From collecting contact data to delivering a printed directory, Membership Keeper has automated the task to get it done well and done quickly. Here are the steps involved:
1. Utilize the "New School Year Data Import" script for the upcoming year. Click on the Integratis symbol in the upper right hand corner and go to the Scripts tab. Click on "New School Year Data Import" on the right hand side and follow the automated steps in the script as outlined below. Watch our tutorial video!
- Make back-up archive
- Update to current school year date
- Obtain import data utilizing template file
- Run "New School Year Readiness" scripts (See Step 2)
- Confirm accuracy of Teacher and Homeroom Data
- Import data to temporary data holding table
- Clean up imported data
- Match/Update with existing student information
- Match/Update with existing parent information
- Import unmatched data
- Designate families for alumni status (such as graduates)
- Double check for missed records
If you use the "New School Year Data Import" script, you can skip to Step 6 below.
2. Prepare Membership Keeper Data (if not already done within "New School Year Data Import" script in Step 1) for the upcoming year. Click on the Integratis symbol in the upper right hand corner and go to the Scripts tab. Hover over each script type and read the Tool Tip pop-up for a discription of the script. New School Year Readiness Scripts include:
- clearing the Current Student field (will cause the Parents Index to no longer be populated so just click on the Affiliates tab to see the Parents. As students are converted back to Current Student status in the next step, their Parent information will reappear in the Parent Index)
- clearing the T-Shirt Size field
- clearing the Yearbook Information fields
- clearing the Student Fee Paid information
- clearing the Priority field
- clearing the Memberships Paid field for Parents
- clearing the Questionnaire Sent field
- clearing the Questionnaire Returned field
- clearing the Memberships Paid field for Staff
- clearing the Room Parent records
Additionally, update the school year dates in the Preferences tab.
3. Switch Existing Students to New Assigned Classrooms (if not already done within "New School Year Data Import" script in Step 1) for the upcoming year. Go to each student and click on the "+" symbol next to the teacher's name. Select the child's new teacher from the dialog window. If the teacher is not on the list, make sure your Staff information is up-to-date. Once you have switched a child to the correct teacher, mark "Yes" in the Current Student field to help differentiate between students that have been switched to their current classroom and students who have not been switched. For new students, like Kindergartners, be sure to check if their Parent is listed as a Parent or Alumni because they may have already had a child attend the school and so are in the directory.
4. Find the students that are NOT marked "Yes" as a current student and delete them (if not already done within "New School Year Data Import" script in Step 1), once all students have been switched in the step above. This will include deleting students that graduated last year as well as students that did not return. See the Managing Alumni Information Help Section for more information about deleting student information and having Membership Keeper automatically covert the information into Alumni data.
5. Import New Students and Families to Membership Keeper. New student data will likely contain parent information too. Utilize the "New School Year Data Import" in Step 1 which includes a temporary data holding table to greatly reduce the risky of accidentally overwriting existing files. Once student and parent information is imported, parents will have to be matched with households and students will have to be matched with households. Once these links are made, click the Yes radio button for Current Student to help keep track Student data that is fully imported and linked.
6. Email Contact Questionnaire Forms to parents/guardians via Membership Keeper to those for whom you have an email address. Be sure to update the due date on the layout. Utilize the Email/Print Contact Info Questionnaire script by clicking on the Integratis Logo in the upper right hand corner and going to the Scripts tab. Your Internet Service Provider will likely have limits on how many emails you can send a day, so be sure not to exceed their limits (enter an ISP Max under the Preferences tab). Emailing these forms may have to happen over several days or coordinate having several people send the emails.
7. Print Contact Questionnaire Forms that are “already filled-in” via Membership Keeper for families that have not provided email addresses. Utilize the Email/Print Contact Info Questionnaire script by clicking on the Integratis Logo in the upper right hand corner and going to the Scripts tab.
8. Distribute the printed Contact Information Questionnaire forms to teachers via their school mailboxes or by distributing them to classrooms (or email PDFs to teachers). Ask teachers to return all updated forms to the School Directory Coordinator.
9. Submit a School Directory announcement to the Communications Committee and ask for it to be included in the school newsletter and Email Blasts informing families about due dates for Contact Information Questionnaire. For example:
"Every year our organization produces a Directory with contact information for Staff and Families. It is a wonderful resource and the Directory committee wants to make sure we include the contact information you want to share.
School Directory Contact Information Questionnaires were emailed to parents recently. If we do not have your email address, we sent home a printed Contact Questionnaire from your child's teacher. If you have not heard from us, please contact us (give email address)."
10. Obtain updated Room Parent List from Room Parent Coordinator and enter into Membership Keeper by going to the Staff page and clicking on the Room Parents tab.
11. Obtain an updated Staff List by printing a Staff List from the Staff Reports tab and asking the principal or school secretary to update it with changes/corrections.
12. Prepare and distribute “Last Chance” forms to teachers by updating parent/guardian information in the database from Contact Information Questionnaires that have been returned via email or printed forms. The Last Chance form is a second pass so that families may check their directory contact information before it is printed. Be sure to distribute the Last Chance Cover Sheet with one flyer for every student in the class (both forms can be found by going to the Staff Reports tab).
13. Take photos of any new teachers or any teachers that would like an updated photo for their class page.
14. Check with the school secretary for any recent changes to student rosters and staff changes once you think the directory is about ready to print. Collect and/or confirm room numbers and email addresses for staff.
15. Assemble the final document (all pages) into one PDF; this will help you catch errors in complete layout. The Classroom pages should be included in the same order as the Staff List; typically by grade and sub-sorted by room number. Utilize the Sort Order field on the Staff List Page to customize the order of your staff and pages.
16. Send final PDF of the directory to the printer. The printer needs several days to get the directory printed, folded, stapled and delivered to the school. To figure how many copies the printer should print, go to the Students tab, then select the Reports tab. Click on Schoolwide Distribution “Green” Class Lists (All Students). Go to the last page of the report and it will tell you how many families will need a copy, such as 400 out of 550. The green class list calculates one directory per family. In addition, estimate how many teachers will be provided a copy.
17. Distribute the School Directory to each classroom. Be sure to include the Directory Distribution Memo (found under the Staff Reports tab) so that teachers will know which child will be taking home the families’ directory. Also leave an extra copy for the teacher.
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