Camper References

Camper References Feature Overview

Camper references feature

The Camper References feature is an all-in-one workflow for collecting and tracking camper references:

  • Create a custom online form for references to fill out for their referring camper.
  • Toggle the references page on/off of the parent dashboard via Admin > Campers > Reference form. You can also choose to collect references during enrollment; require a minimum number of references; and add customize messaging for both parents and references.
  • Collect up to 3 references from parents via a new References page on the parent dashboard.
  • References receive access to the form either through an automatic email that's sent as soon as the parent submits the reference's name and email address; or, through a manual email sent to the reference by an admin user, via the camper's profile page.
  • After a reference submits their reference form, their responses are recorded on the camper's profile in the "References" tab under each year tab.
  • Get notified immediately when a reference submits their reference form, by enabling a new admin email notification.

đź’ˇFor those familiar with our Staff module "References" feature, the functionality is nearly identical.

For admins

Custom reference form and Reference form settings

First, go to Admin > Campers > Reference form to manage new settings related to the Reference feature.

  • Create an online form with custom questions for references to fill out
  • Customize different settings for the overall camper references feature
    • Enable/disable the references input for parents on the parent dashboard
    • Enable/disable the references input during enrollment on the parent dashboard
    • Specify the number of references required for each camper
    • Enable/disable an automatic email to references (asking them to complete the reference form) once a parent submits the reference
    • Customize the automatic email that references receive
    • Customize the header text on the references input for parents; the header text on the online form references fill out, and the confirmation message after references receive the form

Email notifications

References on the camper profile

  • View a camper's references and the reference's form responses on the camper profile
    • Select a year tab, then "Yearly Info", then "References"
      • Add, edit, and delete references manually
      • Show responses to a reference form
      • Print out a reference form submission
      • Open the reference's online (via link)
      • Email a reference with your custom reference email message (saved under Admin > Campers > Reference form), plus a link to their online reference form

For parents

  • Submit references through another camper form, called References, that appears on the "Forms" page/"Forms step" of enrollment (if references are set to show during enrollment)
    • Parents can re-open the reference page to add more references, but cannot edit a reference that they already submitted
       
  • Provide the reference's first name, last name, and e-mail address, and submit
    • If automatic emails to references are enabled (under Admin > Campers > Reference form), the reference will receive the email as soon as the parent submits the references page

For references

  • References will receive an email with a link to the online form
    • References will receive the email automatically when parents submit the references page, if this setting is enabled; or manually, by an admin who triggers the email
Reference Forms (Admin Settings)

Manage the admin settings for the camper references feature.

Camper Reference Form Questions

This link redirects to the Camper Reference Form Questions page, where admins can manage the questions that appear on the form that references complete. 

Enable References on the Parent Dashboard

This is the “master switch” for the feature, for parents.

  • Yes: Parents will see the "References" link for their camper on the parent dashboard.
  • No: Parents will NOT see the "References" link for their camper on the parent dashboard (however, admins will still see camper references functionality.)

Collect References During Enrollment

This setting determines if parents are shown the references input page during the Forms step of the Enrollment process, in addition to the camper’s Forms page.

  • Yes: Parents will see the "References" link on the Forms step of Enrollment, in addition to the camper’s Forms page.
  • No: Parents will not see the "References" link on the Forms step of Enrollment, but will still see it on the camper’s  Forms page.
  • If references are collected during enrollment and also required, parents cannot proceed past the Forms step of Enrollment without entering the minimum number of required references for their camper.

Number of References Required

This dropdown menu determines the minimum number of references parents must enter when submitting the references page on the parent dashboard.

  • Up to 3 references can be submitted by the parent.
  • Admins can require a minimum of “None”, one, two, or three.
  • When references are required, parents must submit at least that many references whether they’re entering references via the Forms page or during the Enrollment process. 

Send an e-mail to each reference once a parent submits their camper's references on the Parent Dashboard?

This setting determines if references receive an automatic email (asking them to complete the reference form) once a parent submits the reference.

  • Yes: References will receive an email automatically, to the email address provided by the parent, when the parent submits the reference on the parent dashboard.
  • No: References will NOT receive an email automatically, when the parent submits the reference on the parent dashboard. Note that admins can still  manually email the reference form to the reference via the camper’s profile.

Text of e-mail that reference receives

This text appears in the email body for the email that’s sent to references asking them to complete the reference form. CampSite will automatically append the end of this custom text with a link to the reference form.

