GCS Offers Emergency Text Alerts Through School Messenger

A person holding a phone.

Due to changes in telecommunications laws Greenville County Schools (GCS) is now able to send emergency text messages to parents through the school messenger system if their listed home phone number is text capable. If you are a parent who would like to receive emergency texts and currently have a landline listed as your home number please fill out the form below and return it to your child’s school.

GCS does not send phone messages to families late at night or early in the morning, so a last-minute closing decision, especially one made early in the morning, is sometimes missed. Texting parents provides a less intrusive way to send emergency messages during these hours.

Though the county has been using a text message system called @gcsalerts through Twitter, that system has been less than reliable and is dependent on parents opting in and having push notifications set properly on their phone.  The county will continue to use @gcsalerts as a communication redundancy.

As always, the GCS website, social media platforms, and local media will be used to help disseminate emergency messages.