Central Access Corporation, provider of the leading student information system (SIS) in the state of Mississippi, is replacing the Active Instant Messenger (AIM) school-to-home communications system in its SAM Spectra SIS with AIM 3.0 powered by ParentSquare. The 130 school districts currently using the SAM Spectra Student Administrator Manager will have seamless access to the new integrated system, featuring the award-winning ParentSquare unified school-home communications platform, starting in 2022.
“When we saw what the ParentSquare platform could do, we promptly reached out,” said Jay Milam, President of Central Access. “Our mission is to provide Mississippi schools and districts with a powerful all-in-one package for managing administrative tasks, including communication with students’ families. This integration of ParentSquare gives educators a system that’s still streamlined and offers greater communications functionality.”
With the new ParentSquare-SAM Spectra integration, districts can engage every family with school communications and communications-based services—all the way from the district office to the classroom teacher, and all in one place. Families can receive alert notifications of news, activities, and events; complete forms and permission slips; sign up for parent-teacher conferences; check grades and attendance; RSVP for events; and more. School staff and parents can also participate in one-to-one or group messaging, with real-time, two-way translation for more than 100 languages.
Providing educators with an all-in-one solution is at the core of Central Access’ mission. The company’s SAM Spectra SIS keeps daily attendance, a gradebook, and all student history until the student graduates. All the student information is available via the internet, allowing parents, students, teachers, and administrators to access information at their convenience.
Founded in 1954, Central Access Corporation (CAC) has transitioned from a school supply and equipment company into a software development and support company serving the majority of Mississippi’s public schools. SAM Spectra currently serves approximately 310,000 Mississippi students and 87% of the districts in the state.
“We are thrilled to be working with Central Access to support increased communication between students’ schools and families,” said Sohit Wadhwa, CEO of ParentSquare. “With ParentSquare’s extensive capacity for integrations with student information and other critical administrative systems, we believe this is an exciting beginning in the state of Mississippi. We’re deeply appreciative of Central Access taking this step with us.”
About ParentSquare™
ParentSquare is relied upon by millions of educators and families in 44 states for unified, effective school communications. ParentSquare provides parent engagement tools that work from the district office to the individual classroom, supported by powerful metrics and reporting. ParentSquare’s technology platform features extensive integrations with student information and other critical administrative systems, translation to more than 100 languages, and app, email, text, voice, and web portal access for equitable communication. ParentSquare (http://www.parentsquare.com), founded in 2011, is based in Santa Barbara, CA.
About Central Access Corporation
The mission of Central Access Corporation is to provide those in the K-12 education community with tools to assist them in doing their jobs through the development and delivery of quality computer software products and top-notch support services. Established in 1954, Central Access has been servicing the K-12 education community every day since. What began with school supplies evolved into all-encompassing software solutions that cater to the needs of all aspects of the school district. Central Access works hand-in-hand with the Mississippi Department of Education as well other K-12 service partners to ensure they offer the best solutions possible to Mississippi public schools.
