Staying connected with parents, guardians, faculty, and other August users is essential for coordinated student support. The Messaging feature in August Schools allows you to communicate directly within the platform—keeping conversations organized, documented, and tied to the appropriate student record or encounter.

Whether you’re sending a quick notification, collaborating with a team, or waiting on a parent response, August provides three flexible ways to message. This article will walk you through each method, when to use them, and helpful tips to make messaging even easier.

Why Use Messaging in August?

Messaging within August Schools:

Keeps communication tied to the student record or encounter
Allows multiple participants in one thread (parents, staff, teams)
Tracks delivery method (email or text)
Supports file attachments
Offers message translation
Automatically manages thread status based on activity

By centralizing communication in the platform, you reduce back-and-forth across email, text, and phone—and ensure everything is documented in one place.

The following video walks through each messaging option and their different purposes.

Method 1: Send a Message from a Student Card

This is ideal when you want ongoing communication tied directly to a student’s overall record.

How to Send a Message

Open the Student Card.
Click the Messages tab.
Select New Thread.
Add participants using the dropdown:
- The student
- Parents/guardians
- Faculty
- Other August users
(Optional) Use Visible to Roles to allow additional teams (e.g., counselors, nurses, athletics) to view the thread. If no additional roles are added, the thread is only visible to you as the creator.
Type your message in the text field.
(Optional) Attach a file:
- Select an existing file, or
- Upload a new file.
(Optional) Use the Translate feature if the family prefers another language.
Click Send.

After Sending

A delivery confirmation icon appears next to the message.
Hover over the icon to see how it was delivered (email or text).
Parent/guardian responses will appear in the same thread.

Important: Thread Expiration

Message threads from the Student Card remain open for 14 days after the last activity.
If no one responds within 14 days, the thread will automatically close.

Best for: Ongoing conversations where you expect back-and-forth communication.

Method 2: Send a Message from an Encounter

This option works well when communication is specific to a single visit, incident, or event.

How to Send a Message

Open the relevant Encounter.
Click the Messages tab.
Select New Thread.
Add participants (parents/guardians, staff, etc.).
Type your message.
(Optional) Attach files or translate.
Click Send.

You can quickly access the student’s full record by clicking the blue square next to the student’s name if you need to confirm parent details.

Key Difference from Student Card Messaging

Threads remain open only while the encounter is open.
Once the encounter is closed or locked, the message thread automatically closes.

If a parent tries to respond after closure, they’ll be notified that the thread is closed and will need to contact you another way.

When to Use Encounter Messaging

This is best for:

Notifications
Situations where a response is not required in-platform
Messages tied to a specific event (e.g., “Your student would like to go home—please call or pick up”)

If you expect extended back-and-forth communication, use the Student Card or Messages page method instead.

Method 3: Use the Messages Page (Inbox View)

The Messages page serves as your centralized inbox, allowing you to manage and track all message threads—active and inactive.

How to Access

Click Messages in the left-hand navigation menu.
View all your message threads in one place.

Inbox Features

Search bar: Quickly find conversations by student or family name.
Green badge indicator: Identifies threads connected to an encounter.
- Clicking the badge opens the associated encounter.
Student name link: Opens the Student Card.
Bubble filters:
- All (default view)
- Unread (threads where a parent/guardian has responded and you haven’t viewed it yet)
Sort options:
- Newest first (default)
- Oldest first

This page is especially helpful when you're waiting for responses and don’t want to navigate between multiple student cards.

Tips & Best Practices

✅ Use Caution when sending messages

Please be advised that messages sent through August are delivered via email or text message. Because these are not secure communication channels, do not include any sensitive health information in your message content. If you would like to share more information, we recommend sharing an encounter.

✅ Use Visible to Roles Strategically

If multiple team members should stay informed (e.g., all counselors), use the Visible to Roles option. This allows anyone in that role to view the thread from the Student Card.

✅ Choose the Right Messaging Location

Student Card or Messages page = Ongoing conversations
Encounter = Event-specific notifications

✅ Monitor Unread Threads

Use the Unread filter in your inbox to ensure no parent responses are missed.

✅ Be Aware of Automatic Closures

Student Card threads close after 14 days of inactivity.
Encounter threads close when the encounter is closed or locked.
This is what parents will receive when trying to respond to a closed message thread: