Setting up Parent Requests

Modified on Wed, Feb 28 at 10:19 AM

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Prerequisites
Prepare Next Year's Curriculum
Configure Parents Module
Turn Parent Requests into Course Requests
Curriculum Prerequisites
FAQ

1. Prerequisites

In order to open the Parent Requests screen; the following tasks must have been already accomplished in Next Year Scheduling:

Schools Copied to Next Year
Curriculum Copied to Next Year
Graduation Requirements configured (Next Year Scheduling>Curriculum.Subject Area/Grad Requirements).

2. Prepare Next Year's Curriculum

Set up the courses for "next year" to enable them to be requested in Parent Access.

Go into Next Year Scheduling>Curriculum
For each course that you would like to make available for parents to request, check the "Can be requested in parents module" checkbox.
There is also a tool on the tools tab to automatically set this flag for all courses that have the Graded Course checkbox set - found on Next Year Scheduling>Curriculum>Tools.
While it isn't required, make sure you have the proper 'Primary Subject' selected for the course, as this is the subject area the course will show under to be requested in the Parents Portal
You may also optionally want to fill out the Course Catalog. This field can hold up to 4,000 characters.
Optionally configure prerequisites for the courses.

3. Configure Parents Module

Set up the Parent Module to allow courses to be requested for "next year" by parents/guardians and/or students.

For each school in the next school year (Setup>Schools); make sure the "For Parents Module" option is checked on the modify screen.
For each school in the next school year (Setup>Schools); make sure there are grade levels assigned to it in the Valid Grades tab.
Go into Parent Access>Setup>Settings>School Settings>Next Year Requests
Go into the Parent Access>Setup>Settings>School Settings>Next Year Requests* screen.
For each school and grade that a student has a next year request for, enable the requests screen.
In the Parent module, it appears as a new tab underneath the Scheduling screen.
Optionally disable/enable the ability for parents to make / delete requests.
You may also enable "Request Acknowledgement Options". This will place an acknowledgement button on the parents can sign to acknowledge the requests

Here are the current parameters for this Next Year Request screen:

Students Entering Grade	Requests for are allowed only for the students entering the specified grade level (i.e. where they will be after the rollover; where they will be next year.)
Parent Request Screen Available	If yes, the Next Year Request screen is displayed in Parent Access.
Add/Remove Requests	If yes, requests can be entered and removed via Parent Access.
Only show courses with grade level of next year request	Only display "next year" courses linked to the listed grade level. This limits the courses being shown to only ones that are flagged for the student's next year grade.
Hide courses student cannot request	This hides courses that would otherwise show as having not met requirements.
Show Graduation requirements	List graduation requirements in portal.
Only show subject areas that contain courses	Hide any subject areas that have no next year courses. Note: Subject areas must be set up in graduation requirements in order to appear in the requests tab on parent's module.
Show priority drop down for requests	Display a "priority" drop down on the Parents Request screen.
Show note field for requests	Display a "Note" field where parents/students can enter comments about their requests.
Show locked-in requests	selecting this option will show any actual Student Requests inside the "Requests" screen in the parent portal
Show counselor requests
Only show teacher recommendations and counselor requests in request a course screen	selecting this option will remove teacher recommendations and counselor requests from the "Requests" screen in the parent portal, but still show them in the "Course Catalog" screen when a student presses "Request a course"
Maximum credits students are allowed to request (in Subject Area option below)	If this option is set, students will not be able to request courses that will bring them over the max credits entered for that grade level
Minimum credits students are allowed to request (in Subject Area option below)	If this option is set, a message will appear for students who have under the minimum amount of credits requested for that grade level
Show Teacher Recommendations	Display recommendations made by the teachers.
Subject Area Options	For each Subject Area you can specify: Minimum credits students are allowed to request - If this option is set, a message will appear for students who have under the minimum amount of credits requested for that subject area Maximum credits students are allowed to request - If this option is set, students will not be able to request courses that will bring them over the max credits entered for that subject area Message for the Course Selection Screen (HTML Allowed) – Add a message that can be displayed on the Course Request screen in Parent Access.
Request Acknowledgment Options	This will add in a "Submit" tab for the parents to click on the Requests screen when they are finished. Options are: Show Acknowledgement Button to Guardian - check this off to have it display for guardians Show Acknowledgement Button to Student - check this off to have it display for students Lock Parent Request after Acknowledgement - this option will LOCK parents out from making additional requests/changes after they have submitted. Link to User Flag - you can set this up to link to a user flag once parents click "Submit." Message for the Acknowledgement (HTML Allowed) - Add a message that can be displayed above the "Submit" button.

4. Turn Parent Requests into Course Requests

After the parent/guardian or student makes requests, they can be converted into actual requests.
Initially they simply appear on the Student Data>Next Year Requests>Make Requests screen.
Go to Student Data>Modify Student>Next Year Requests>Make Requests tab.
The parent requests will appear under the teacher recommendations. Click the icon to turn them into "real" requests.
You can, optionally, do this en masse via Next Year Scheduling>Student Requests>Parent Requests.
- Options when converting en masse are: By Priority, By Subject, By Grade.

5. Curriculum > Prerequisites

Optionally, you can setup Prerequisites on each course, to limit what courses Parents and Students can Request through the Parent Portal.
This is found on the Next Year Scheduling>Curriculum>Modify Curriculum>Prerequisites screen.

The prerequisites screen (Next Year Scheduling>Curriculum>Modify Curriculum>Prerequisites) allows you to enforce pre requisites on a course that is being selected by parents in the Parent Module Course Selection screens.
To add a course as a prerequisite, you may search for any course within your curriculum then add the selected course as a prerequisite.

Once you have selected and added courses as prerequisites, you may configure them by placing them in Sets, and setting the number of courses in each set that must have been passed (or currently being taken).

FAQ

Question: Can I unlock a Parent Request after they submitted with the Acknowledgement Lock through the portal?

Answer: Yes - you can clear it with the "Clear Acknowledgement" button via Student Data>Modify Student>Next Year Requests>Make Request. (It only appears if it was submitted for the student.)