Access Parent Assistant at: http://parents.cms.k12.nc.us

Parent Assistant allows families to stay updated on their child's attendance, assignments, grades and other important information. Parent Assistant is an Internet-based program that is free to use. Families will be receiving letters by mail with their user names and pass codes, which will allow them to log onto Parent Assistant.

The following FAQ is designed to help families who will be using Parent Assistant.

Q: How do I log onto the system?
A: Log onto the Internet and type in http://parents.cms.k12.nc.us. Type-in the user name and password supplied by CMS. Do not use spaces or underlines. User names and passwords are case-sensitive.

Q: How do I log off Parent Assistant when I am finished?
A: Click on the "Log Off" button in the upper right corner of your window.

Q: Can someone else gain access or change my information?
A: No. Each family will receive a user name and password. Please protect this information.

Q: What do I do if I have forgotten/misplaced my user name and/or password?
A: Contact your child's school. You should receive a reply within 24 hours (Monday through Friday).

Q: Who do I contact if I have technical problems using Parent Assistant?
A: E-mail parentassistant@cms.k12.nc.us.  You should receive a reply within 24 hours (Monday through Friday).
 
Q: Will I be able to print out the information I see on the screen?
A: You may print the pages by using the “print screen” function.

Q: Will Parent Assistant replace the need for parent/teacher conferences?
A: No. It is still important to meet with your child’s teachers.

Q:  Does it cost anything to use Parent Assistant?
A: There is no cost to use Parent Assistant, but you will need a computer with Internet access. Computers are available at public library branches.

Q: What do I do if information on Parent Assistant is incorrect?
A: Contact your child’s school to discuss information you believe is inaccurate.

Q: I am running Windows XP and Internet Explorer 6. When I tried to log on to Parent Assistant, I got a message that says that I did not have the appropriate Java plug-in required to view the site. What does this mean?
A: You need to install the Sun Microsystems Java Virtual Machine. You can download the plug-in, Sun Java VM, at http://java.sun.com/getjava/download.html.

Q: What do I do if I have trouble connecting to the Parent Assistant site?
A: Disable any pop-up blockers or filtering system that may interfere with your connection.

Internet Browser Requirements:
To use Parent Assistant, you must allow cookies to be set by your browser. A browser is a software program used to view and interact with various types of Internet resources available on the World Wide Web. Netscape and Internet Explorer are two common examples.
? Windows-based PCs: This system requires Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.5 or above.
? Macintosh computers: This system requires Microsoft Internet Explorer 5 or above.
CMS uses: Netscape Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.0.2) Gecko/20030208 Netscape/7.0