Create Groups

Updated

Create and configure groups in ParentSquare, including Public, Community, Private, Rule-Based, and SIS-synced groups. This article covers creation steps, configuration options, and settings available during setup.

Who can use this?
School and District Admin, Teachers and those with individual user permission for Groups

When creating a group, you’ll choose a group type based on how members join and who can see the group, then complete the setup steps for that group. 

For an overview of each group type and when to use them, see Groups: Overview.

Group Information Fields

When creating a group, you’ll enter the same basic information for all group types. 

Enter the group's information:

  • Display Name: Enter the group name.
  • Description: Describe the group's purpose (optional).
  • Category: Click the drop-down to select or add a new category.
  • To make a group confidential, select Confidential. See Make a Group Confidential.
  • Advanced Options: Click to edit settings related to posting, directory and comments. See Advanced Group Options below.
  • Owners: If you create the group you will be the group owner. You can add other group owners here. Type the first 3 letters of the owner name and select them. To learn more, see Groups: FAQ. 
  • Manager: You can add group managers here. Type the first 3 letters of the manager's name and select them. To learn more, see Groups: FAQ. 

  • Group information form showing fields for name, description, category, owners, and managers
     
  • Click Save to save the group without members.

 

Create a Public Group

Use a Public Group to allow users to join or leave freely.

  1. From Home, click Groups in left sidebar under Participate and select New Group.

    Groups page with New Group button highlighted
     
  2. Under Open, click Public and select Create group.

    Group type selection showing Public option under Open category
     
  3. Enter the group's information and click Save to save the group without members. You can add members after saving the group. See Add Members to a Group. 
  4. Or, click Save and Add People to begin adding members.
  5. Click Save at the bottom of the page.

Create a Community Group

Use a Community Group to extend your school's communication reach to people outside your current ParentSquare community, such as alumni, volunteers, or neighborhood supporters. 

  1. From Home, select Groups in the left sidebar under Participate and select New Group. 
  2. Click Community group and click Create group. 

 For more details, see Community Groups.

Create a Private Group

Use a Private Group to restrict visibility and manage membership through group owners and admins. 

  1. From Home, click Groups in left sidebar under Participate and select New Group.
  2. Under Managed, select Private and click Create Group.

    Group type selection showing Private option under Managed category
     
  3. Enter the group's information. 
  4. To make a group confidential, select Confidential. See Make a Group Confidential.
  5. Click Save to save the group without members. You can add members after saving the group. See Add Members to a Group. 
  6. Or, click Save and Add People to begin adding members.
  7. Click Save at the bottom of the page.

Create a Rule-Based (Auto-Update) Group

Use a Rule-based Group to automatically manage membership based on conditions (attributes). 

  1. From Home, click Groups in left sidebar under Participate and select New Group.
  2. Under Managed, click Rule-based and select Create group.

    Group type selection showing Rule-based option under Managed category
     
  3. Enter the group's information.
  4. To make a group confidential, select Confidential. See Make a Group Confidential.
  5. Select the correct user roles by checking the boxes next to your selections for Teacher, Staff, Parent and/or Student.
  6. Create the condition by selecting an option from the drop-down menu. To add an additional condition, click + Add Condition.

    Rule-based group conditions interface showing role selection and attribute conditions
     
  7. Click Save after you have selected your role(s) and condition(s).

Note: If you are sending data via SFTP, you can load more student conditions (attributes) for rule-based groups. Contact ParentSquare support for details.

Create a SIS-Synced Group

Depending on your District or School's integration, groups can be created in your SIS and synced into ParentSquare. To learn more, see your SIS's integration article in Data Administration. 

Advanced Group Options

When creating or editing a group, click Advanced Options to access additional settings:

  • Allow group members to post to this group: (By default, only group owners can post to a group.) Click this option to allow all group members to post to this group.
  • Hide directory: (Not available to all schools) Members can see the member directory. Click to limit access to only group owners. Note: This option is only available if your school allows all users at school to view the school directory.
  • Make comments public: (Not available to all schools) If you see this option, your school has comments and replies to comments set to hidden so that they are only viewed by the post author, the comment author, and admins. Making comments to this group public will make all future comments and replies visible to all group members. 

    AdvancedGroupOptions_11_25_2025.png
     

Make a Group Confidential

Confidential groups hide the group name from members in posts and notifications. This is useful for sensitive communications where you don't want members to know they're part of a specific group.

When to Use Confidential Groups

Confidential Groups are often used for sensitive or restricted communications, such as:

  • Special Needs students and students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs)
  • Students with low-level state or national test scores targeted for intervention or others at-risk
  • Gifted and Talented Education (GATE)
  • Homeless students
  • Migrant families
  • Health outbreak

How Confidential Groups Work

  • If a post is sent to a Confidential Group, the group name will be hidden in the feed and will show as "Undisclosed" in email notifications..
  • If a post is sent to a Confidential Group along with other non-confidential groups, all group names are hidden.
  • Only District and School Admin, Post Authors, and Post Collaborators will see "Undisclosed" in the recipient list.
  • District and School Admin can hover over "Undisclosed" to see the actual group names.
  • When creating a post, a confidential group shows a hidden icon (eye with slash) next to the group name.

    Post composer showing confidential group with eye-slash icon
     

Group Join Links and QR Codes

Group Owners, Group Managers, and Admins can create invitation links and QR codes that allow users to join groups on their own. This is useful for promoting groups at events, in newsletters, or on social media.

Who Can Join Using Links:

  • Open Groups: Users can join immediately by clicking the link or scanning the QR code.
  • Private Groups: By default, users must request to join and Group Owners or Managers must approve. You can disable this requirement if desired. To learn more see, Manage Groups. 

Customize or Disable Join Links:

You can customize the join code to make it more memorable (e.g., "parentclub" instead of a random string). The code must be unique across your district.

To disable a join link, click the Enabled toggle and confirm. Users will no longer be able to join using that link. You can re-enable it later with the same code.

To manage join requests and approvals, see Manage Groups.

 

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