What is Nye County School District’s Parent Digital Toolkit?

It wasn’t long ago that communications between schools and parents came in the form of flyers sent home in backpacks, quarterly report cards and phone calls but as the technological world advances, that is all changing. As the saying goes, there’s an app for that and the Nye County School District (NCSD) is embracing the evolution in student-family engagement.

With the 2025-2026 school year now underway, in an effort to help familiarize parents with the apps available to them and thus drive usership, NCSD has created a “revolutionizing” new website that puts all of these resources in one easy-to-find place.

“The Nye County School District is excited to announce the launch of its new Parent Digital Toolkit website, a comprehensive online hub designed to streamline communication and provide parents with easy access to essential school information,” a press release from the school district announced on the first day of the new term, Wednesday, August 6. “This new resource features powerful tools and links to more information for the Infinite Campus Parent Portal… the NCSD App with eduRooms… StopFinder… and MySchoolBucks.”

The Infinite Campus Parent Portal is primarily used for monitoring grades and tracking absences. Rather than having to wait to see how little Susie is doing in math or how Johnny’s midterm went, parents have round-the-clock access to their child’s grades and can even download report cards, allowing them to keep an eye on their student’s academic progress. The portal also gives parents access to information on classroom assignments, to help ensure their child’s homework and projects are being completed.

“It’s like having a direct line to your child’s classroom right from your computer or phone,” the school district remarked.

The NCSD app has been in use for quite a while but it is now paired with eduRooms, which replaces the formerly used Classroom Dojo.

“From work to home to school, our phones are a key tool to how we navigate and communicate throughout the day. The custom-built NCSD app makes it easy to stay up to date with district news and events,” the district detailed. “Stay in touch with teachers and class information from that same app.”

Via the NCSD app with eduRooms, parents can receive school and class announcements regarding events and activities and receive emergency updates as soon as they are issued. Direct messaging with teachers is also available and parents can contact the school counselor or social worker, too. And there is a new facet of this application that can also be a huge help – the ability to report absences virtually.

“A major highlight of this initiative is the district-wide implementation of eduRooms, a user-friendly, two-way communication platform integrated directly into the official NCSD app,” the school district stated. “In a significant move to simplify attendance reporting, all NCSD schools will now accept absence excuses through the eduRooms feature. Parents can notify the school of their child’s absence with just a few taps and even attach photos of doctor’s notes.”

StopFinder is another fairly new application being put to use, offering real-time bus tracking. StopFinder was launched after the 2024-2025 school term’s winter break and is intended to provide parents with additional peace of mind while their children travel to and from school. As students enter and exit their bus each day, they scan their ID cards and that information is then uploaded to the app, allowing families to monitor their student’s bus location. StopFinder is currently only available in Pahrump but is expected to launch at four-day schools throughout Nye County later this year.

Finally, the MySchoolBucks app is geared toward making it simpler for students and families to make any school-associated payments, right on the go. “[It’s] a convenient and secure way to pay for school fees and activities online with a credit card,” the district noted.

District officials are excited to see how the Parent Digital Toolkit is received and optimistic that with awareness of these resources, more and more families will be utilizing them.

“We are thrilled to offer our families a tool that makes connecting with their child’s teacher as easy as sending a text message,” NCSD Superintendent Joseph Gent remarked. “The ability for parents to sign up for eduRooms with their cell phone number and instantly start a conversation with a teacher is a game-changer for parent engagement. This Parent Digital Toolkit is a vital part of our commitment to fostering strong partnerships between home and school.”

NCSD Communications Officer Robert Williams added, “Our goal is to leverage technology to remove barriers and make it as simple as possible for parents to be active participants in their child’s education. Putting these powerful tools into a single, easily accessible website empowers our families and strengthens our entire school community.”

Students’ families are encouraged to check out the new Parent Digital Toolkit website at Nye.K12.NV.us/page/parent-toolkit to learn more about each of the available apps, download them and begin connecting with their child’s school.

All apps can be downloaded through the Apple and GooglePlay app stores

Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com