A PCR Educator DAT Query can now compute an aggregate across a wider group than the row it sits on, while the query stays grouped at its own level. A new Partition By option on any Aggregate field puts a row's own number and the total it belongs to side by side. Running totals, subtotals, and share-of-whole calculations fit in a single DAT Query.

What's new

Partition By on any Aggregate field. Set a field's role to Aggregate, choose the function (Sum, Count, Average, and the rest), then pick a Partition By column from a typeahead. The aggregate computes across that wider partition while each row stays grouped at the DAT Query's own level.

Optional on every Aggregate field. Partition By is there when you want a wider calculation. An Aggregate field with no partition set is a standard aggregate.

One DAT Query for the comparison. A row can show its own value and the value of the group it belongs to, together, in a single DAT Query.

Why it matters

A row can carry both its own number and the number it belongs to. Show each course's enrollment next to its department's total enrollment. Show a donor's giving next to the campaign total. Show a student's tardies this term next to their full-year count. The reader sees the part and the whole together, and the comparison is immediate.

A few ways to talk about it

• Running totals, subtotals, and share-of-whole math live in a single DAT Query.
• Partition By sets each row next to the total of the group it belongs to.
• An Aggregate field with no partition set stays a standard aggregate.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk you through Partition By in a DAT Query whenever you're ready.

Check In / Check Out is a PCR Educator CMS widget that lets a student, a staff member, or an authorized pick-up identify themselves at a screen and check in or out for the day. Schools commonly deploy it as a self-serve attendance kiosk on a laptop, a tablet, or a wall-mounted touch panel. The widget is configured entirely from the standard page editor, with no developer involvement, and it can optionally write period and daily attendance.

Setup happens in the CMS page editor, so configuring the widget requires an account with permission to edit CMS pages.

Schools deploy the widget for:

• Morning carpool and after-school care check-in stations
• Athletics, field trip, and extended-day program rosters
• Late-arrival and early-dismissal desks at the front office
• Optional automatic period attendance for late or early-departure students

Setup at a glance

From the page editor:

• Open the CMS page where the kiosk will live, or create a new page.
• Click Add Widget, then User, then Check In / Check Out.
• Open the widget Properties dialog with the gear icon and configure Sign In Type, Operations Type, Program Type, the button text, and any of the optional customizations described below.
• Save the widget. The kiosk is live immediately.
• On the device itself, sign in once with a staff or operator account before leaving the kiosk unattended. The widget only renders for a signed-in session. Once the device is signed in, any number of students sign themselves in and out against it.

To write Late, Absent, and Leaving Early stamps automatically, which is recommended for schools that want period attendance from the kiosk:

• Add a second widget to the same page: Parent/Student Attendance Entry.
• In its Properties, set Late Type, Absent Type, Leaving Early Type, and, optionally, Daily Attendance Type to the attendance discipline types your school uses.
• Save. The kiosk now writes period attendance automatically when students check in or out.

For full configuration of the partner widget, see CMS Widget - Parent/Student Attendance Entry.

Sign-in modes

Each kiosk supports one or more of the following sign-in methods. Enable as many as appropriate with the Sign In Type property. When two or more are enabled, a pill row appears at the top of the kiosk so the user can choose. With one enabled, the row is hidden.

One kiosk can offer student and staff sign-in together. The widget records each check-in as student or staff from the mode the person used: the Staff ID mode records a staff member, and every other mode records a student. Staff check-ins are recorded against the staff roster. They do not send notification emails, and the period attendance integration applies to student check-ins only. Staff sign in through the Staff ID mode, because the Username, Name + PIN, PIN, and Alternate ID modes resolve against student and household records.

Pick one default with the Default Active Mode property. That pill is highlighted on first load. The kiosk also remembers which pill the user last touched and restores it after any submission, so a barcode scanner station that opens to Student ID stays on Student ID after each scan.

Optional: period attendance integration

Placing a Parent/Student Attendance Entry widget on the same page changes the kiosk from a record of who is on campus into a full attendance writer. On every successful student check-in or check-out, the kiosk will:

• Write Absent stamps for any scheduled periods that ended before the student checked in, which fills the gap.
• Write a Late stamp for the period in session at check-in time.
• Write a Leaving Early stamp for the period in session at check-out time.
• Optionally stamp every period after the check-out as Absent, when the school enables it.
• Optionally write a single daily attendance row when a school-level type is configured.

All writes respect a same-user audit gate, so teacher-entered attendance is never overwritten, and prior kiosk stamps can be cleanly cleared when the student returns the same day. For the full setup of the partner widget, see CMS Widget - Parent/Student Attendance Entry.

Late and early departure thresholds

Many schools have rules such as "a student more than 20 minutes late is marked Absent" or "a student leaving in the first 30 minutes counts as Leaving Early, and beyond that it is a normal departure." The kiosk supports both with two integer properties.

Both thresholds measure minutes elapsed since the current period's nominal start time, using the school's schedule data. If the student has no scheduled period at that moment, such as during lunch, before school, or after dismissal, the thresholds do nothing and the kiosk falls back to its default behavior.

Customization options

Beyond the sign-in modes and thresholds, the widget includes a broad set of properties for tailoring messages, behavior, and presentation. The most commonly used:

What students see

On every kiosk the experience is the same: large touch targets, no scrolling, and no logins to remember unless the school chooses Username mode.

• A row of sign-in pills at the top, hidden if only one mode is enabled.
• The matching input panel below, which is a numeric keypad for ID or PIN, a username and password form for Username mode, or a name and PIN form for Name + PIN.
• Large Check In and Check Out buttons.
• After submitting, a calming success card with the school greeting, the student's name shown prominently, and their photo and profile (Name, ID, Grade, Status). The form returns automatically after the configured timeout.
• On error, the form stays in place, the typed value is preserved so the student can fix a typo without retyping, and the error message displays in red.

