SMS Notification Setup Checklist

Step

Menu Path

Details

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1

Set up an SMS provider account

The TASS.web and Staff Kiosk messaging facilities currently interface with the following SMS providers:

TASS SMS	For Australian Schools only. Review the 'Other Licensing' page on the TASS Customer Hub for details. To set up a TASS SMS Account, fill in the TASS SMS Onboarding Form.
Streetdata	For Australian Schools only. Users will need to create an account and obtain a registration code from Streetdata to use the TASS.web SMS messaging facility. To receive a registration code from Streetdata, please call - +61 (02) 9130 1997, or email: support@streetdata.com.au. Once you have received your registration code from Streetdata, you will need to go online and activate your new account by going to the following link: http://www.streetdata.com.au/admin/oemjoin.php Once the account is created, you will be issued (via email) a username and a password. ❗ Important! Please be sure that you understand and accept the charges and conditions outlined by Streetdata before proceeding.
BulkSMS	For South African and United Kingdom Schools only. An account must first be set up with BulkSMS: http://www.bulksms.com/ Once set up, create your user details by setting up an email address and password. ❗ Important! Please be sure that you understand and accept the charges and conditions outlined by BulkSMS before proceeding.

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2

TASS.web System Admin > Utilities > API Gateway Maintenance.

Click 'View' in the Action Column for 'SMS Gateways' to enter Streetdata account information.

1. Messaging Format.
   Choose the SMS Gateway vendor for whom you have created an account. If your vendor is 'Streetdata', select 'Streetdata via webservice/gateway'.

2. Messaging A/c Id.
   The SMS Gateway vendor will supply an account identifier to enter in this field once an account is created.

3. A/c Password.
   The SMS Gateway vendor will supply an account password to enter in this field once an account is created.

4. Virtual Mobile Number.
   Enter the mobile number if your vendor is 'TASS SMS' and you have been assigned a Virtual Number.

The 'Enable Multi-Part Messaging' option must be ticked to use SMS Appointment Reminder to Parents. Refer to 'SMS Gateways' for further details on this option.

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3

TASS.web Student Admin > Attendance > Setup Information > Attendance Setup on the 'Contact Info' tab.

This step is only applicable if your school will send SMS messages in the Attendance module.

Enter the details under the 'SMS Details' section.

1. Message Text
   Enter the text for the SMS message. This is the actual text that the parent will see on his/her mobile phone.

Keyword substitution is supported.

The message text is limited to 160 characters, but can be increased to 800 characters by enabling 'Multi-Part Messaging'. The payload of each multi-part message is 153 characters (rather than 160). Where messages are more than 153 characters in length, the message is split into multiple parts (i.e. 2 or more parts of 153 characters), allowing for the swift delivery of long messages. The caveat is that the additional message parts will incur additional costs.

If you are interested in utilising SMS 'Multi-Part Messaging' for your school, please contact TASS Support for guidance. For more information, refer to 'SMS Gateway APIs'.

2. Communication Type for Attendance SMS
   This option must be set up if your school is using 'Communication Rules'. Select the Communication Rule that will be used to determine which parents to send an Attendance SMS. This would usually be 'Attendance'.

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4

TASS.web Student Admin > Attendance > Setup Information > Attendance Setup on the 'Absentee Reasons' tab.

This step is only applicable if your school will send SMS messages in the Attendance module.

Check that all 'Absentee Reasons' have been defined as either acceptable or non-acceptable.

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5

TASS.web Student Admin > Parent Records > Parent Information > Parents on the 'Address' tab.

Set up the 'Mobile Phone 1 (or 2)' and 'SMS' fields for those parents who are to receive student absentee notifications and/or 'general' announcements via text message (SMS).

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6

TASS.web Student Admin > Student Records > Student Information > Students on the 'General' tab.

Set up the 'Mobile Phone' for students who are to receive text messages (SMS) that are generated by Staff Kiosk users.

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7

TASS.web Payroll/HRM > Employee/HR > Employee Information > Employees on the ‘General’ tab.

Set up the 'Mobile Phone' for teachers and non-teaching staff who are to receive text messages (SMS) that are generated by Staff Kiosk users.

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8

TASS.web Student Admin > Teacher Records > Parent Teacher Interviews

This step is applicable only if your school will send SMS Appointment Reminder messages to Parents in the PTI module.

PTI Setup: Enter the message text that will be sent to parents regarding their PTI appointment.

PTI Conferences: When setting up a new PTI Conference, tick the 'Send SMS Reminder' box at Step 3, and enter the date and time that the messages should be sent.

The use of SMS Appointment Reminder to Parents requires the 'Enable Multi-Part Messaging' setting to be ticked in the 'SMS Gateways'.

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9

TASS.web Student Admin > Medical Records > Setup Information > Medical Setup on the ‘Medical’ tab

This step is only applicable if your school will send SMS messages to Parents in the Medical Records module.

Use the ‘SMS Details’ section to define the 'Message Text', which is used when sending SMS and Alert Notifications to parents when a new student illness is created in Illness Self Registration from the Student Medical Record ‘Illness’ tab or saved in Student Illness/Daily Log.

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10

Staff Kiosk Pastoral Care > Conduct (Setup)

This step is only applicable if your school will send SMS messages to Parents in the Pastoral Care module.

Review each conduct your school has and the 'Automatic Notification' options. Select the 'SMS' checkbox for users who should receive an SMS when this conduct is added to a Pastoral Care Entry.

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11

Staff Kiosk Rollcall > Custom Roll Parameters (Setup)

This step is only applicable if your school will send SMS messages to Parents via the Custom Rolls module.

Review the information about Send SMS on Save in the Custom Roll Parameters (Setup), and activate this feature if required. Then enter the SMS text that parents will receive when the student has an unexplained absence on a Custom Roll.

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12

TASS.web System Admin > Users > Portal Security Permissions

Use 'Product Code' = Staff Kiosk.

For each user 'Role', set the appropriate permission to allow or disallow:

• Send Student SMS (Individual).

• Send Student SMS (Bulk).

• Send Parent SMS (Individual).

• Send Parent SMS (Bulk).

• Send Employee SMS (Individual).

• Send Employee SMS (Bulk).

Staff Kiosk users may need additional permissions to use the program area to send SMS messages. Refer to the TASS Knowledge Base articles for each configured program area for more information.

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13

TASS.web System Admin > Users > User Maintenance

or

TASS.web System Admin > Users > Security Role Permissions

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14

Test

Generate SMS test messages through:

• TASS.web Student Admin > Attendance > Processing > Generate/Send SMS Notifications.

• TASS.web Student Admin > Parent Records > Processing > Generate/Send SMS Messages.

• Staff Kiosk programs with an individual SMS facility (e.g. Student Profile page).

• Staff Kiosk programs with a bulk SMS facility (e.g. My Saved Lists).

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