SchoolBzz is a cloud-based communications platform that streamlines how schools share information. By simplifying the communications process into a single, easy-to-use tool, SchoolBzz enables administrators, teachers, and parent leaders to post all announcements and information in a single location, preventing parents from being overwhelmed by too many apps and irrelevant updates. The platform, which includes a free parent app, also gives parents the opportunity to engage in all aspects of their child’s education, connecting everyone involved in a student’s learning journey.
SchoolBzz recently joined Schoology’s Certified Partner Program, bringing a simple parent communication solution to the leading K-12 learning management and assessment platform. It is now available to Schoology district and school clients as an add-on, allowing them to increase parent engagement by simplifying how information is shared with families.
Formats/platforms used:
SchoolBzz is available as a SaaS (software as a service) communications platform for schools to enable educators to easily share updates and information with parents. SchoolBzz integrates with several other classroom tools, including Schoology’s learning management system and Google Classroom for class information. Parents can download the parent app for free on any smartphone and/or desktop via the Apple Store and Google Play.
Primary URL
Problem solved:
Research shows that when parents aren’t adequately informed about what’s happening in the classroom or school community, they lack opportunities to fully participate in their child’s education. SchoolBzz provides a solution to consolidate the tools that schools use to communicate with families. SchoolBzz aggregates the key information and updates in one place, eliminating the need for parents to manage multiple user accounts or sift through long emails, newsletters, or websites to find the information they need. It is implemented at the school level, so all staff and teachers in the building are using the same tool, rather than managing multiple tools and accounts. SchoolBzz transforms communications by ensuring educators can deliver parents the relevant class, club, and team updates, all in one place and, as a result, parents can get relevant information anywhere, anytime.
SchoolBzz can be used as a standalone communications tool but, importantly, is also fully integrated with the Schoology LMS. With the Schoology-SchoolBzz integrated solution, information published by teachers and other school staff in the Schoology learning management system is automatically pushed to parents via the SchoolBzz app. This gives more than 20 million users across 60,000 schools the opportunity to support student learning and a thriving school culture through enhanced parent engagement.
Primary user age:
SchoolBzz is designed for all K-12 schools.
Audience served:
SchoolBzz is a whole-school, whole-community communication platform that streamlines how schools share information with everyone involved in a student’s learning journey:
- District leaders provide a solution that fosters a thriving communication culture across all schools, while keeping within budget.
- School leaders eliminate frustration and achieve schoolwide adoption, with all teachers, coaches and staff using the same simple and effective tool.
- Educators use one simple tool to post announcements, assignment information, and important resources -- and feel confident the information is reaching parents.
- Parents receive timely, relevant information from each of their children’s teachers, coaches, and advisors, all in one single location.
- Students have greater success in school, as their parents are provided with the necessary information to get involved and offer support.
Pricing model:
SchoolBzz is available on an annual license and has several pricing options available for schools. To learn more and receive a quote, visit https://schoolbzz.com or call 800-213-8915. The parent app is free to download and is available via desktop or as a mobile app in the Apple Store and Google Play.
Additional products needed:
Parents can download the SchoolBzz app, which is available in the Apple or Android app store (Google Play), for free. While setting up their profile, parents can opt into the channels that are relevant to their learners—class, club, team, and more—to receive notifications on their phone about new announcements and updates in a manner that is consistent with their notification preferences.
Other services offered:
The SchoolBzz support pages focus on providing users from all roles with the most helpful information and resources to gain the full benefits of SchoolBzz. These include a quick start guide, FAQs, and step-by-step instructions in both written and video formats to help users take advantage of the variety of functions and features:
Educator’s Support Center provides tutorials and guides for teachers and other school staff to set up their profile, create their own channel(s), learn to post announcements, assignments, updates, resources and more to relevant channels, and invite specific users to join the conversation.
Parent’s Support Center helps all caring adults who are supporting their learner’s journey set up their account in SchoolBzz, find and subscribe to different channels, provides an overview of the mobile app for both Android and iOS users, and more.
Administrative Support (password protected) helps school leaders create a thriving school community through meaningful communications by managing and tracking all users and channels within their SchoolBzz ecosystem.
SchoolBzz helps customers ensure sustainable success through its delivery of ongoing support. The dedicated Customer Success Team ensures successful implementation, including training school staff members on how to use the platform, helping them get parents engaged with SchoolBzz, and answering key questions from educators and parents.
What makes SchoolBzz unique?
SchoolBzz was designed from the ground up with parents’ needs in mind, based on research and a deep understanding of the communication frustrations parents have faced. The tool provides an easy-to-use solution to consolidate the various tools schools use to communicate with families. The average student has up to 8 teachers and each teacher may typically use email, social media, and other communication tools, leaving parents overwhelmed and unsure what to do with the information they receive. SchoolBzz is the first whole-school solution to help schools address parents’ pain points.
By aggregating key information and providing updates based on the channels parents opt into, the tool helps to eliminate redundant or unrelated information that can quickly become overwhelming. As a result, parents can get relevant information anywhere, anytime that encourages them to get involved and remain engaged throughout the school year. The tool also helps save teachers time on administrative duties so they can focus more on teaching and learning.
SchoolBzz helps to create a thriving culture of communication among teachers and parents, enhancing whole-school and whole-community engagement and increasing support for the school’s initiatives
Characteristics:
Using the communications platform, educators create their own profile that provides their contact information and a brief bio so parents can learn a bit more about their child’s teachers. Once their class page is set up, educators create channels to share updates and information with parents. Each channel’s content is structured into four categories:
- An About section provides a clear description to help parents understand the intended purpose of the channel
- An Announcements section to share reminders and updates for projects, activities, and new initiatives
- An Assignments section to help parents monitor due dates for their students upcoming homework and projects
- And a Resources section that aggregates all external links to websites
Parents can download the SchoolBzz Parent App for free from virtually any desktop or as a mobile app. After subscribing to the channels they choose, parents are able to set up notifications to receive information relevant to their child, creating a personalized experience that works to save time and reduce clutter. The app, which supports multiple languages via an integration with Amazon’s AWS Translate, presents the information in an easy-to-digest social media style feed so parents can stay informed about all relevant news topics and choose which content they want dive into further to learn more.
Here's what users are saying:
"[SchoolBzz] has been a lifesaver for us. It has made us extremely efficient in our communication. We don’t need to send big lengthy emails anymore. Our families are getting the information they need when they need it. We’ve become so much more streamlined as an organization in getting the information out.”
--Jennifer Burgess, Principal, Parker Performing Arts
“We pride ourselves on our character and community service programs and SchoolBzz allows us to connect with families and keep them informed of what’s happening.”
--Kendra Hossfeld, Principal, North Star Academy
“I’m so impressed with how easy it is to use the SchoolBzz app. Finally I have all my information in one place!”
--Whitney Gragg, Parent, North Star Academy
