Communications

Plains Pulse Weekly Newsletter

Every Friday, the Plains Pulse is sent out to parents regarding school news and announcements from the week. This is important to follow, as there may be information about date changes, school updates/activities or PTO news.

2023-2024 Editions

2023-2024 Editions

Transportation Notifications

Mrs. Wade will generally send out a phone call/text message when transportation issues arise with our AM & PM bus drivers. These notifications are sent out early in the morning so that parents can make alternate plans for getting their student to school.

Morning Announcements

Every morning students are greeted by Mrs. Wade on the PA system, followed by the Pledge. We have implemented a new way of informing students of the morning announcements. During advisory, students have the opportunity to watch their fellow student on the big screen read off any announcements that were submitted for the building. This could include after-school events, club meetings or sport reminders/cancellations. The afternoon announcements, which could include anything new that was submitted, but also repeats what was read in the morning, are also read over the PA system.

In the beginning of the year, students have the opportunity to submit an application to be an announcer for the year. Mrs. Wade will hold an interview and select the best candidate for the job!

Social Media

Feel free to follow our social media sites! Here we will post photos of what's currently going on in school, updates and important dates.

	@P lainsFirebird1 (our most active)
	@PlainsJunior (our most active)

In This Section

At Lakota, transparent and timely communication is critically important. Using a mass notification system, we deliver important school and district news and announcements primarily via email, but oftentimes by phone and text message as well.

Please reference the detailed tabs below to ensure you are receiving Lakota communications that are relevant to you as a parent/guardian, staff member or community member.

All parent/guardian contact information updated in FinalForms and then displayed in your Home Access Center account is our primary source of email addresses and phone numbers used to communicate classroom, school and district news. Parents cannot update their contact information in any other portal. Staff are encouraged to update just their phone number via their accounts settings ParentSquare, as noted below.

In This Section

Stay Informed & Connected

Parents & Guardians

Update Your Contact Information

Official parents and guardians are automatically set up in Lakota's notification systems and other school-to-home portals to receive the communications most relevant to them, based on the school(s), grade level(s) and other attributes associated with their child(ren).

IMPORTANT: The email addresses and phone numbers displayed in your parent/guardian Home Access Center (HAC) account (accessed via OneLogin) is the same information we use to send all school-to-home communications. The beginning of each school year is a great time to review the email address and phone numbers Lakota has on file. The changes you enter through FinalForms at any time will automatically update your HAC account and all Lakota communications portals.

Introducing ParentSquare

Mobile screen with green, blue, yellow and pink thought bubbles coming out of it with different communications icons

Eight Schools Pilot New, Unified Communication Tool

Eight Lakota schools are piloting a new, more unified school-to-home communication tool called ParentSquare. Beginning Monday, April 22 and through the remainder of the school year, ParentSquare will replace the current notification system for sending email, phone and text alerts to families and staff at these schools: Liberty ECS, Cherokee, Endeavor, Union, Liberty Jr., Ridge Jr. and both Lakota East and Lakota West high schools (main campus only).

For parents and staff at these schools, no action will be required to continue receiving communications, but be on the lookout for an invite to log into your account via OneLogin to customize your communications experience and get the most out of ParentSquare. All other schools will transition to the new platform over the summer and in time for the 2024-2025 school year.

ParentSquare Overview for Parents

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Download the ParentSquare App

For on-the-go access to your principal and district-level alerts in ONE place, download the free app. Set your notification preferences, view your custom news feed and more!

Search "LLSD ParentSquare from your app store or click below from any mobile device.

Download the iOS Version

Download the Android Version

Update Contact Info in FinalForms

All contact information updates must be submitted via FinalForms and will auto-update in Lakota's systems.

Log into SchoolMessenger

View recent messages and set your preferences for receiving important school- and district-wide emails, phone calls and text messages.

Parents with children at schools piloting Lakota's new notification system at the end of the 2024-2025 school year should log into their ParentSquare account instead.

Log into ParentSquare

View your custom announcements feed, set your frequency and language preferences for receiving important school- and district-wide emails, phone calls and text messages, opt into other school or group posts, and more.

Parents with children at schools NOT piloting Lakota's new notification system at the end of the 2024-2025 school year should log into their SchoolMessenger account instead.

Subscribe to Other School E-News

Want to receive weekly e-newsletters from schools other than the ones your child attends? Log into Lakota's website and select "Notifications" from the upper left menu to add new subscriptions.

Teachers & Staff

Lakota staff are automatically set up in Lakota's notification system to receive district and school email communications most relevant to them, based on their associated school(s). Staff phone numbers and preferences can be set using the tools below.

