bus is within that radius or when a student scans on or off the bus; the app also provides the bus's real-time location and the on/off scan location.
Lancaster described the communication tools as useful for emergencies and routine updates and said route notifications are typically sent by text to parents who opt in. He noted staff have prepared short instructional videos to help families download and configure the app. In one pilot example cited by Lancaster, staff were able to locate a student quickly after a parent reported a missing notification.
Board members asked whether other caregivers, such as grandparents or babysitters, can access the app. Lancaster said the primary Infinite Campus contact must set up the account and can then grant access to others; district staff can remove access if requested. Bus drivers themselves do not receive the app (to avoid distraction while driving), but transportation staff have access to manage routes.
There was no board vote; the report served as an operational update. Lancaster said the district plans to invite all parents to try the system by the end of the school year.
