Parent portal is a two-way parent/transportation department communication tool. BusQuest is the smartphone APP version of the parent portal.
From the parent portal setting page, you can enable/disable the parent portal, customize checkbox settings, and compile registration email and parent consent agreement.
The general steps to get the parent portal ready:
- Enable the parent portal;
- Customize the checkboxes settings;
- Send registration links to parents (Parents must register to EZRouting to check their children's information);
- Review change requests from parents.
If you'd like to learn more details about the whole process, please check the webinar recording or transcript below.
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Hi everyone, nice to see you this morning. Our team is getting ready for this webinar just to make sure everybody has the knowledge to know what Easy Routing offers you in terms of how to communicate with your parents, how to have them submit transportation requests, and we have a new app. We just want to show you the new features and functions we have available for you in Easy Routing.
All right, so Mikayla and Kelly are going to lead today's webinar. If you could, I would like to ask everyone to mute yourself so we can hear the ladies clearly. We will go through the functions we have today, and we're going to send out the PowerPoint used today so that in the future, if you want to refer to anything we talk about, you have some material you can look at. Also, I'm going to send out the recording of this meeting after the webinar. At the end of the session, we also have a Q&A session, so if you have any questions, please feel free to ask us when the webinar is completed.
All right, so Mikayla, the stage is yours.
All right, thank you very much, Nan.
Hello everyone, my name is Mikayla Radel. Some of you may know me from training, some of you may know me from the chat. I'm really excited to be able to do this webinar for all of you today. I think we've got some really great features to share. I'm joined today by my colleague Kelly, who is also one of our lovely trainers and chat support team members. She will demonstrate some of the BusQuest features at the end of today.
Today, we will:
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Demonstrate the app so you can see what parents experience.
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Cover setup of the Parent Portal including all relevant settings.
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Show what parents see on their end.
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Cover the admin view and management tools available.
When I say "BusQuest," I'm referring to the smartphone app version of our Parent Portal. You may see a specific symbol throughout the presentation to indicate BusQuest screenshots. When I say "Parent Portal," I’m referring to the two-way communication tool available both on the web and in the app.
Parent Portal Settings
To access settings: Go to your personal icon > Settings > Parent Portal.
You can:
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Enable/disable the portal.
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Select which school years/sessions parents can access.
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Choose to hide bus schedules for particular sessions.
If no SIS data sync is enabled, parents can:
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Submit student info and address changes.
If SIS data sync is enabled:
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Parents get a warning to update information with the school.
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Edits are restricted to prevent sync conflicts.
Additional options include:
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Disabling new student requests
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Disabling address edits
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Hiding student contacts tab
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Limiting parents to one address view (your admin side can still hold multiple)
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Allowing driver contact info (name, email, phone)
Consent Agreement and Register Links
You can require parents to agree to your transportation policy via a digital agreement. You can also reset this agreement for all parents.
Register link setup:
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Specify link expiration window (e.g., 3 days)
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Include BusQuest download links (recommended)
Send register links from the Students tab > Operations > Send Parent Register Links. Filter which students get emails and choose to only send to primary contacts.
Parent Registration Process
Email includes:
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Custom message from your department
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Registration link
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App download links
On web:
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Parents fill out form and click link in email to activate account.
On BusQuest:
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Open app, click Create Parent Account
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Select district
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Verify phone/email
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Complete profile
Admin View of Parent Accounts
Access from your personal icon > Parents.
Here you can:
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View accounts and their linked students
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See if an account is activated ("Need Activation" banner)
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See last login date
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Reset passwords (shield icon)
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Delete accounts (trash icon)
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Manually link/unlink students
Pending link requests can be reviewed under the Linked Child Requests tab.
Transportation Requests
Parents can:
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Submit AM/PM transportation needs
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Request transport to/from daycare, alternate address, etc.
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Indicate specific weekdays or select all (based on admin settings)
On your end:
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Requests appear in New & Change Requests
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You can approve/deny and leave a reason
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Parents get a push notification
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History of requests appears in the student record
Real-Time Notifications
Send from Students tab > Operations > Real-Time Notifications.
You can:
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Filter recipients
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Send custom or templated messages
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Deliver via text, email, or push notification
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Copy drivers or school contacts
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Preview messages before sending
BusQuest App Features
Main tabs:
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Students: View/edit student info, addresses, contacts, bus schedules, request transportation
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Tracker: Live bus location (if enabled)
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Notifications: History of received messages
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Settings: Manage login details, version, district info
Unique features:
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Real-time GPS (works best with Easy Routing tablets)
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Push notifications (no SMS/email cost)
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Last seen timestamp for parent login activity
Wrap-Up
We recommend:
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Encouraging parents to use the BusQuest app
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Including app links in your registration emails
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Checking your Parent Portal settings before rollout
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Contacting support with questions or to schedule one-on-one training
Slides and the recording will be shared. Thank you for attending and for your continued partnership!
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