Valley View School District 365U has rolled out a new mobile app that officials say will allow parents and community members to stay up to speed on district and school developments in unprecedented ways.
The app can be found at the Apple or Android app stores under “Valley View CUSD” and is free to download.
At the school board meeting last week, community relations head Larry Randa said parents will be able to check their children’s grades and scores in different classes on a weekly basis, and can set up alerts for when a score drops to a certain level.
Parents will also be able to click every single staff members’ name and send them an email, Randa said.
The app was also needed to help disseminate information during emergencies, he said.
A few years ago, Randa and other district staff mistook some Environmental Protection Agency air quality control monitors placed on school parking lot poles to be bombs, Randa said.
The monitors were placed there unbeknownst to either district or Romeoville officials, according to the district.
The bomb squad was called out, Randa said.
“It did create quite a commotion,” he said.
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A shooting incident earlier this year in Romeoville created the same kind of confusion as some students were arriving at schools and others were waiting for buses.
The app will offer the community a quick, authoritative update on such developing situations, he said.
The app’s language is adjustable for Spanish-speaking families, and users can choose to follow certain schools’ social media feeds, Randa said.
The app also can track the amount a student owes for fees and lunch money balances.
“This is a very significant move forward for us in the communication world,” he said. “It’s going to be a great tool as we move forward.”
Board member Gary Falese praised the app and the tech-savvy nature of district staff, saying the district was “heads and shoulders above almost every other district in Illinois.”
Also at the Oct. 14 meeting, the board authorized the purchase of $97,311 for snow removal and salting at Bolingbrook High School.
The district has in-house crews plow the other schools, but contracting for Bolingbrook High allows for snow removal in a timely manner, according to district documents.
The price is 7.3 percent higher than last year, but still a good deal in light of soaring road salt prices this year, district officials said.