Best practices

• For high-traffic stations such as carpool, enable a single sign-in mode, either PIN or Student ID, so the pill row hides entirely. Fewer taps mean faster lines.
• Pair Alternate ID with a USB barcode scanner mounted at the kiosk so students can scan an existing school badge with no typing, as long as the barcode value is numeric and fits within the configured slot count.
• When using the Late Absent Threshold, set it to match the school's published Late versus Absent policy, for example "20 minutes late is Absent." Communicate the rule to families in your handbook.
• Pair an Auto Reset Seconds value of 3 with a kiosk on a public touch screen to keep the next student's experience clean. Use a higher value, 8 to 10, where staff want time to read each success card.
• Test with at least one student account from each grade level or school division before going live. Different schedules can expose configuration gaps.

Need a hand?

Your PCR Educator account manager can walk you through a setup tailored to your school's carpool, after-school, or athletics workflow, including custom sign-in messages and visual styling. Submit a ticket from your Customer Portal, or email support@pcreducator.com.

A PCR Educator DAT Query now supports an Auto mode for the Pivot role. Pick a field, set its role to Pivot (Auto), choose the aggregate function and the field to count or sum, and the query discovers the most-frequent values on its own. Each becomes its own column, with an "Other" bucket catching everything else.

What's new

Pivot (Auto) as a field role. A new value in the Role dropdown sits next to Group, Aggregate, and Pivot. Pivot (Auto) is eligible for any field that holds categorical values, no upfront value list required.

Top values discovered at query time. The query finds the most-frequent values in the chosen field each time it runs, up to twenty columns, and adds an "Other" bucket for the long tail.

One aggregate per pivoted column. Count, Sum, Average, Minimum, or Maximum. Whatever function you pick applies to every discovered column and to "Other."

Built for fields where the value list is unknown or shifts. Course names, action types, donor categories, inquiry sources. Anywhere a manual Pivot would mean typing out values that change year to year.

Saves and reruns like any other DAT Query. The auto-pivot refreshes with the query, so the columns reflect the current data each time the report runs.

Why it matters

Manual Pivot expects the user to list the values that should become columns. That works when the list is short and stable. It does not work when the catalog changes from year to year, or when no one wants to track down every value a field can hold. Pivot (Auto) removes that work. A course-load matrix or an action-type breakdown stays current as new courses are added and new action types appear, with no edits to the query.

A few ways to talk about it

• Pick the field, the function, and the target. The columns come from the data.
• Top twenty values plus an "Other" bucket, refreshed every time the query runs.
• A natural fit for high-cardinality fields where the value list is unknown or shifts year to year.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk you through Pivot (Auto) in a DAT Query whenever you're ready.

A PCR Educator DAT Query now puts a copy icon on every field row. One click creates a second instance of the same field, and that copy carries its own role and settings. The same field can do two jobs in one DAT Query.

What's new

Copy icon on every row. Each field row in a DAT Query has a copy icon. Selecting it adds a second row for the same field, ready to configure on its own.

A role for each copy. The duplicate is a separate row with its own Role, so the same field can be grouped on in one row and aggregated on in another.

Two aggregates of one field. A number can appear as both a Sum and an Average in the same DAT Query, each in its own row.

Why it matters

A DAT Query often calls for the same field in more than one role. A date can group the rows and count them. A balance can show as a total and as an average in the same view. Duplicating a row makes both uses visible on screen: two rows, one field, each with its own job.

A few ways to talk about it

• A copy icon on every field row puts the same field to work in two roles.
• Group on a field and aggregate on it in the same DAT Query.
• Show a value as both a Sum and an Average, side by side.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk you through the duplicate-row button whenever you're ready.

A calculated field in a PCR Educator DAT Query can now reference another field by its alias name in square brackets, for example [Absences in Class] * 100.0 / [Total Absences]. The expression reads in plain English, and the DAT Query stays correct when fields move.

What's new

Reference by name. A calculated field can name the field it needs by its alias, written in square brackets. The alias is the field name you already see in the query.

Stable when fields move. An alias reference points to a field by name, so reordering or duplicating fields keeps every calculation correct. PCR Educator resolves the alias to the field when the DAT Query runs.

Readable expressions. An expression like [Gifts This Year] minus [Gifts Last Year] explains itself. The next person who opens the DAT Query can read the math directly.

Why it matters

Naming the field keeps the meaning of a calculation visible on the page. An expression built from aliases reads the way a school talks about its data. Concentration ratios, year-over-year deltas, and weighted averages can be written with names that say what they mean, and the DAT Query keeps working when someone rearranges the fields later.

A few ways to talk about it

• Calculated fields in a DAT Query reference other fields by name, so the math reads in plain English.
• Reorder or duplicate fields freely. Alias references stay pointed at the right field.
• Concentration ratios, year-over-year deltas, and weighted averages, written the way you would say them.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk you through alias references in a DAT Query whenever you're ready.

This filter identifies students who have reached a specified number of absences in the current semester. It uses the new Division Calendar table so the filter automatically scopes to the current marking period and semester, with no date editing required at the start of each term.

When to use

Schools often want to notify parents and admins when a student crosses an absence threshold: for example, 5 absences, 7 absences, 9 absences, and so on. Build one filter per threshold. Each filter feeds a separate Notification Trigger that sends exactly one email per threshold per student per semester. See FAQ: Configuring Absence Threshold Notification Trigger for the trigger configuration.

Filter structure

The completed filter follows this tree:

• Student Info
  • Period Attendance And Discipline
    • Count of Period Attend Disc Id > 4
    • Division Calendar ((attendance only))
      • School Id = 1

The Division Calendar ((attendance only)) child is the join that makes the filter scope to the current semester. For the Division Calendar feature itself, see Update: Division Calendar, Now in Data Analytics.

Steps

• Navigate to Scheduling > Students.
• Click the filter funnel icon next to the Select Saved Filter... dropdown above the student grid.
• In the Add Filter Item dropdown, pick New Filter and click Add.
• The query tree appears with Student Info as the root. Click the + icon next to Student Info.
• In the second dropdown at the top of the Connect modal (to the right of With), pick Period Attendance And Discipline.
• Click Select on the Student Info > Period Attendance And Discipline path.

