Q:     What is an FDbroadcast?
A: WhatIsFDbroadcast FDbroadcast is designed to allow principals (and selected staff) the ability to message the school community
in multiple methods in case of an emergency or urgent situation.

*The message sent will be truncated to 113 characters. This includes the name of the sender, the school name,
and the first part of the message. The user will have to log in to FastDirect in order to see the remaining message.
Therefore, we recommend providing the most vital information in the first 80-90 characters.

This feature sends all users a copy of your urgent FDmail as well as a Text Notification and an Email Forward.
Even if your school does not currently use the feature 'Email Forward', the FDbroadcast will still forward your
FDmail message directly to the recipients' email. However, in order for the text notification to work, your school
MUST enable 'SMS Text Notification' in Settings.

The last critical step is that your parents have entered in all the necessary information on their parent form.
They will need:
  • email address
  • cell phone number
  • cell phone provider
Text notification and email forward are only sent if the appropriate fields are completed on the staff and parent forms.
If a parent has opted out of receiving SMS Text Notifications or has opted out of receiving Email Forward, an FDbroadcast
will still be sent to that parent in all methods regardless of the parents' preferences.

This is why FDbroadcast is ideal for urgent or emergency situations, as it overrides the parents' preferences
for communication.


The option "FDbroadcast" must be selected when sending the FDmail message. The system, by default, allows
the Principal access to this feature. To give other staff members access, the Principal must edit their Teacher (Staff)
form in the People section.

You can check which parents have the necessary information by going to
  • Settings
  • FDmail
  • Parent Notification Settings (Under Enable Staff SMS Text Notification)
  • On this page you can see information for all families and also edit/add information directly to this page
  • If you make any changes, be sure to Save Changes