District bus system will have new way to contact parents, safety around buses is paramount

Few things are as frustrating to parents as a late school bus, either to or from school. The situation on pickup can be disconcerting based on people’s busy lives and their concern for their child.
In the past Carbon School District has tried to inform parents when a school bus on a certain route is going to be late. The district utilizes a phone based system called Parentlink. Under this system messages can be pushed out through phones. But there are some drawbacks to it. 
“As it stands with Parentlink, the only options we have are to inform an entire school, a number of schools or the entire district about a late bus,” stated Kerry Jensen, the transportation, facilities and data manager for the district. 
That general notification can not only lead to concern among parents who might not realize that the message is not for the bus route their students are on, but can also cause some confusion.
“The problem is that we can’t drill down to a small group of students,” said Jensen. “By the time the message gets out, the incident is over and the students are already picked up or home.”
The Parentlink system is normally used for other kinds of notifications. In other words, if a bus is late due to a mechanical failure or some other reason and the message is sent out through Parentlink every student who attends a campus will get the message, not just those on that certain bus route.
“We, of course, don’t want to do that,” said Jensen. “Last year we started looking for some kind of a system that would be more specific and direct.”
The systems available were cost prohibitive or would not work for the transportation department. At the same time the district was redoing its website. Phil Feichko, the district technology director, found a website program that includes a way to push messages through email or texts to self-subscribing groups. This makes it possible to target the people who want and need to know about the status of the buses.
“One of the good things is that it isn’t an extra system,” stated Jensen. “It is already paid for because it is part of the new website.”
It is important for parents to know how the system will work so they can be informed about changes on bus routes. They will need to gain access to the district website and create an account so they can be part of a group that will be put together for each route. 
“Parents will be able to sign up for whatever groups or bus routes they want to be informed about,” said Jensen. 
While the system is not yet in place, within a short time after school starts each bus student in the district will bring a note home to their parents that will give them the instructions on how to create an account and sign up for the service. 
“It is at a parent’s discretion,” explained Jensen. “It is both a text based and an email message program, and parents can sign up for either or both if they wish. The system gives us the ability to create a message and push it out to the parents on a specific route when a problem arises.”
Jensen said that Parentlink would still be in operation as well. 
Jensen spoke about how the public can help the school transportation system to continue to be safe.
“People need to remember what school buses are there for,” he said. “If you are driving and you see a bus with their yellow and red lights on, please stop. It’s the law and it is how we keep the kids safe when loading and unloading the buses. People need to remember when school starts students will be on the road walking and waiting at bus stops. Please be careful.”