Families in the Mount Vernon City Schools District need to register for an Instant Connect account to assure they get messages from the school system.

The school district will stop sending messages through KnoxAlerts and complete the transition to Instant Connect by Jan. 1, MVCSD said in a news release..

Instant Connect enables the school to send voice communication, text and email to district families. This software will serve as its notification system for attendance, important district news, alerts and school closings.

Even without setting up an Instant Connect Portal account, parents of students will continue to receive information and alerts from Instant Connect. The school imported their contact information through its Student Information System.

To customize communications from MVCSD, setting up an Instant Connect Portal account is recommended. Customization can include receiving specific building alerts and notifications.

Last year parents first began receiving absence notifications and district COVID notifications from Instant Connect. The second step saw faculty and staff register for accounts to manage their district communications.

Now, parents, community members and students can register their own Instant Connect Portal to receive communications in the third step.

As each school year starts, parents will log into the Parent Portal to update the contact information on the student’s emergency medical form. The emergency medical form is where phone numbers and email addresses are imported into the school’s system.

Registration instructions explain how to set up an Instant Connect portal. Then, select the 'Instant Connect Portal Account Registration Link' for registration.