Creating Dynamic Groups

Heads up: Groups may not be available to all customers at this time

In SchoolStatus Connect , you can use Searchlight filters to create a group of students. These groups will update nightly, adding or subtracting students as their status changes. A Dynamic Group is a group that will automatically update as data changes in our nightly data syncs. 

Example:

Let’s say that you want to build a student group of 11th-grade females to promote a Women in STEM program that your school is hosting. Traditionally, if you built a group of 11th-grade females at the beginning of the year, someone would need to manually enter any new students that enroll in the school into this group. Now, the group will update nightly. So if you build the group on August 10th and a new 11th-grade female enrolls in school and is entered into your Student Information System on August 18th, she would be added to the 11th-grade Females group that night when our data sync with your Student Information System and other data portals occurs. 

You build a Dynamic Group using Searchlight, our query tool that allows you to build a custom list based on existing data. 

To start, create the Searchlight list that meets your criteria.

1. Click on Searchlight
2. Click on New
3. Click Select Field 

4. Click  +Add filter and Start filtering! In most cases, you will choose Enrollment Status from the list and set the toggle to Yes. Choose any data points you wish to add. 

5.  Add the Filter options you need in order to build your query

In our example we will choose Grade and set it to “is 10”. You will choose whatever data point you would like. Continue to add filters until you have the query you need. 

6. Hit Run each time you add a new filter to make sure the list returns data

Pro-tip: You'll see the number of students who meet your filters to the left.

Note: Your district may not have configured sharing for all data points listed in the drop-down. 

Note: To remove a filter click the red trash can

7. Once you are done filtering data, click Save List 

8. Set your visibility. The visibility of the Searchlight can be set to:

• Just Me - meaning only you as the creator will be able to see this Searchlight
• Everyone - meaning everyone in your district can see the Searchlight, but will only see students that fall under their scope
• Select Group - only staff members assigned to a group can see the Searchlight. For more information on this, read 

9. Type in a unique name for the list 

10. Hit Save

11. Click Make Group

Your newly created group will now be viewable in the Groups menu and can be communicated with through Announcements.

Note: To Edit, or clone the Searchlight list click the Actions drop-down

Note: Groups created by teachers from the previous school year are DELETED once the new school year begins. Any group created by an administrator or via Searchlight will remain unless deletion is requested by the district. 

To learn more about Groups and Searchlight, check out the following help articles: 

Explaining Groups

Navigating Searchlight