Yesterday was our first Snow Day of the year. As some of you are very aware, we experienced some issues with our phone out system.
Please be aware that we use multiple systems to communicate crucial information to staff and students:
- News outlets are informed (this goes to all major TV and radio stations).
- News media web sites also keep a comprehensive list of school districts that are closed.
- Phone call out system is started
- Facebook site is updated ( https://www.facebook.com/dearbornpublicschools )
- Twitter update is posted ( https://twitter.com/DearbornSchools )
- Web site is updated. (https://dearbornschools.org/ )
So, what happened yesterday? The decision to close schools was made by Mr. Whiston by 5:15 am. By 5:20 am, Mr. David Mustonen updated all of the above sites. That is, the news media was informed, the Facebook site was updated, the Tweet was sent out, and the web site was updated, and the phone call out system was entered.
However, there was a delay between when the phone message was recorded and sent to be delivered and when some individuals actually received the calls. We have discovered that there was a glitch that meant multiple calls were going out to some individuals whilst another group wasn’t receiving any calls.
An additional call was sent out in the afternoon to make sure that all students and staff members were aware that Tuesday would be a full day of school (Facebook, the web site and Twitter were also updated). These calls were sometimes duplicated multiple times.
We are working with RESA as to the phone issues. RESA (and we- along with most districts in Wayne County) switched phone providers this year. RESA has been working with EduLink (the company that provides the phone service) on these issues. There is an update coming within the next couple of weeks which should rectify that issue.
- We rely on having updated information from Human Resources. HR is currently updating the information regarding staff information. If you have changed your contact information, please contact Human Resources.
- We work really hard to provide communication to all of those who need it. We have built redundancy into the system as we don’t want to rely upon a single method of communicating. Too many things can go wrong with any one method of communicating. Although the phone system can make 5,000 calls a minute, when all of the school districts are calling off school at the same time, this can lead to delay in the process. Dearborn’s calls should all be made within 5 minutes, but there may be a delay as the system is calling other districts.
- We will be running an updated test of the phone system once EduLink and RESA have worked out a few issues.
- *Insider’s tip, I generally find Facebook the fastest way to get the information.
Thanks.