Note: Always pick the destination table from the second dropdown at the top of the Connect modal. The Find Table autocomplete and Search button below open a Connect To dialog that does not list path-registered variants like Division Calendar ((attendance only)).

• The Period Attendance And Discipline conditions modal opens. In the Conditions row:
  • Change the first dropdown from Field to Calculated/Aggregate.
  • Set the aggregate function to Count.
  • Pick the field Period Attend Disc Id.
  • Change the operator to >.
  • Type the threshold value (for example, 4 for a "5 or more absences" filter, since greater-than-4 catches 5, 6, 7, ...).
  • Click Add.
• Click Save on the Period Attendance And Discipline modal.
• Back on the query tree, click the + icon next to Period Attendance And Discipline.
• In the Connect modal, click the second dropdown (to the right of With) and pick Division Calendar ((attendance only)).
• In the Division Calendar ((attendance only)) conditions modal, add a condition: Field School Id, operator =, value the school_id for the division you want to scope to (commonly 1). Click Add, then Save.
• Back in the Filter modal, click Save at the bottom.
• On the Save Filter page, type a clear name in Filter Name (for example, "Absences 5 or More, Current Semester") and click Save New.

The filter is now available as a Merge Filter on any Notification Trigger that targets students, and is also selectable from the Students page Select Saved Filter dropdown.

Cloning for additional thresholds

To create the filter for 7, 9, and higher thresholds, repeat the steps and change only the threshold value in the Count condition. Because Division Calendar always returns the current semester for each division, these filters do not require updates when the semester or academic year rolls over.

Example: For a "7 or more absences" filter, the Count condition is Count of Period Attend Disc Id > 6. For "9 or more," use > 8.

Notes

The aggregate condition lives on the parent table (Period Attendance And Discipline), not on Division Calendar. The Division Calendar join scopes which attendance records are counted to the current semester. The aggregate condition counts them.

The variant name in the second dropdown (here Division Calendar ((attendance only))) reflects the specific join path registered for that source table in dmt_table_joins. Other source tables may show different Division Calendar variants.

This Notification Trigger sends one email to parents and admins when a student reaches a specified absence threshold in the current semester. It uses the new period-aware quota controls so the email goes out exactly once per threshold per student per semester, not every day.

When to use

Schools often want to notify parents and admins when a student crosses an absence threshold: for example, 5 absences, 7 absences, 9 absences. Build one trigger per threshold, each pointing at the matching saved filter from FAQ: Configuring Absence Threshold Filter.

Steps

• Navigate to Home > Notifications > Notification Triggers.
• Click New to start a new trigger.
• Fill the standard top-of-form fields:
  • Category: the schedulable attendance trigger type (the entry that exposes the Send Rate controls in Custom Settings).
  • Name: a clear name such as "Absence Alert 5 in Semester".
  • Is Active: checked.
  • Recipient / Data Relationship: Parent-Child (parents receive the alert; admins are added via the role list at the bottom of the form).
• Set the filters:
  • Eligible Recipients Filter (User): the saved user filter for parents and admin recipients.
  • Merge Filter: the absence threshold filter from FAQ: Configuring Absence Threshold Filter, for example "Absences 5 or More, Current Semester".
• Pick the absence alert Email Template.

Send Rate Settings

These controls (introduced in Update: Notification Triggers, Now on Your School's Calendar) cap the trigger so each student receives exactly one email per threshold per semester:

• Send Rate: Daily. The job evaluates each day, and the caps below prevent daily sending.
• Minimum days between fires: 30. This is a per-student frequency floor that prevents repeat sends if a student's count momentarily flickers.
• Maximum fires per: Semester. Pick Academic Year instead if you would rather cap once per year across both semesters.
• Maximum number of fires: 1.
• School division for period: required when Maximum fires per is Semester or Marking Period. Pick the appropriate division. The dropdown is hidden for Academic Year and Don't limit.

Note: If you pick Semester or Marking Period without selecting a School division for period, the save is blocked with the message "Pick a school division - required when 'Maximum fires per' is Semester or Marking Period."

Visible for Roles

At the bottom of the form, check the admin role(s) that should also see the notification in their inbox.

Save and repeat

Click Save. To create the trigger for 7, 9, and higher thresholds, clone the trigger and change only:

• The trigger Name (for example, "Absence Alert 7 in Semester").
• The Merge Filter selection (point at the matching saved filter for that threshold).

Send Rate, Minimum days between fires, Maximum fires per, Maximum number of fires, and School division for period stay identical across thresholds.

How the period scoping works

The trigger's Maximum fires per: Semester cap counts fires within the boundaries of the selected School division for period's marking-period and semester calendar. When the semester turns over, the per-student counter resets and the trigger is eligible to fire again on the new semester.

This works in tandem with the Merge Filter from FAQ: Configuring Absence Threshold Filter, which uses Division Calendar to scope the absence count itself to the current semester.

Together: the filter answers "does this student have 5 or more absences in the current semester," and the trigger answers "should we send the email now, or have we already sent it this semester."

Notes

The trigger evaluates daily because Send Rate is set to Daily, but the Maximum fires per: Semester cap and the Minimum days between fires floor ensure that any given student receives at most one email per threshold per semester.

If a customer wants a less aggressive cadence (for example, two reminders per semester instead of one), increase Maximum number of fires accordingly and adjust Minimum days between fires so the reminders are spaced appropriately.

Setting up a field in a PCR Educator DAT Query is one choice. The Fields step gives each field a single Role: Group, Aggregate, or Pivot. Choose the role, and the controls that role needs appear with it.

What's new

One Role per field. Each field in a DAT Query has a single Role with three values: Group, Aggregate, and Pivot. The role drives how the field behaves in the query.

Controls that match the role. Choosing a role brings up the controls it needs. The Aggregate role brings the function and Partition By options. The Group role keeps the row simple.

Pivot offered where it fits. The Pivot role appears for fields that are eligible to be pivoted.

Why it matters

One decision sets up a field. The field grid stays focused on what each row actually uses, so a DAT Query is quick to build and quick to read, especially for someone building their first one.

