Assigning text conversations to specific staff members distributes workload and ensures timely replies during peak periods. Staff assigned to conversations receive notifications when new messages arrive, so your team knows exactly who is responsible for each student conversation.
Use priorities and statuses to organize your message queue, and add followers to conversations when multiple people need to stay informed about a studentʼs situation.
Navigate to the SMS screen
Navigate to the SMS section of the admin portal. Your conversation list displays all active text conversations with students.
Open a conversation
Click on a conversation to open the full thread. The conversation details display on the right side, including the assignee field.
Assign to a staff member
Click the Assignee field or dropdown. Search for and select the staff member who should handle this conversation. The assignment saves automatically.
The assigned staff member now receives notifications when new messages arrive in this conversation.
Note: To reassign a conversation, click the assignee field again and select a different staff member. Notifications will route to the new assignee. The previous assignee stops receiving notifications unless theyʼre also following the conversation.
Use bulk assignment for multiple conversations
In the SMS screen, use checkboxes to select multiple conversations. Click the Bulk Actions menu.
Select Assign from the menu. Choose the staff member to assign all selected conversations to, then click Apply.
All selected conversations are now assigned to that staff member, and they receive notifications for all of them.
Use case: At the start of a shift, filter to "Unassigned" conversations and bulk assign them evenly across available staff. This ensures every incoming message has an owner during room selection or move-in periods.
Set priorities on conversations
Open a conversation and click the Priority field. Select the priority level such as Urgent, High, Normal, or Low.
The conversation displays a priority indicator in the list view. Your team can filter by priority to focus on urgent messages first.
Note: Use priorities during peak periods to make sure time-sensitive questions about deadlines, room selection, or emergencies get handled before routine inquiries.
Update conversation statuses
Click the Status field on any conversation and select the appropriate status. Common statuses include:
New: Message just arrived, no one has responded yet
In Progress: Staff is working on the answer or waiting for information
Waiting on Student: Staff replied and is waiting for student to respond
Resolved: Issue is closed and no further action needed
Filter by status to see what needs action. At the end of a shift, check that all "New" conversations have been addressed and moved to "In Progress" or "Resolved."
Add followers to a conversation
Open the conversation and click the Followers field. Search for and select additional staff members who need to stay informed.
Save your changes. All followers receive notifications when new messages arrive. The assigned staff member is automatically a follower, but you can add supervisors, RDs, or other team members who need visibility.
Remove followers from a conversation
Open the conversation and click the Followers field. Click the X next to any staff memberʼs name to remove them.
Save your changes. Removed followers stop receiving notifications immediately. Removing yourself from followers stops your notifications without unassigning the conversation from its owner.