Communication
Notifications Hub

Notifications Hub

Who can do this:Super AdminDirectorCase Manager

Goal: Compose and send notifications to students, parents, and staff — using templates, scheduling, and tracking delivery.

The Notifications Hub is VoTech's central outbound communication system. It supports email (via Resend) and SMS (via Twilio), with built-in templates and delivery tracking.

Notifications Hub — Sent, Scheduled, and Templates tabs with status filters (light theme)

Composing a Notification

Click Compose in the top right to open the notification composer.

Compose notification dialog with audience, channel, and message fields (light theme)
  1. Click Notifications in the sidebar under Communications
  2. Click Compose
  3. Fill in the notification:

Audience

Choose who receives the notification:

  • Individual student — search by name
  • Class roster — all students in a specific class
  • Location — all active students at a location
  • Custom list — select specific students

Channel

  • Email — sends to the student's email on file
  • SMS — sends to the student's phone number on file
  • Both — sends via both channels
⚠️ WARNING:

SMS is only delivered to contacts who opted in during enrollment (A2P 10DLC compliance). Without consent, SMS is silently skipped — the notification will not be delivered via text even if SMS is selected. There is no error or warning shown to the sender.

Message

  • Type your message directly, or
  • Select a template (see below) and customize it
  • Use merge fields to personalize: {student_name}, {class_name}, {date}, etc.
  1. Click Send Now or Schedule (see below)

Using Templates

VoTech includes 20+ pre-built templates for common communications:

CategoryTemplates
Daily OperationsDaily check-in link, session reminder, appointment reminder
Class UpdatesClass schedule change, enrollment confirmation, volunteer assignment
AssessmentsTest link, survey link, follow-up reminder, follow-up survey link
MilestonesCertification earned, program completion, milestone celebration
AdminWelcome to VoTech, login help, staff notification
VolunteerVolunteer assignment, schedule update, volunteer removal, volunteer reminder

To use a template:

  1. Click Use Template in the compose view
  2. Browse or search templates
  3. Select one — the subject and body pre-fill
  4. Edit the message as needed (merge fields auto-populate when sent)
✅ TIP:

Templates save time and ensure consistent messaging. Use them as a starting point and customize for your specific situation.

Scheduling Messages

Instead of sending immediately:

  1. After composing your message, click Schedule
  2. Select the date and time to send
  3. Click Confirm Schedule

Scheduled notifications appear in the Scheduled tab with an option to edit or cancel before they send.

Delivery Status & Failed Queue

After sending, track delivery:

  1. Go to the Sent tab on the Notifications page
  2. Each notification shows:
    • Delivered — successfully sent and received
    • Pending — in the sending queue
    • Failed — delivery error (see below)

Handling Failed Notifications

  1. Click the Failed tab
  2. Each failed notification shows the error reason:
    • Invalid email — the email address bounced
    • Invalid phone — the phone number is wrong or can't receive SMS
    • Service error — temporary issue with email/SMS provider
  3. Fix the issue:
    • Update the student's contact info on their detail page
    • Or click Retry to attempt delivery again
⚠️ WARNING:

Check the failed queue regularly — especially after bulk sends. A wrong phone number or typo in an email address means the student never got the message.

Tips & Common Mistakes

✅ TIP:

When sending to a class roster, VoTech automatically skips students who don't have the selected channel's contact info (e.g., no phone number for SMS). You'll see a warning listing skipped students.

ℹ️ NOTE:

Notifications are logged and visible on the student's detail page under the Messages section. This creates a communication history for each student.

🛑 IMPORTANT:

Never include Tier 1 or Tier 2 data (SSN, ACE scores, case notes) in notifications. These go through email and SMS, which are not encrypted channels.

Notification Bell

The notification bell icon (notification-bell.tsx) is rendered in the dashboard header layout and is visible to Super Admins, Directors, Case Managers, and Coordinators. It displays a badge count of unread notifications.

Clicking the bell opens a dropdown showing recent notifications grouped by type:

  • Enrollment — new student enrolled at your location
  • Follow-up — follow-up due or overdue for a student
  • Survey — survey response submitted
  • Session — class session changes (cancellation, reschedule, new ad-hoc)

Actions from the bell dropdown:

  • Click a notification to navigate directly to the relevant page (e.g., student detail, follow-up dashboard)
  • Mark as read — dismiss individual notifications
  • Mark all as read — clear all unread notifications at once

Related Guides

Daily Check-InsStaff-to-Student Messages