Reference form header text

This text appears at the top of the reference form that the reference completes.

Reference form 'Thank you' confirmation message

This text appears on the submission confirmation page that the reference is redirected to, after submitting their reference form.

Custom header text when parents enter references on Parent Dashboard

This text appears at the top of the Parent Dashboard page where parents enter their camper’s references, to provide parents instructions or guidance.

Managing Questions on the Camper Reference Form

From Admin > Campers > Reference Form > Camper reference form questions, admins can create, edit, and organize the questions that appear on the form that each camper’s reference completes.

Selecting the Year

At the top of the page, find a dropdown menu for Year. Toggle between years to manage the form questions specific to that enrollment year. Changes to form questions will only apply to the year currently selected.

Adding a New Question

To create a new question for your form, click the "+ Add a new camper reference question..." link.

Managing Existing Questions

  • Reordering Questions: To change the order questions appear in on the form, click and drag a question row to its new position. 
  • Editing Questions: When editing a question, you can change the question text; whether it’s shown on the reference form; and whether it’s mandatory for references to answer it.
    • Response type cannot be edited afterwards. Instead, remove the question and create it again.
  • Deleting Questions: Questions can be deleted if they haven’t been answered by a reference yet.
    • To remove a question from the reference form that cannot be deleted (because someone already answered it), hide the question from references by setting “Show on reference form” to No. 

Form preview

To “preview” how the form looks, open a copy of the form by going to the “References” tab on a camper profile and then double clicking the link icon for a reference. Click here to learn more.

Parent Dashboard: Camper References page

When the camper reference feature is enabled, parents can submit references from the camper’s “Forms” page of the Parent Dashboard.

If the setting to collect references during enrollment is also enabled, parents can also input references via the Enrollment Form “Forms” step.

  • If references are collected during enrollment and also required, parents cannot proceed past the Forms step of Enrollment without entering the minimum number of required references for their camper.

Reference inputs

Custom header text

At the top of the page, parents will see the custom text added to Admin > Campers > Reference form > Custom header text when parents enter references on Parent Dashboard.

References

  • Parents are required to enter each reference’s first name, last name, and e-mail address.
  • By default, only 1 reference input appears on the page, but parents can add more by clicking the “Add another reference”
  • If references are required, the number of inputs that appear on the page by default = the number that the parent is required to submit.
  • Parents can reopen the references page after they’ve already submitted it, but they cannot edit a reference that was already submitted. They can only add additional references (if fewer than 3 have been entered).

Automatic emails to references

The email message will contain the custom text from “Text of e-mail that reference receives”, and then include a link to the reference form to fill out.

Notes:

→ On both the “Forms” page and Enrollment Form “Forms” step, the link to inputting references appears in a separate container titled “References”

→ The form will show a green checkmark / “References submitted” after the parent has submitted the references page with all required references.

→ If 2 enrollment years are available, two References links will appear to parents, labeled with the corresponding year that they’re for.

Camper Profile: References Tab

A camper’s references are stored in a new “References” tab of the camper profile, within each Year tab. 

From this tab, admins can view, add, edit, and remove camper references; manually email references a request to submit the reference form; and view/edit reference from responses.

Add a reference

  • Click “+ Add a reference” to load another input for a reference.
  • Note: Every reference added by an admin will also appear to parents (even if the reference fields are left empty).

Edit a reference’s details

  • Admins can edit the name, e-mail address, and completed fields for each reference.

See reference responses

  • Use the Print icon to print a copy of their form
  • Click to “show reference responses” and view the responses directly from the References tab.
  • Use the Link icon to open the actual reference form
    • Note: Admin are able to fill out the reference form via this page. Saving this page as an admin WILL overwrite existing reference form answers, if applicable.

Email a request to the reference

  • Use the email icon to send an email to the reference with a link to the reference form.

Remove a reference

  • Use the delete icon to remove a reference. 
    • Deleting a reference also permanently deletes their reference form answers as well, if applicable.
    • The same reference can be added again by an admin or parent, but the reference will need to answer the reference form again as well.
Camper References: Receiving and Completing the Reference Form

Each reference provided by a camper will receive an email notification requesting that they complete the online reference form.

Reference e-mail notification

The email sent to references will contain the custom messaging added to Text of e-mail that reference receives via Admin > Campers > Reference form, then a link to the online reference form.

Reference form

The link to the reference form will open a form (themed with the same header and background as your parent dashboard), that contains: