Dartmouth Parents Can Track Child’s School Bus With New GPS App

A new app will allow parents of students enrolled in the Dartmouth Public School System to track their children's school bus using Global Positioning System (GPS) technology beginning with the fall semester.

Superintendent Dr. Bonny Gifford called the Edulog Parent Portal app "revolutionary" in that it "helps to improve communication, school bus safety, and efficiency." The app, free to parents, caregivers, and students, can be downloaded to a smartphone.

The app will allow users to monitor the movement of a school bus and notify users when a bus is running late due to weather or other reasons. Dr. Gifford said the app "can send you a push notification when it (the bus) is nearing your bus stop."

James A. Kiely, Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations, spoke to WBSM about the app.

"This will help students and their families know when the bus is nearing their stop," he said. "We hope that will improve the experience for students and families and may decrease tardiness resulting from students missing the bus."

Get our free mobile app

"We are always looking for new and improved ways to assist our families, whether it be enhancing the ease of registering a new student, or in this case ensuring riding to and from school happens without issue," Dr. Gifford said.

"I believe this will be a very useful tool during storms or if the bus breaks down," she said.

Kiely said the new app will "provide more data for the schools and our transportation department to ensure efficient operation and troubleshoot any issues that might arise."

Instructions for downloading and using the new Edulog Parent Portal app can be found on the Dartmouth Public Schools website by clicking on the "Transportation" tab.

The app can be downloaded from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store.