Beginning next school year, Puyallup School District will begin transitioning to a new Student Information System called Focus. This change is funded by the 2024 Capital Levy, which included support for district technology improvements. Focus will replace the current eSchoolPlus system that PSD has used for more than 15 years. 

A Student Information System, or SIS, is the central technology platform that manages essential school operations such as attendance, scheduling, grading, enrollment, and student records.  

• The district relies on an SIS to meet reporting requirements, ensure data accuracy, and coordinate services across schools.  
• In classrooms, teachers use the SIS to take attendance and record grades.  
• Families depend on it for access to student progress, enrollment forms, and school records.  

Because the SIS supports daily functions at every level of the district, regular updates and improvements are an important part of keeping school systems reliable and secure. 

The new system brings several updates that will streamline operations for staff and expand tools available for families. 

What Focus will offer families 

1. A dedicated application for Section 504 families 
   For the first time, families with students who have Section 504 plans will have access to a specific portal within Focus. This will allow families to view plan information directly in the system’s family app. 
    

2. Expanded language translation services 
   Focus will support translation in Arabic, Albanian, Chinese, Dari, German, Korean, Japanese, Pashto, Punjabi, Russian, Spanish, and Ukrainian. Families will be able to translate messages and documents directly within the system. 
    

3.  Improved online enrollment for new students 
   The district’s enrollment and registration process will move into Focus. Families will be able to start an application, save their progress, and return to complete it later. This will replace the current system used for new student registration and is designed to be shorter, easier to follow, and more accessible. 

What families can expect this year 

The district is currently preparing the system throughout the school year. This includes staff training, data migration, and testing to ensure accuracy. 

Key activities include: 

• Training, testing, and data preparation (Winter and Spring 2026) 
• Migrating more than ten years of student history into Focus 
• Staff user testing through winter and spring 
• Preparing training materials and help guides for families 
• Setting up the new mobile app for enrollment and access 

Families will begin to see the first updates during online enrollment in February, when the new enrollment portal becomes available for new student applications. Existing families will be invited to create Focus accounts later in the school year as part of the full transition. 

Transition timeline 

• Winter and spring: Testing and data preparation 
• February: Online enrollment opens in Focus for new students 
• May to August: Staff setup and training 
• August: Full access for families as the new school year begins 

Why the change is happening 

The district’s current system, eSchoolPlus, is no longer adding new features and requires separate tools for enrollment and grading. Our SIS, funded by the 2024 Capital Levy, is a districtwide infrastructure upgrade that supports how schools operate, communicate, and serve families over time. Focus will improve scheduling, attendance, grade reporting, enrollment, and parent portal functions into one system. The new system will also reduce long-term support and licensing costs compared to the current tool, creating ongoing savings for technology operations.   

More information will be shared with families throughout the year, including guides, videos, and step-by-step instructions for creating parent accounts.