Aug. 25, 2009                         

Dear Parent or Guardian:
Springfield Public Schools uses AlertNow Notification Service to help keep parents informed. This system allows the district and individual schools to contact parents via telephone with important announcements about school events or emergency situations.

To receive AlertNow messages you must complete an AlertNow Student Information form for each child. This form is printed in the student handbook and is available online at www.springfieldpublicschoolsmo.org in the “Parents and Students” box. Please fill it out and return it to your child’s school by Monday, Sept. 21.

There are two types of AlertNow messages you will receive via telephone:
            1. Informational Messages
            These may be initiated either by your child’s school or by the district and will be sent only to      the telephone numbers you listed as Primary Phone Number and Secondary Phone Number on           the AlertNow Student Information Form. Some examples of Informational Messages include:
                        a. Reminders about regularly scheduled early dismissals, days off and holiday breaks.
                        b. School cancellations warranted by inclement weather or other unanticipated events.
                        c. Announcements about activities or events at your child’s school.
                        d. Notifications about student absences.
           
            2. Priority Messages
            In the rare event a widespread threat poses imminent danger to the physical safety of students    and/or staff requiring evacuations and/or relocations, a Priority Message will be sent. On these           occasions, a Priority Message will be initiated by the district in consultation with individual       school sites and will be sent to ALL telephone numbers you listed on the AlertNow Student   Information Form (Primary, Secondary and Emergency 1, 2, and 3 Phone Numbers). Recipients             will see “411” displayed on caller ID which denotes it as a Priority Message.

To ensure accuracy of contact information provide, Springfield Public Schools will conduct two districtwide tests of the AlertNow Notification Service.

On Tuesday, Oct. 6, between 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. the following Informational Message will be sent to Primary and Secondary phone numbers:

            “Hello. Springfield Public Schools is conducting a districtwide test of the AlertNow     system. You are receiving this Informational Message because you are listed as a Primary or Secondary contact for an SPS student. In the future, when you receive      Informational Messages they will pertain to school            cancellations, student absences, activities   or other routine announcements. Thank you for your assistance.”

On Tuesday, Oct. 13, between 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. the following Priority Message will be sent to Primary, Secondary and Emergency 1, 2, and 3 phone numbers:

            “Hello. Springfield Public Schools is conducting a districtwide test of the AlertNow     Notification Service. You are receiving this Priority Message because you are listed as the     Primary, Secondary or Emergency contact for an SPS student. In the event of an actual             emergency which poses imminent danger to the physical safety of students and/or staff          requiring evacuations and/or relocations, you will             receive a call with important information. Please note that “411” is displayed on caller ID to             indicate this is a Priority Message. Thank   you for your assistance.”

IMPORTANT: Prior to these test dates, please be sure to communicate with individuals you have listed on your student’s contact sheet about these test messages so they will be expecting them. Also, please check with them after the test to confirm that they received the proper message. If you list an individual’s work phone number on the form, please be sure that it is a direct line. Otherwise it might create confusion in workplaces and prevent the message from reaching the intended recipient.

If the test indicates your child’s correct contacts were not called, please contact your child’s school as soon as possible to make sure the error is corrected. The success of this system is dependent upon accurate contact information for each student.

More information about AlertNow is available on the district Web site at www.springfieldpublicschoolsmo.org/ParentsTab/alertnow.htm.

We appreciate your assistance in helping us ensure that this communication tool is a reliable source of information for parents in the future.

Sincerely,

Dr. Peggy Riggs
Deputy Superintendent of Operations