Today is School Secretary Appreciation Day – and it’s the perfect opportunity to recognize the invaluable contributions of these key members of our school community and explore ways that we can support them in this essential role. 

It’s not easy juggling the many different pieces that complete the puzzle that is a regular school day. From the first bell to the last, school secretaries are busy maintaining it all from behind the scenes. Let’s take a look at the many responsibilities our school secretaries have in keeping school days running smoothly!

The common misconception is that secretaries are support roles, when in reality, they play a crucial role in every hour of the school day. In the morning, you’ll probably find secretaries putting together announcements, taking the lead on finding teacher coverage for last-minute illnesses, and putting together absent reports.

But it doesn’t stop there! Over lunch, they’re likely booking appointments for principals, compiling data for district offices, and, in some situations, acting like a nurse in disguise. It’s true – in some particularly small schools, it’s the secretaries that are taking your kids’ temperatures, distributing bandaids and ice packs, and making those calls home for early pick up. Whenever they can find the extra time, school secretaries are also ordering office and other school supplies, doing print jobs for teachers, writing newsletters, doing data entry, and more.

And, in the midst of all this work, school secretaries are usually the ones dealing with dismissal plan changes. 

Did you know that many schools process 10,000 dismissal plan changes annually? That means school secretaries can spend up to 2 hours a day just dealing with dismissal plan changes! Now think of all those other tasks a school secretary is in charge of – can they really afford to lose 2 hours a day fielding notes, phone calls, and emails, updating lists, and informing teachers just so school dismissal runs smoothly? The time that secretaries spend juggling all of the phone calls and emails can add up to 45 days a year! 

But it doesn’t have to be this way. You don’t have to worry about juggling dozens of dismissal plan changes or spend half the day on the phone with parents. You don’t have to worry about the safety of your students at the end of the day.

PickUp Patrol can solve this problem! 

With PickUp Patrol, you can automate your school’s dismissal process, making it more efficient and, most importantly, more secure.

Pickup Patrol revolutionizes the dismissal process and alleviates the administrative burden on our school secretaries. 

• Its user-friendly interface and efficient management features, allows parents to submit pickup changes online, streamlining the dismissal process

• This reduces the time spent on phone calls and manual data entry and allows school administrative staff to focus more on meaningful tasks and interactions

• All together, PickUp Patrol improves overall productivity and organization of your school’s daily operations

• And most importantly, PickUp Patrol promotes safety and security by ensuring accurate recording of student dismissals, providing peace of mind for both parents and staff 

So, don’t underestimate school secretaries – they keep school days running smoothly! Do your secretaries a favor by taking that load off their shoulders. 

Let’s use School Secretary Appreciation Day as a catalyst to invest in tools like PickUp Patrol, ensuring our school secretaries feel valued and supported year-round!