Parent Portal was created to empower families to help manage alerts from their children’s student accounts in an effort to fulfill Bark's mission of keeping kids safe online 24/7. We wanted to make sure that alerts were not missed during times when school administration may not be as available.
The Bark for Schools Parent Portal is a free and complementary feature of the Bark for Schools monitoring service. It unites schools and families to pick up alerts after hours, during weekends, and over school vacations. Families can use bark.us or our mobile app available on Android and iOS to view alerts.
Controlling Alerts
Parent Portal is customizable and you are able to control the severity and timing of alerts that parents receive.
- Severity: Can be adjusted between "Severe Only" and "All."
- Time: Can be adjusted between "Anytime" and "After Hours." The after-hours time frame is 3 p.m. to 8 a.m. local time, including during weekends and holidays.
Schools generally select "Severe Only" and "After Hours" while school is in session, and they set them to “Anytime” and “All” on weekends and breaks.
What does a parent/guardian see in an alert?
Bark alerts let parents know why the online activity was flagged (depression, sexual content, cyberbullying, etc.) and includes a “snippet,” of the conversation or content that Bark flagged along with where it originated (Gmail, Google Drive, etc).
We take data security very seriously and want to protect each child’s information. Any PII (Personal Identifiable Information) for other students is removed from the alert prior to it being shared through Parent Portal. The only time a parent would see another child’s name is if it was included in the message that is flagged, as in “Jessica said…”
If parents/guardians are separated, can Bark alert both parties?
Yes, you can invite each legal guardian to their own Parent Portal account.
If a parent/guardian loses custody, can we remove access to alerts?
To remove access from a parent/guardian, please reach out to our support team at schools@bark.us for further assistance.
Are you going to spam/sell to parents?
No. While there is a clear upgrade path to our premium Bark for Families product if a parent is concerned enough about their child's online experience, Bark will not spam parents with emails. Parent Portal is here as another free safety net for your school or district. If you are concerned about a student’s behavior on your school-provided accounts, you may wish to suggest they upgrade to the expanded coverage.
For more information on Bark for Families, reference the video below.
