Maryville City Schools launches new app

As the world moves deeper into the information age, schools are finding innovative ways to keep families and community members informed.

Blount County Schools and Alcoa City Schools have adopted apps as a way to communicate directly with families, and now Maryville City Schools has launched a new app that both families and community members can use.

The app is a one-stop shop for anyone interested in the goings-on of Maryville City Schools. It allows the user to follow any school in the district and provides a link to a calendar that displays any upcoming events, like sports games or team tryouts.

MCS Communications and Special Projects Coordinator Maria Greene said, “We understand that most of our families prefer to access information about our schools through their phones rather than a computer. Our goal is to provide the best possible and user-friendly experience.”

Before the app, all the information was still available, but families would have to visit multiple sites that serve different purposes. This way, she said, everything is easily accessible and in one spot.

MCS started brainstorming the app in the fall of 2023, held several meetings with their IT department, and then released it to a small group of parents for a trial run in the early spring of this year.

The parents gave feedback on what they liked and what they would change. From there, the app was tweaked and has now been launched.

“Parents are excited, but I think what is really going to be beneficial to them is what happens after Aug. 5 when the app connects the parent with the student…”

For families with children in the school, come Aug. 5, they will be able to track their student’s schedules and see their grades, assignments, and attendance.

If the user allows push notifications, which Greene says won’t be overwhelming, then they will be notified if their child is tardy or absent from class.

Parents can also track their children’s buses in real-time through Unite GPS and see bus route schedules.

One of the biggest pieces of feedback that MCS received about the app was the desire for a comprehensive calendar, said Greene

“Parents have frequently requested the ability to follow events from multiple schools. Our new app not only lets them track events from more than one school, but also enables them to add these events to their personal calendars,” she said.

Other app features include an employment section where the user can look over job openings, Go Fan, where the user can purchase athletic tickets, lunch menus and a link to Maryville City Schools Foundation.

Greene said the app is not just for families with children enrolled in MCS. Anyone can download the app and use it to keep track of their favorite schools and sporting events; they just wouldn’t have access to any student information.

Greene said they are continuing to monitor feedback about the app and will continue to work to improve it.

“I’m willing to make changes. It’s new to us, and we want to take advantage of everything it can do,” she said.