Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Communications Platform topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
OUSD to pilot unified communications platform; ParentSquare emerges as likely candidate
Summary
A district committee recommended piloting a single communications platform (ParentSquare among leading options) to unify messages, support translations, and improve family engagement; pilot sites and rollout details will be finalized and presented to the board.
Orange Unified’s Communications Platform Committee reported on April 16 that the district should pilot a unified family communications system to replace a patchwork of tools (SchoolMessenger, Remind, ClassDojo, etc.). The committee — composed of about 30 stakeholders (parents, students, principals, teachers and department representatives) — identified features important for equity and usability: automatic language translation, integration with ARIES, user-friendly interfaces for families with limited tech experience, push notifications, and on-demand support.
Committee members said ParentSquare (also called Aries Communications by some districts) is widely used in neighboring districts and supports automatic translation, multichannel delivery and robust engagement reporting. The committee recommended a pilot across diverse elementary, middle and high school sites; if successful the district would fund a districtwide rollout rather than site budgets.
Trustees asked about pilot-site selection, help-desk support, training for board members and staff, and how the platform would integrate with existing classroom tools like Google Classroom. The committee said final recommendation and pilot details were expected at a follow-up meeting and emphasized equity measures such as translation, device access and help-desk options.
What’s next: committee to finalize consensus at a meeting scheduled April 23 and bring a recommendation to the board for consideration and possible pilot approval.