A few ways to talk about it

• Field setup in a DAT Query is one Role choice per field: Group, Aggregate, or Pivot.
• Each role brings its own controls, so the grid shows what the field actually uses.
• Quick to learn on a first DAT Query, quick to scan on every one after.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk you through the Role column whenever you're ready.

PCR Educator's Data Analytics Tool now lets you decide what an empty cell should say. A new If Empty column on the Fields tab takes any placeholder you type, in any format the field supports, and renders it wherever the data is blank. Reports that used to leave readers guessing now finish their own sentences, in your school's own language.

Why it matters

When a query pulls data from more than one source, for example "show me all students, and their check-in status for today," some students will not have a matching record. Out of the box those cells appear empty, and the reader is forced to interpret. Is the data missing? Is the student absent? Did the report break? Each guess sends staff down a different path, and most of those paths are wasted time.

If Empty removes the ambiguity. You decide what an empty cell should say, so your report reads exactly the way you want it to, the first time, every time.

How it works

1. Add any field to your query.
2. On the Fields tab, find the new IF EMPTY column (it sits between Aggregate and Pivot Aggregate).
3. Type the value you want to display when the field is blank.
4. Save the query and run it. Every empty cell in that column now shows your chosen value.

The control adapts to the field type automatically, so the placeholder you type always matches what the field would normally hold:

• Text fields get a text box, and the placeholder also replaces empty strings, not just NULLs.
• Number fields get a text box for a numeric placeholder.
• Yes/No fields get a checkbox.
• Date fields get a date picker.
• Date and time fields get a date and time picker.
• Time fields get a time picker.

Examples in practice

Check-In Status. Set the placeholder to "Not checked in." Viewers see "Not checked in" wherever a student has no check-in record, instead of a blank cell.

Solicitor Assigned. Set the placeholder to "Unassigned." Development reports surface prospects with no owner, so the gift officer who runs the list knows exactly where to start the week.

Emergency Contact Phone. Set the placeholder to "Missing, please update." Staff see a clear call to action instead of an empty field, and the gap closes itself.

Tuition Balance. Set the placeholder to 0.00. Totals add up correctly, exports stay numeric, and the business office stops chasing phantom rows.

Photo Consent. Set the placeholder to "Not on file." Plain English replaces an unchecked box, so the reader does not have to guess whether unchecked means "no" or "not yet asked."

Key benefits

Cleaner reports. No more mystery blank cells, no more reports that read as if they are half finished.

Better communication. Replace technical emptiness with plain English meaning, in your school's vocabulary.

Smarter exports. Excel and PDF exports carry the replacement value, so downstream consumers, board members, parents, and auditors all see the same thing the on-screen reader sees.

Safer joins. When you combine tables with optional relationships, for example students with or without donations, every row reads coherently. Optional joins stop creating cognitive load.

No formula required. Type a value, save, run. No SQL, no expressions, no training, no help-desk ticket.

Where to find it

DAT, then open or build a query, then the Fields tab. The new IF EMPTY column sits between Aggregate and Pivot Aggregate. The feature is available on every field, in every query.

Compatibility

Existing queries are unaffected. The column is optional and defaults to blank, so reports built before this release continue to behave exactly as they always have. Adopt If Empty on the queries that need it, on your own timeline.

A few ways to talk about it

• Blank cells now say what you mean: type a placeholder, save, run.
• One control adapts to every field type: text, number, checkbox, date, time.
• Cleaner joins, cleaner exports, no formulas required, no SQL.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk you through the new column, and the examples above, whenever you're ready.

PCR Educator Data Analytics has a new table called Division Calendar. It exposes each division's current Marking Period, Semester, Academic Year, Admissions Year, Development Year, and Fiscal Year as a single always-current row per school. Saved filters, queries, and notification triggers can reference the current period directly, and the values stay accurate as the calendar rolls over.

What's new

One row per division. Division Calendar returns the current calendar values for every division a school runs, keyed on School Id, with columns for Marking Period, Semester, Academic Year, Admissions Year, Development Year, and Fiscal Year.

Division-aware values. Schools that run different calendars per division (Lower, Middle, Upper, or multi-campus) get the right current value for each division automatically.

Drop-in join for any table. Join Division Calendar to any existing table on School Id to scope a full DAT report or notification trigger to "this division's current marking period," "this division's current academic year," and so on.

Cross-departmental coverage. Academics, Admissions, Business Office, and Development all reference the same shared current-period table, so dashboards stay aligned across roles.

Why it matters

Build a filter once and it keeps working term after term, year after year. A query like "students with 5 or more absences in the current marking period" reads the current value from Division Calendar and stays correct as the calendar advances. Reports and notification triggers stay aligned to the actual calendar each division follows, automatically.

Example queries

• All students with 5 or more absences in the current Marking Period for their division
• Inquiries created in the current Admissions Year, by division
• Giving totals year-to-date for the current Development Year
• AR aging snapshot inside the current Fiscal Year
• Gradebook averages for sections in the current Semester

A few ways to talk about it

• Filters that stay current automatically: build once, reuse across every term and every year.
• One shared source of truth for the current period across Academics, Admissions, Business Office, and Development.
• Division-aware by design: Lower, Middle, and Upper school dashboards each read the right calendar value automatically.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk you through Division Calendar whenever you're ready.

A Household Notification Trigger is a notification trigger that operates on a Household record rather than on an individual student. It parallels the existing Student trigger type and is available automatically in the trigger Category dropdown.

PCR Educator has added the Household trigger type so that schools can send a single message per family for events that are inherently household-level, such as tuition billing, re-enrollment, annual giving, and emergency communication. This is a major step forward for schools that have wanted family-level automation without the duplication that comes from looping over each student.

The Household trigger appears in the Category dropdown for any school running notifications on a supported build.

How the Household trigger works

The Household trigger reads from the Household record as its primary scope. The condition query is written against Household fields, and the resulting message is addressed to the household rather than to a single student.

The Household trigger supports the full set of suppression controls. See Notification Trigger Suppression for the SendOncePer, MaxFiresPerScope, and PeriodScopeSchoolId fields and how each is evaluated.