While we work toward a more automated solution for tracking staff phone numbers and preferences, please submit any changes or additions to the phone numbers currently listed in your School Messenger staff account using this staff phone change request form. For now, you can continue to update your preferences associated with each phone number within your School Messenger account. We will update staff School Messenger accounts with the new information submitted on this form on the first of every month. Staff working at schools participating in the ParentSquare pilot at the end of the 2024-2025 school year can update their phone number within their ParentSquare account, as detailed below.

Introducing ParentSquare

Eight Schools Pilot New, Unified Communication Tool

ParentSquare Overview

Loading from Vimeo...

Download the ParentSquare App

For on-the-go access to your principal and district-level alerts in ONE place, download the free app. Set your notification preferences, view your custom news feed and more!

Search "LLSD ParentSquare from your app store or click below from any mobile device.

Download the iOS Version

Download the Android Version

Log into School Messenger to Edit Preferences

View recent messages and set your preferences for receiving important school- and district-wide emails, phone calls and text messages.

Staff at schools piloting Lakota's new notification system at the end of the 2024-2025 school year should log into their ParentSquare account instead.

Update Your Staff Account Phone Number

Submit any changes or additions to the phone numbers currently listed in your School Messenger staff account. School Messenger accounts will be updated accordingly on the first of every month.

Staff at schools piloting Lakota's new notification system at the end of the 2024-2025 school year should log into their ParentSquare account instead.

Log into ParentSquare

Staff at schools NOT piloting Lakota's new notification system at the end of the 2024-2025 school year should log into their SchoolMessenger account instead.

Subscribe to Other School E-News

Want to receive weekly e-newsletters from schools other than the one where you work? Log into Lakota's website and select "Notifications" from the upper left menu to add new subscriptions.

Community Members

We want to stay connected to our entire Lakota community.

If you are not a Lakota staff member or the parent/guardian of a current student, please visit our ParentSquare Community Groups webpage. Subscribe to community-facing updates via phone, text and/or email like weather closures/delays, general district or school announcements and bid opportunity alerts.

You are also invited to subscribe to the District's or schools' regular community e-newsletters.

Frequently Asked Questions

I'm receiving communications in the wrong language.

Parent communications are delivered in the preferred language, as indicated at the time of enrollment through Lakota's Welcome Center. This preference cannot be altered in Home Access Center. Please contact your child's main office to request a change through the school's data specialist.

ParentSquare updates and alerts are automatically translated into parents' preferred languages. Reset your language preference in your ParentSquare account settings.

I want to receive communications from other Lakota schools.

General, community-facing communications, like a school's e-newsletter for example, will be shared beyond a building's associated staff and parents. Community members who have subscribed to a specific building's communications will also receive these types of updates.

If you are not a Lakota staff member or the parent/guardian of a current student, please visit our ParentSquare Community Groups webpage. Subscribe to community-facing updates via phone, text and/or email like weather closures/delays, general district or school announcements and bid opportunity alerts. You are also invited to subscribe to the District's or schools' regular community e-newsletters.

Lakota parents/guardians and staff who wish to subscribe to another school's e-newsletter can manage their e-news subscriptions here. You are also welcome to join other public groups within your ParentSquare account to receive other schools' updates and announcements.

I'm not receiving text messages.

School Messenger uses something called “short code” texting to send text messages to parent and staff mobile devices, when necessary. This method is highly reliable and fast because it is strictly regulated by the wireless carriers themselves. With that access comes some strict federal requirements for Lakota to gain opt-in verification from those on the receiving end of those text messages.

When a new mobile phone number is provided at the time of registration or added/updated through FinalForms, within 24 hours, it will generate an automated opt-in message to this new number from Lakota's short code (675-87). Per federal guidelines, we are required to receive your consent before sending future text messages. Simply reply to the message with the letter "Y" to provide consent.

If you missed the original text message to the device associated with the number you provided to Lakota, you can still provide your consent at any time by texting the letter "Y" to Lakota's short code (675-87).

This process will not be required after Lakota's full transition to ParentSquare for text notifications.

I'm both a Lakota parent and staff member. What do I need to know about notifications?

As a parent, you will automatically receive parent-specific communications from the school(s) your child(ren) attend, using the contact information updated in FinalForms via your parent Lakota OneLogin account. The information appearing in your Home Access Center account is the current information Lakota has on file for you. Similarly, you will automatically receive staff-specific communications from the school(s) at which you are employed.

When you log into ParentSquare via either account, you may be prompted with the option to merge both accounts. This simply means you will be able to have both your staff contacts and your parent contacts linked to the same account. Learn more about the process for merging staff and parent accounts.