The school year is under way … and you know that means it’s time to start thinking about next year’s summer camp!
As part of that planning, you’re likely already assessing your summer program that just wrapped up, or is about to conclude. As you map out what went well and what you’d like to change for next summer, think about the role software could play in simplifying planning and other administrative duties — both for you and your families.
Parents increasingly are seeking technology to help coordinate busy schedules. That’s especially true for millennials, who are the majority of today’s parents.
So if you’re still relying on clunky methods to organize your camps — such as spreadsheets, stacks of handwritten forms that you must enter into your system and paper sign-in and sign-out sheets — now is a good time to assess how software could help.
And by putting such time-saving features in place now, you’ll have the chance to properly test them and train your staff, perhaps at camps you hold over winter and spring breaks, before summer camp kicks off!
Let’s look at some of the tools Procare offers to help run your out-of-school-time programs.
Online Registration
We hope that summer camps will be at full capacity next summer. So when you open registration, you can save an immense amount of time and headaches using Procare’s online registration tools.
Procare’s online registration solution lets you configure your registration form using custom fields, ensuring you’re able to capture all the data your center needs. You can have parents sign any required waivers and accept registration fees via credit card.
You can waitlist families, then approve or decline their enrollment. Once a family is approved, our software can automatically send a customized email to indicate they have been enrolled in your center or program.
And Procare’s online registration platform supports popular digital payment options, including setting up automatic payments and providing next business day funding.
It’s parent-friendly, and it’s a time-saver for school administrators.
Share, Send and Sign Documents Electronically
Filling out paperwork with pen and paper is tedious for busy families. And it’s a pain for you to input all that information into your system.
Procare Solutions offers you a simpler way that bypasses firing up a printer or fax machine and eliminates the need to decipher handwriting. It’s called eDocuments, and this feature empowers you and your families to electronically sign documents.
Using eDocuments, you can create an electronic signature, format documents and store signed documents in one central location.
It takes much of the hassle out of reminding parents and staff to complete their paperwork. You can prompt them to review documents by email, and they can digitally sign a document — no need to download, print, sign, then return to you.
Use eDocuments to send and manage all sorts of documents, including enrollment contracts, incident reports, permission slips and more. Documents are conveniently stored in user profiles so they’re accessible.
Parent-Managed Calendars Through SchoolCare Works
This option, which falls under the SchoolCare Works suite of products from Procare, is a software management system that keeps track of activities, registrations, classes, payment activity, attendance and more.
The cloud-based platform is tailored to meet the needs of before and after school programs, as well as other activities outside the traditional school day — including summer camps.
Parent-managed calendars allow out-of-school-time programs to give parents the option of which days their kids attend, and to go online to choose those days. That means districts can anticipate how many kids will attend each day. They can plan accordingly for staffing needs and parents aren’t on the hook to pay for unneeded days.
With SchoolCare Works, your program can:
- Manage child and family data with an online family portal
- Offer secure online payments by credit or debit card
- Manage enrollment level, staffing and scheduling across multiple program sites
- Use email, texting and push notifications to keep parents in the loop with new updates
- Share monthly calendars so parents can plan to attend events or activities
Parent Engagement
Procare’s Parent Engagement app lets you communicate with families easily to give updates on everything from letting them know what to bring to camp and providing real-time updates on the fun things their kids are doing.
It offers two-way messaging, so camp leaders can message directly with parents and vice versa.
Parents love seeing what their kids are up to during the day. With the Parent Engagement app, you can keep them informed on by sending videos, photos, newsletters and calendars.
Other features offered by the app include the ability to see and easily update family contact information, view authorized drop-off/pick-up providers, and enable contactless check-in and pick-up with GPS-enabled technology or QR codes.
How is your program doing when it comes to keeping parents informed, engaged and connected? Take Procare’s free Parent Engagement quiz to help you answer those questions!
Let Procare Help!
We want to help your out-of-school-time program find the best software to suit your specific needs so you can focus on what you do best — spending time with the kids in your care.
Contact us to set up a needs analysis to determine which of our solutions is the best fit to ensure a great summer camp experience (and for your beforecare and aftercare programs as well) for your staff and families.