Roles required

The Notification Triggers page is restricted to users with the Security Full role. The same role is required for creating and editing Household triggers.

Configuring Household Trigger

• Open the Notification Triggers page in Campus.
• Click Add Trigger.
• In the Category dropdown, select Household.
• Define the condition query against the Household record.
• Set the message template, recipients, and schedule.
• Optionally set the suppression fields described in Notification Trigger Suppression.
• Save the trigger.

Example: A trigger that fires when a household has any unpaid invoice over thirty days past due, configured with SendOncePer set to one fire per billing cycle.

Use cases by department

Business office and finance

• A tuition past-due reminder that fires once per household per billing cycle rather than once per student.
• A reminder to refresh autopay banking information, capped at one fire per household per year.

Admissions and enrollment management

• A re-enrollment open notification that lands once per returning family on the published open date.
• A withdrawal-risk outreach trigger for households flagged by year-over-year engagement scoring.

Advancement and development

• A capital campaign pledge reminder gated by SendOncePer so donors are not approached twice in the same quarter.
• A legacy family milestone notification when cumulative household giving crosses a recognition threshold.
• A parents association membership renewal reminder tied to the household record.

Notification Trigger Suppression is a set of controls on every Notification Trigger that limits how often the trigger may fire, both per target record and across the school as a whole. Suppression keeps automated communication useful by preventing the same family, student, or staff member from receiving the same message more often than the school intends, and by capping the total number of fires for high-risk triggers within a defined period.

Suppression applies to every trigger Category, including Student and Household. When a quota cap is reached, the trigger is suppressed quietly. The underlying condition query is not modified, and no error is raised.

Roles required

The Notification Triggers page is restricted to users with the Security Full role. The same role governs all trigger Categories and all suppression fields.

Suppression fields

Every Notification Trigger exposes the following fields.

• SendOncePer defines the minimum interval that must pass between two fires of the same trigger for the same target record. The interval is anchored to the school's calendar period.
• MaxFiresPerScope caps the total number of fires for the trigger within the defined period, counted across all target records at the school.
• PeriodScopeSchoolId identifies the school whose calendar period anchors both the SendOncePer interval and the MaxFiresPerScope window. The period boundary follows the school's fiscal or academic calendar as configured.

Note: SendOncePer is evaluated per target record. MaxFiresPerScope is evaluated across the school. The two fields are independent and may be used together.

How suppression is evaluated

When a Notification Trigger is scheduled to fire, the system performs the following checks in order.

• The trigger condition query is evaluated against the target Category, producing a candidate set of records.
• For each candidate record, the SendOncePer interval is checked against the trigger's fire history. Candidates that fired within the interval are dropped.
• The MaxFiresPerScope cap is checked against the trigger's fire history for the current period. If the cap has been reached, the remaining candidates are dropped.
• The trigger fires for the surviving candidates, and the fire history is updated.

Example: A trigger with SendOncePer set to one fire per billing cycle and MaxFiresPerScope set to five hundred fires per cycle will fire at most once per target record and at most five hundred times in total across the school within a single billing cycle.

Configuring suppression

• Open the Notification Triggers page in Campus.
• Open the trigger to edit.
• Set SendOncePer to the desired per-record interval.
• Set MaxFiresPerScope to the desired total cap, or leave blank for no cap.
• Set PeriodScopeSchoolId to the school whose calendar anchors the period.
• Save the trigger.

Note: Leaving SendOncePer blank allows the trigger to fire on every evaluation cycle that matches the condition. Leaving MaxFiresPerScope blank removes the total cap. Both behaviors may be appropriate for low-volume triggers, but should be reviewed before saving.

Use cases

• A tuition past-due reminder configured with SendOncePer set to one fire per billing cycle, so the same household receives the reminder at most once per cycle.
• A capital campaign pledge reminder configured with SendOncePer set to one fire per quarter, so donors are not approached more than once per quarter.
• A severe weather closure notice configured with MaxFiresPerScope set to a sensible cap per academic term, so a string of incidents does not generate excessive messages across the school.
• A re-enrollment reminder configured with SendOncePer set to one fire per enrollment season, so each family receives a single reminder per season.

Note: Suppression applies to the trigger itself. If two separate triggers are configured to send similar messages, each trigger maintains its own suppression history.

PCR Educator's check-in / check-out kiosk has grown from a simple sign-in log into a connected workflow that touches attendance, billing, admissions, and advancement. With the May 2026 release tying the kiosk into period attendance, this is a good moment to look at every workflow it now supports. Most schools use one or two. The module supports nine.

What it does

Front-desk sign-in and sign-out. Receptionist records a student or staff arrival or departure with a reason code, a comment, and a full audit trail on both legs of the trip.

Period attendance write-back. New in May 2026. Mid-day sign-out marks the in-session period Leaving Early. On return, the in-session period flips to Late and missed periods reconcile cleanly. Teacher entries are never overwritten.

Aftercare and extended-day billing. A fee schedule maps each program and time window to a billable product. The business office reviews matched records and runs Create Invoice to post line items to family ledgers in a batch.

Self-service family kiosk. Parents, students, emergency contacts, and authorized pickups can sign in or out using credentials, a student ID scan, or a five-digit pincode. Pincode scope is configurable as unique per household or unique across the database.

Bulk dismissal and field trips. Multi-action surfaces in the student list let a coordinator check an entire cohort in or out with one click.

Health office and counselor visits. Programs and reasons are lookup driven, so the same kiosk handles Health Office, Counseling, Late Pickup, and Early Release with their own audit trails on the student profile.

Reporting in Administrator and Finance. The same list view is mounted in both roles, so each team sees the records it owns through familiar filters and saved queries.

Mail and email merge. Templated letters and emails run directly off a selection of check-in records, with merge fields tied to the entity.

Admissions and donor event check-in. A dedicated event flow matches an inquirer's or donor's household to admissions and advancement events scheduled within plus or minus one hour of the current time, then credits attendance to the right event.

