AISD online registration urged before Aug. 1 deadline
By Lynsi Musselman
The countdown to the first day of school has started, and AISD officials urge parents to register students online by the deadline on Saturday, Aug. 1.
Albany Independent School District director of student services Leigh Lowe said only about 180 students are registered. AISD officials are anticipating 500 altogether.
“We are now asking parents of students new to the district to register online ahead of time so the in-person enrollment process will go quicker for them,” Lowe explained.
She added that parents who have questions regarding registration can e-mail llowe@albany.esc14.net, and they will receive a response in a timely manner.
“It is much easier to troubleshoot registration questions by email, and it’s faster for me to respond that way,” she said.
Lowe reminds families to be sure to use a Chrome browser when registering students, use the primary e-mail address for the enrolling parent, and have handy a Parent Portal identification number.
Parents who need a Parent Portal ID can use the request link on the district’s webpage, www.albanyisd.net, under the parent tab.
Within a business day, an e-mail will be sent with the requested information.
Parents who need to change their primary e-mail address, which is the address used the first time a student was enrolled, can e-mail Lowe with the requested change.
Lowe said that students who did not attend AISD in 2019-2020 need to enroll as new students.
Also, because online registration has not resulted in much response, school officials have designated Tuesday, Aug. 4 for current AISD students to be enrolled in person.
Wednesday, Aug. 5 is still the day for new students to the district to be enrolled in person.
“Since the current online registration is so low, we anticipate that quite a few parents will come enroll on the designated in-person days,” Lowe said. “If required documents are ready, they can quickly be copied to keep the process fast. We just do not want anyone to have to wait in line, especially if they took off work.”
She is hoping to have a procedure in place this week so parents can make an appointment, in order to avoid having too many people in the school offices at one time.
Lowe said AISD staff members are continuing to develop an all-encompassing plan to turn in laptop forms, make deposits, and register students.
The plan will be posted on the school webpage, and Albany ISD and Albany Jr./Sr. High Facebook pages.
Lowe said the office staff has been working hard all summer to implement the registration process for the entire school and create a new strategy for instruction, while at the same time being required to submit a detailed plan to TEA, along with extra documents.
“We have been hit with a double whammy this year,” Lowe reported. “Working out kinks with online registration and then being hit with the ever-changing COVID-19 government regulations creates a lot of extra work.”
For questions regarding registration, e-mail Lowe at llowe@albanyisd.esc14.net or call the district office at 325-762-2823.
Meet the Teacher
AISD superintendent Jonathan Scott said an alternate plan for “Meet the Teacher” is in the works.
School Supplies
School supply lists for pre-kindergarten through sixth grade are now available at The Albany News and posted in various stores in town.
They were also sent out to parents on Bloomz earlier this week.
