Green Country Schools Adapt To New Communication Law

Summer break is quickly coming to an end for Green Country students. For several districts, the start of the upcoming year means new methods of communication between school employees and students.

A new law now requires parents to be included in conversations between school employees and students, or for communication to happen on a school-approved platform that is accessible to many eyes. School leaders in Broken Arrow and Owasso have spent summer break figuring out which apps work for everyone.

“The law has changed the way that school personnel can communicate with students,” said Tara Thompson, spokesperson for Broken Arrow Schools. “There can be no more one-on-one communication using whatever app or technology might be most familiar to that school employee.”

The district is ditching apps like GroupMe and introducing BAND and SportsYou to stay within the guardrails of the new law.

“It has to be auditable,” said Thompson. “By that, people have to be able to access the entire conversation thread.”

In Owasso, district leaders have also been tasked with finding a new app. Teachers and coaches in the district will use SportsYou, which stores conversations and can be accessed by many people.

“If we need to, we can go in and pull a conversation if we have to as part of an investigation or anything and have that oversight,” said Jordan Korphage, spokesperson for Owasso Schools.

The district says most students will continue to use their school-issued Gmail accounts for communication, but those in extracurriculars may notice the change.

“Your athletics, band, fine arts, all those different things where you’re meeting after school,” Korphage said.

Both districts will use the upcoming year to keep an eye on which apps do—and do not—work for students and teachers to keep communication flowing.