Why it matters

The lobby kiosk and the rest of the platform now share one record. Front-desk staff, faculty, the business office, admissions, and advancement see the same student under the same household, with the same audit trail. Emergency rosters reflect who is on campus right now. Aftercare invoices match the time the family actually picked up. Period attendance reflects the kiosk in real time. The work that used to live in different systems, or in different spreadsheets, now lives in one.

A few ways to talk about it

• One kiosk, nine workflows, one student record. From morning arrival to admissions tours to aftercare invoicing.
• The May 2026 release ties sign-out and return directly to period attendance. Teacher entries always win.
• Most schools are using one or two of these. The other seven are already in your platform.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk you through any of the nine workflows whenever you are ready.

PCR Educator filters now support count, sum, and average conditions, the same aggregate logic that has long lived inside DAT queries. Schools can build saved filters that find students based on how many records they have or how much something totals, then drop those filters into notification triggers, contracts, or anywhere else a saved filter is used.

What you can build

Aggregate filters answer the questions schools ask every day:

• Students with more than 8 absences this semester
• Students with more than 4 discipline points in the current marking period
• Students with at least 3 tardies in any marking period
• Students who have any record in a given table

Build the filter once. Reuse it everywhere a saved filter is selected.

Key capabilities

Six aggregate functions. Sum, Count, Count Distinct, Average, Min, and Max are available across supported fields.

Time-window scoping. Combine aggregate conditions with marking period, semester, academic year, admissions year, fiscal year, or development year, so counts stay inside the window that actually matters.

Round-trip editing. Save an aggregate filter, reopen it, and the condition reads cleanly (for example, "Count of records > 4").

Plain-English filter descriptions. Saved aggregate filters describe themselves in the filter list and pickers, so the next person who picks one up understands what it does at a glance.

Why it matters

A request like "find students with more than 4 discipline points in the current marking period" used to require a custom DAT report or a one-off query. Now it is a single saved filter that any teacher, advisor, or admin can reuse, drop into a notification trigger, or attach to a contract. Logic that lived only in the reporting layer is now usable across the system, in the same place schools already manage their saved filters.

A few ways to talk about it

• Filters now ask aggregate questions: count, sum, average, min, max, count distinct.
• Save once, reuse everywhere: notification triggers, contracts, and any picker that takes a saved filter.
• Time-aware counts: scope to marking period, semester, academic year, admissions year, fiscal year, or development year, so the math matches the calendar.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk through example filters whenever you're ready.

PCR Educator notification triggers can now fire on a school-calendar rhythm: once per marking period, once per semester, or up to N times per academic year. The new period-aware quotas sit alongside the existing rolling-day floor, so schools control exactly how often a parent or staff member hears from the system.

What's new

"Maximum fires per" period quotas. A new dropdown on every trigger caps notifications by Marking Period, Semester, or Academic Year. Combine it with "Maximum number of fires" to express patterns like "up to 3 escalation emails per semester."

"Minimum days between fires" (renamed for clarity). The legacy frequency floor now reads exactly as it works. Period quotas and day floors apply independently, so a single trigger can be both "at most 3 per semester" and "at least 14 days apart."

"School division for period." Students sit in many divisions at once, so the admin explicitly picks which division's calendar defines the period boundaries. The dropdown appears only when the scope needs it, requires a selection, and includes three layers of safeguards so a misconfigured trigger never silently skips suppression.

Framework-level coverage. Attendance, gradebook, discipline, balance-low, action reminders, and any future trigger type inherit the new options automatically, with no per-type configuration work.

Why it matters

Suppression now aligns to the actual school calendar. Configure "semester, max 3 fires" once and a 4 / 7 / 9 absence escalation ladder resets cleanly when the semester turns over. Parents see the right number of messages at the right cadence, and admins stop approximating "a semester" with a day count that drifts from the calendar. Existing triggers keep running exactly as they do today, because the new options are additive and opt-in per trigger.

A few ways to talk about it

• Notification triggers now speak your school's calendar: once per marking period, once per semester, or up to N times per academic year.
• Configure escalation ladders in one place. 4 absences, 7 absences, 9 absences. Three emails per semester, not three hundred.
• Two independent rules, one trigger: minimum days between sends, plus maximum sends per period. Both apply, both protect parents from email overload.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk you through the new dropdowns whenever you're ready.

Your check-in / check-out kiosk now updates period attendance in real time. When a student signs out mid-day, the class in session is marked Leaving Early (or your school's configured code), and the rest of the day can auto-mark as Absent. When that student returns, the record reconciles itself: the in-session class flips to Late, and any missed periods in between are filled in cleanly.

What's new

Real-time mid-day check-out. Current period reflects the student's status the moment they sign out.

Automatic reconciliation on return. The system recognizes a student coming back and adjusts the record without anyone touching the grid.

Teacher entries always win. The kiosk only updates rows it created. Manual teacher entries stay untouched, so the classroom remains the source of truth.

Configurable per school. Leaving Early, Absent, and Late codes come from your existing widget settings. Your wording, your policies.

Every sign-in mode supported. Username and password, student ID, and PIN-only kiosks all run the same integrated flow.

Full audit trail. Every automatic change is logged for administrator review.

Why it matters

Emergency rosters reflect who is actually on campus right now. Teachers see accurate period attendance the moment a student walks back in. Front-desk staff and faculty stay aligned without extra steps, and your school keeps full control over the codes applied in every scenario.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools using the check-in / check-out kiosk. Your account team can walk you through the configuration options whenever you're ready.

The Actions (Delete) multi-action allows mass deletion of selected students' actions. To access this multi-action, navigate to Administrator > Students. You need the Admin Full, Admin Read, Registrar Full, or Registrar Read role to access this page. You need the Actions Full role to use this multi-action. Select the desired students, and choose the multi-action Actions (Delete).

On the following page, choose the academic Year and the Action. Click the "Delete Actions & Files" button to delete the matching actions along with any files attached to them. To remove only the files attached to those actions and keep the actions themselves, click the "Delete Files Only" button instead.

We have refined two parts of the PCR Educator interface to give you a cleaner workspace and quicker access to the controls you use most.

Main selectors now live in the menu. Year, term, division, ledger, and other context controls are consolidated in the main menu.

