The best way to end a busy year? With the latest wave of enhancements for FACTS SIS Scheduling! With Phase 2 now live, schools get a redesigned, more intuitive experience for managing Course Requests, while students and families benefit from clearer guidance, more transparency, and a smoother request process overall.
These updates also introduce brand-new teacher recommendation tools and thoughtful refinements across Scheduling to help administrators, counselors, and teachers collaborate more effectively. Together, these improvements lay important groundwork for the future of course planning and support the day-to-day workflows schools rely on.
Let’s take a closer look!
Family Portal Course Requests: More Clarity, More Control
Schools can now customize and preview Course Request forms more easily, with enhancements to both Standard and Custom Form options.
Highlights include:
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Teacher recommendations shown in the form (when enabled)
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Parent sign-off options for formal approval (without blocking student submission)
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Minimum and maximum request limits to guide students appropriately
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Grade-level controls for Custom Forms, allowing schools to enable or disable visibility with a toggle
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Drag-and-drop variable tools for custom templates
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Preview mode directly within Scheduling; no need to log in to Family Portal
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Ability to display school-added requests for a truly complete student view
Families will also notice:
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Recommended courses appearing clearly in the request list
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Grade-level and school-added requests shown when enabled
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A new confirmation banner noting the last saved timestamp and an email confirmation following submission
These enhancements make it easier for schools to configure the experience and for families to understand exactly what’s being requested for the upcoming year.
A Redesigned Grade Level Requests Screen
The Grade Level Requests screen received a visual refresh to simplify how admins assign default requests by grade. Updates include:
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A cleaner layout for scanning course lists
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A grade-level filter for faster navigation
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Blue highlighting to show which courses are included
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A new Push default requests tool that replaces Load Default Requests
These improvements help administrators assign consistent grade-level defaults while reducing manual steps.
Student Requests: Cleaner, Faster, and More Informative
Phase 2 also introduces a redesigned Student Requests page for both high-level review and detailed student-by-student management.
Here’s what’s new:
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Additional filtering options (student, grade level, request status, and specific course requests)
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A new Clear all requests tool based on applied filters
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A three-tab layout for deeper insight:
- All Courses – view all available courses with indicators for primary, alternate, and recommended options
- Manage Requests – adjust primary or alternate selections quickly
- Recommendations – see teacher-submitted recommendations and supporting notes
Schools also now have direct access to integrated student reports (including transcripts, progress reports, and course request summaries) without navigating away from Scheduling.
Teacher Recommendations: New Workflow to Support Better Course Placement
One of the most anticipated features of Phase 2 is the new Teacher Recommendation workflow within FACTS Classroom.
Teachers can now:
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View a student’s term grades, final grades, and current averages in one place
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Recommend courses directly inside Classroom
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Add optional notes to explain placement decisions
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Edit or remove recommendations at any time
Administrators can:
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See all submitted recommendations directly in Scheduling
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Review and manage them before they appear to students and parents
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Ensure recommendations flow into Course Requests correctly based on school configuration
This improvement helps reduce manual communication, supports alignment across grade levels, and gives students clearer visibility into proposed placements.
Looking Ahead: Phase 3 and Beyond
Work on Scheduling Phase 3 is already underway, with a focus on enhancements to the Courses and Classes experience, along with new updates to people management in regard to scheduling. Users will soon be able to create scheduling restrictions between students, peers, or instructors, helping schools better reflect real-world needs in their schedules.
Check out our Q3/Q4 Product Roadmap Blog to learn what else is in the works for FACTS and stay tuned for more updates!
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