It's a collection of Google Forms, Sheets, and Sites that work together to manage school events. Think of it as a free alternative to expensive event management software, built using tools your school already has.
$0 - completely free. It uses Google Workspace for Education which schools get free. No hidden fees, subscriptions, or purchases required.
2-3 hours for initial setup if you follow the Quick Start Checklist. After that, about 1-2 hours per week during event season.
No coding required. If you can use Google Docs and follow a checklist, you can set this up. The most "technical" part is copying and pasting one email script.
For coordinators: Yes, but school accounts work better (higher email limits)
For vendors/volunteers: Yes, any email address works
- Personal Gmail: 100 emails per day
- School Google Workspace: 1,500 emails per day
- The system sends maybe 5-20 emails per day typically
Yes! Add as many coordinators as needed. Everyone can access the dashboard and help manage the event.
Yes, everything is mobile-friendly. Vendors, volunteers, and coordinators can all use phones.
Google has 99.9% uptime. In the extremely rare case of downtime, you can:
- Access cached data on phones
- Use printed backups (which you should have anyway)
- Wait a few minutes - outages are typically very brief
You need Google Workspace for Education (free for schools). If your school doesn't have it:
- Apply at edu.google.com - it's free
- Or use personal Gmail accounts (with some limitations)
- Or adapt the templates for Microsoft 365
Yes! Every form, email, and page can be modified. Common customizations:
- Different stall prices
- Modified shift times
- Additional form fields
- Custom branding
- Different event types
Absolutely! It works for:
- School fairs
- Sports days
- Concerts
- Fundraising events
- Any event needing vendor/volunteer coordination
You can:
- Run both in parallel initially
- Import existing vendor lists to Google Sheets
- Gradually transition volunteers
- Export data anytime if you want to switch back
All data stays in your school's Google Drive. Google stores it securely with encryption and automatic backups.
- Public site: Anyone can see (just event info)
- Parent portal: Only people with the link
- Admin dashboard: Only designated coordinators
- Form responses: Only coordinators you authorize
Google Workspace for Education is GDPR compliant. You should:
- Only collect necessary information
- Inform people how data is used
- Delete old data regularly
- Follow your school's privacy policy
Yes, they can request removal. You can delete individual form responses and spreadsheet rows. See the Troubleshooting Guide for detailed instructions on:
- Removing single or multiple entries
- Archiving before deletion
- Complete data removal for privacy compliance
No practical limit. Google Sheets can handle 10 million cells. That's thousands of vendors and volunteers.
Not built-in, but you can:
- Add payment instructions to confirmation emails
- Link to your school's payment system
- Track payment status manually
- Integration with payment systems is possible but requires extra setup
Perfect for them! After the first event:
- Copy the sites for next event
- Clear old data from sheets
- Previous volunteers/vendors can sign up again easily
- Each event takes less time to set up
Yes, create separate sets of forms/sites for each event. Use clear naming:
- "Term 1 Market"
- "Term 2 Fair"
- "End of Year Concert"
- Check the Troubleshooting Guide
- Most issues are permission/authorization related
- Everything has a fix documented
- Google's tools are very reliable
This is open-source software, so:
- Use the comprehensive documentation
- Check the troubleshooting guide
- Ask your school's IT support
- Google Workspace has its own support
Most common issue! Solutions:
- Check spam folders
- Verify email address in script
- Re-authorize the script
- Check daily email limits
Yes! Recommended testing:
- Submit test forms yourself
- Check emails arrive
- Verify data in spreadsheets
- Test on different devices
- Have a colleague test everything
Yes, common additions:
- QR codes for check-in
- Automated shift reminders
- Vendor ratings/feedback
- Social media integration
- Advanced reporting
Yes, you can:
- Add school branding everywhere
- Use custom domain for sites
- Remove all references to this system
- Make it completely your own
Not a dedicated app, but:
- All sites work perfectly on mobile browsers
- Google Classroom app available for volunteers
- Can add sites to phone home screen
- Works offline with cached data
Yes, you own all your data:
- Export everything to Excel/CSV
- Download all form responses
- Copy all email lists
- No vendor lock-in
- Print the Quick Start Checklist
- Set aside 3 hours
- Follow the checklist step by step
- Test everything
- Launch!
- Ideal: 4-6 weeks before your event
- Minimum: 2 weeks before
- Better to start early and test thoroughly
Best candidates:
- Tech-comfortable parent volunteer
- School admin staff
- IT support person
- Anyone who uses Google Docs regularly
Common first-time mistakes:
- Not testing before launch
- Forgetting to authorize scripts
- Wrong sharing permissions
- Not checking spam folders
All are easily fixed!
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Check the documentation:
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Remember: If you can use Google Docs, you can set this up!
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The system is very forgiving - you can't break anything permanently.
Last updated: 2024