Widget configuration is now on each widget. Click the settings (gear) icon on any widget to open its configuration. Every option you had before is one click away.

The result is more room to work, more consistent navigation across modules, and a stronger foundation as we continue to expand the platform.

Our support team is happy to walk you through the new layout anytime.

Stripe Vendor Payment is a Finance feature in PCR Educator that lets your school send electronic payments to vendors through Stripe Financial Connections, replacing paper checks with direct ACH transfers. Vendors connect their own bank accounts through the vendor portal, so your finance team does not collect or store vendor banking information.

This article walks through the school-side setup. Setup takes about 15 to 20 minutes of work on your end, plus 1 to 2 business days for Stripe to verify the application.

Required role: To configure Stripe Vendor Payment, the user must have access to Finance > Maintenance in PCR Educator.

Before you start

Please have the following ready:

• An authorized financial signer who can complete Stripe's identity and business verification.
• Your school's banking details for the payout account.
• The General Ledger account you want tied to electronic payouts.

Creating the Stripe Financial Connections account

• Go to https://stripe.com and click Sign up. If your school already has a Stripe account, log in instead.
• When prompted to select a product, enable Stripe Financial Connections.
• Complete the business verification fields. When Stripe asks how your platform is configured, use the values below exactly. These match the integration PCR Educator has built against Stripe Connect. Changing them will cause the connection to fail.

Funds flow: Buyers will purchase from you. Sellers will be paid out individually.

Industry: Business management software

Account creation: Onboarding hosted by Stripe

Account management: You will redirect sellers to the Express Dashboard to manage their Stripe account.

Liability for refunds and chargebacks: You are responsible for refunds and chargebacks to buyers.

• Confirm the Connect Platform Agreement when prompted.
• Submit the application. Stripe typically verifies within 1 to 2 business days.

Sending the Stripe Customer ID to PCR Educator

Once Stripe approves your account:

• From your Stripe dashboard, copy your Stripe Customer ID. This is the identifier PCR Educator uses to link your school's Stripe account to your PCR Educator portal.
• Send the Stripe Customer ID to PCR Educator support through your established secure channel. Do not email it in plain text.
• PCR Educator will configure Stripe as a payment method on your portal and confirm when it is live.

Note: At this time, the Stripe Customer ID is configured by PCR Educator support on your behalf. A self-service field is on the roadmap.

Connecting the payout account

Once PCR Educator confirms Stripe is configured on your portal:

• Log in to PCR Educator.
• Navigate to Finance > Maintenance > External Payment Accounts.
• Click New and select your connected Stripe account.
• Link the payout account to the General Ledger account you want associated with electronic payouts.
• Save.

Your payout account is now active and available for payment runs.

Inviting vendor to the vendor portal

Vendors connect their own bank accounts through the PCR Educator vendor portal. Your team does not collect, store, or manage vendor banking information.

To send invitations:

• Go to Finance > Vendors.
• Select the vendors you want to onboard.
• Use the Send Vendor Portal Invitation action.

Each vendor receives an email with portal credentials and a link to connect their bank account.

Running electronic payment

When your finance team generates a payment batch and selects a Stripe-enabled payout account, the system automatically issues electronic transfers to every vendor with an active connected bank account. Vendors who have not yet connected a bank account continue to receive paper checks. Both methods run inside the same payment batch.

Common question

Do we still need to print checks? Only for vendors who have not connected a bank account through the portal. The system handles both methods in one payment run.

Where do vendors see their payment status? The vendor portal displays pending and completed payouts.

What if a vendor's bank details change? Vendors update their own information through the portal. No action is required from your finance team.

Are there transaction fees? Stripe charges standard ACH fees per transfer. Review Stripe's current pricing on their website.

Can we reverse an electronic payment? Once submitted, ACH transfers follow Stripe's standard reversal rules. Contact PCR Educator support immediately if a payment was issued in error.

For help with any step, open a ticket through the PCR Educator customer portal. Include your school name and the step where you are stuck.

• Default is used for most products.
• Deposit is originally used for (Re) Enrollment Contract deposits.  Note: There is no functional difference between Default and Deposit.  Both allow specifying a Deposit amount in the left menu.  The Deposit option is retained for backwards compatibility only.  Use Default instead. Note: When a Deposit Account is specified on the product, the system will use the Deposit Account when recording the transaction. If no Deposit Account is specified, the system will default to the Revenue Account associated with the product.
• Discount is for Summer Camp and POS purchases.
• Donation is for specifying online donations.
• Fee (Fixed Amount) is used for fee products where a fixed amount is applied.  Example: ECheck convenience fees are usually a fixed amount.  Note: Permissible values for fees may be subject to state or local regulations.
• Fee (Percentage) is used for fee products where a percentage is applied.  Example: Credit Card convenience fees are usually a percentage. Note: Permissible rates for fees may be subject to state or local regulations. Example: late fees are usually a percentage.

• A DAT Query
• A list of entities (such as the list of students, courses, or households)
• CMS portal as a mechanism to restrict the visibility of certain elements
• Automated Notifications as a mechanism to determine  the list of recipients
• (Re)Enrollment Contracts and Forms to determine the list of eligible households and students

• Initializing DAT Filter
• Initializing DAT Filter from DAT Query
• Initializing DAT Filter from List
• Adding DAT Filter Condition
• Creating New DAT Filter
• Filter Group
• Creating Filter Group
• Using Filter Groups on Lists

• DAT Query - Step 1 - Adding Conditions
• DAT Query - Step 1 - Connecting Tables

• Managing DAT Filter Conditions
• Saving DAT Filter
• Managing DAT Filter
• Deleting DAT Filter
• Reviewing Existing DAT Filter
• DAT Query and DAT Filter Common Mistakes

1. Click on the table name that would be used for the new filter.
2. Under “Conditions” pick “New Filter” from the available choices.
3. Click on the blue filter (funnel) icon.

