Superintendent announces switch from 'Here Comes the Bus' to EduLog parent portal; shares schedule, grants and gifted-student counts

Superintendent Mr. Ragsdale told the board Jan. 22 the district will replace the 'Here Comes the Bus' app with the parent-portal app inside EduLog, the district's routing system, with communications beginning immediately and a districtwide rollout scheduled for the next school year.

"This app will be replaced with the parent portal app, within Edu Log," Mr. Ragsdale said, adding that the district will provide extensive communications and instructions so parents can download and use the new tool. He described the change as an efficiency improvement because EduLog already provides routing and will now supply updates through the parent portal.

Ragsdale also addressed winter-weather planning: he said models differed across sources and that the district would make any closure decisions by mid- to late-afternoon Sunday if needed. "We are not canceling school tomorrow," he said, and noted that extracurricular events for Saturday and Sunday had already been canceled or rescheduled.

He called attention to January as gifted-education month and recognized more than 17,000 gifted students in the district. He also thanked business partners, citing a five-year investment from NAPA Auto Parts in the automotive program at SITA at Osborne and a Cobb EMC initiative providing 50 teacher grants totaling $35,000.

Mr. Ragsdale encouraged parents and staff to consult the district website and district messaging channels (CTLS) for the most up-to-date information during rapidly changing weather conditions.