School is OUT! And what that means is, you can expect many new improvements in QuickSchools before the new 2014-2015 school year starts in the fall. Be sure to let us know what features you’d like to see in future releases.

We’d like to announce a couple of awesome new features that have just been released in our Fee Tracking module, as well as some that our on the way:

• Fee Deadlines and Payment Allocations
• Printable Invoices and Receipts
• Coming Soon: QuickBooks App
• Coming Soon: Alerts

Fee Deadlines and Payment Allocations

Many of you have requested the ability to note down when a payment is due for specific fees. And so we’ve built in a new to do just that. But in order to track whether a fee deadline has been met, we’ve also built-in the ability to allocate payments to fees (this is typical for accounting programs).

To turn on the feature, just go to the “Settings” > “Turn Features On/Off” and click on the “Configure” link next to the “Fee Tracking” module:

Just make sure to check off “Turn on fee deadlines & payment allocations”, and you’re all set.

IMPORTANT: It’s important to note that once you turn on this feature all payments will need to be allocated to a fee/charge (otherwise the system will warn you of unallocated payments). So for those who have been using the Fee Tracking module for a while, it can be difficult to transition to this new method. Please contact our support team for more info.

Once the method is enabled, your “Fee Tracking” > “Student Billing” List will display all Unpaid Charges:

When you click on a record, every payment will have an “Allocate” link, which will allow you to allocate payments to previous fees/charges. The “Allocate” link will always be displayed, even if the payment has already been allocated, in the event you’d like to re-allocate the payment differently:

Here’s what the Allocate Payment screen looks like (after you click on the “Allocate” link):

Finally, if you click on “Add Charge” or “Add Invoice”, you will now have the option of setting a “Due Date”. Please feel free to check that out:

Printable Invoice and Reciepts

As you’re looking through the screens, you’ll notice another thing different from before. Invoices and Receipts now have a PDF link to “Preview” or “Download”.

Payments that have been allocated will also show in the receipt, so you know what the payment / receipt is for.

Regular charges do not have a print version. But you can still print out Statements for any period you decide.

Coming Soon: QuickBooks App

The ability to allocate payments to fees and charges are a precursor to the upcoming QuickBooks App. So if you’re looking to streamline the way you transfer data from your QuickSchools Fee Tracking module to your QuickBooks account (to avoid double entry), be sure to enable the Payment Allocation feature (You do not have to use Fee Deadlines to use the QuickBooks app). We’ll let you know about the QuickBooks App as soon as it reaches our App Store.

Coming Soon: Alerts

We’ll soon be introducing an Alerts framework that will allow users to be notified of specific events, like when an unpaid charge (or invoice) has passed its payment deadline. Notifications can be sent via email or text, and can be received by an administrator, or by a parent/student.

We’ll be interested to know your thoughts on what you think should constitute an alert notification, keeping in mind that too many notifications could be detrimental to the overall experience.

Here are events / conditions that we think may be helpful to schools and users:

• When fees are charged to an account
• When payment is received / recorded
• When unpaid charges are passed the payment deadline

Other modules that can benefit from alerts:

• When a student is absent or tardy
• When a homework is posted
• When report cards are locked / published

Do let us know your thoughts on these.