1. DAT Query - Step 1 - Adding Conditions
2. DAT Query - Step 1 - Connecting Tables

1. Click Save on a DAT Filter popup window.  Note: You can replace an existing filter by choosing it from the dropdown on the Save screen.
2. Managing DAT Filter

• Filter Group
• Filter

1. Navigate to Campus > Home > Filter Setup > Filter Groups
2. Click New
3. Enter a Group Name for the Filter Group
4. Enter Group Owner
5. Enable Is Public if the Filter Group should be visible to other users
6. Click Save

• Navigate to Admin > Maintenance > Official Reports, or open the student record and review Progress PDF, Report Cards PDF, or Transcripts PDF.
• Confirm that the report has an Available Date.
• Confirm that the Available Date has already passed.
• Confirm that the Available Date is correct for your school's time zone in Application Setup (CMS/Website).
• Review the Household saved on the archived report. Archived reports are generated for qualifying primary households. If a student has multiple send mail households, each qualifying household receives its own copy.
• If the student had an academic hold or financial hold, confirm whether the report was intentionally archived with a later Available Date.
• If grades, comments, or an incomplete changed after the report was first archived, re-archive the report using Overwrite.
• Confirm that the parent is checking the Student area of the Parent Portal, where archived report cards and transcripts are displayed for download.

1. Log in to the CMS Portal as an Administrator
2. Click Admin in the top left-hand corner
3. Select the Content tab
4. Click the Categories subtab
5. Click New on the right-hand side
6. Enter a value in the Title field
7. Select whether content types within this category should be visible on the calendar
8. Save the record

• A specific Content Type, or
• One or more Content Type Categories

1. Navigate to the appropriate CMS page (Class Management Page)
2. Select the course sections for which you want to create content types
3. Click Create

• Log in to the CMS Portal as an Administrator
• Click Admin in the top left-hand corner
• Select the Content tab
• Click New on the right-hand side
• Complete the following fields:
1. Title - Enter the name of the content type.
2. Is Public - Select this checkbox if information within the content type should be visible to the general public.
3. Is Active - Determines whether the content type is active. Schools can activate or deactivate content types using this option.

• Click Roles on the left-hand menu
• Specify which users can View and Edit content within the content type
• Click Categories on the left-hand menu
• Select all categories to which the content type belongs

• Creating Content Type: CMS Portal
• Creating Content Type: Class Minisite Wizard

• Edit - Allows users to add new content and update existing content.
• View - Allows users to view content without making any changes.

• Individual Users - Specific users are granted access to the selected content type.
• Security Roles - Users assigned to specific security roles are granted access to the selected content type.
• Attributes - Users with predefined attributes are granted access to the selected content type.
• Class Membership - Students enrolled in a class, and parents with students enrolled in that class, are granted access to the corresponding class content type.

• Content Type (Current article)
• Content Type: Membership
• Content Type: Class Minisite
• Creating Content Type
• Creating Content Type: CMS Portal
• Creating Content Type: Class Minisite Wizard
• Content Type Category
• Creating Content Type Category
• CMS Widget
• CMS Widget - Class Minisite Wizard
• CMS Widget - Calendar
• Importing New Records - Calendar Event
• CMS Widget - Content Roster
• CMS Widget - News
• CMS Widget - Forum Profile Statistic
• CMS Widget - Image Gallery
• CMS Widget - Content Type Text
• CMS Widget - Alert

• Navigate to: Admin > Comments and Marks > Marks.
• Search for unsaved grades for the desired marking period.

We’re excited that the Graduation Requirements webinar is almost here!

Here are the details:

Date: Wednesday, October 1, 2025
Time: 1:00 PM CT / 2:00 PM ET / 11:00 AM PT

👉 Join the Webinar Live: Click here to watch on YouTube

In this webinar, you’ll learn how to:

     - Create and manage graduation plans for different programs
     - Define and configure graduation requirements
     - Check and monitor student progress toward fulfilling requirements
     - Review how graduation requirements are reflected on transcripts 

We look forward to seeing you there!

Join us for a Graduation Requirements webinar!

In this webinar, you will learn how to:

• Create and manage graduation plans for different programs
• Define and configure graduation requirements
• Check and monitor student progress toward fulfilling requirements
• Review how graduation requirements are reflected on transcripts

Date: Wednesday, October 1, 2025
Time: 1:00 PM CT / 2:00 PM ET / 11:00 AM PT

👉 To RSVP: Simply email support@pcreducator.com and we’ll register you for the webinar.

📢 Help us tailor the webinar to your school:

Send your graduation requirements to support@pcreducator.com by September 24th. We can customize examples to ensure the session speaks directly to your school’s needs.

We’re excited to have you join us! 

1. Navigate to Administrator > Maintenance > Graduation Plans.
2. Enter the name of the Graduation Plan and click “Add New.”
3. Navigate to Administrator > Maintenance > Graduation Requirements.
4. Select the Graduation Plan, specify the requirements, enter the Required Number of Credits for that requirement, and click Add.

1. Navigate to Scheduling > Students > Details > Registration Overrides.
2. Select the classes to override.
3. Click Add.


 

1. Navigate to Administrator > Courses > Courses
2. Select the Courses and go to multi-action > Add Prerequisite
3. Select the Course Requirement and click Add.
 

1. Navigate to Administrator > Courses > Courses.
2. Go to Course Details > Prerequisites.
3. Select the Course Requirement and click Add.
 

1. Navigate to Administrator > Courses > Prerequisites,
2. Click New,
3. Enter the Course Requirement information and click Save. 

• Course (Meet Before) – the related course must meet in a previous marking period.
• Course (Meet Before Or Same As) – the related course may meet in a previous or the same marking period.
• Course (Meet Same With) – the related course must meet in the same marking period.
• Course (Meet After Or Same As) – the related course may meet in a later or the same marking period.
• Course (Meet After) – the related course must meet in a later marking period.
• Course (Meet Any With) – the related course may meet in any marking period (before, same, or after).

1. Assign Course Requirement to Course - Bulk. 
2. Assign Course Requirement to Course - Individual.

1. Navigate to the Administrator > Courses > Course Type Levels screen. 
2. Enter the Course Type and Level in the designated fields and click Add New. Note: Course Type is an alphanumeric field whereas Course Level is a numeric field.