What schools and nonprofits actually need

Before you look at products or prices, write down what your sites actually need. A clear list does two things. It keeps quotes comparable, and it keeps something important, like the attendance line or the elevator phone, from being forgotten.

Fill this in with the people who use the phones every day: front office staff, the principal or program director, IT and facilities. A downloadable copy is in the requirements checklist template.

Tip: Walk the building with your front office lead. They know which calls go wrong and which rooms have no phone at all.

For each item, mark it must have, nice to have or not needed. Then send the same list to every provider.

Phones in rooms and offices

Count the rooms that need a phone: classrooms, offices, front desk, nurse, counseling, library, gym, cafeteria, kitchen, staff room, portables, maintenance and after-school spaces.
For each room, decide whether it needs only an extension, or also its own direct number and voicemail. Many classroom phones need only an extension.
Note who needs a cordless phone (nurse, custodians, yard duty) or an app on a computer or cell phone (staff who move between sites).
Note where phones mount on a wall: hallways, gyms, kitchens.
Check your network. Is there a working network jack at each phone location? Do your network switches provide Power over Ethernet (PoE), which powers a desk phone through its network cable?
Front desk: do staff need to see who’s already on the phone, or handle several calls at once?
Plan a few spare phones.

Main and attendance lines

List every public number: main office, attendance, district office, transportation, food services and program lines.
Phone menu (auto attendant), such as “press 1 for attendance.” Which options, and in which languages?
Attendance voicemail: how many messages it must hold, who checks it, and whether messages should arrive by email.
Ring groups: which phones ring together, and in what order.
Call queues: should callers wait in line, with a message, during busy times?
Caller ID: what name and number families see when staff call out.

After hours, holidays and closures

Your regular schedule, plus minimum days, summer hours and the holiday calendar.
What callers hear after hours, and where urgent calls go (an on-call phone, for example).
An emergency closure message for weather, smoke, power outages and other surprises.
Who can turn that message on, and from where: a web page, a desk phone, or a cell phone at home?

Paging, bells and intercom

Do you have an overhead paging system? Note its brand and age, and whether it connects to the phone system today.
Paging zones: whole school, one building, outdoors, specific wings.
Who can page: any phone, or only some?
Bells or class-change tones: which system schedules them now?
Classroom intercom: can a teacher call the office, and can the office talk into a room?
Emergency announcements: who can make one, and do they override bells and other pages?

Note: Paging and bell systems often need extra hardware to work with a new phone system. Ask each provider which paging and bell equipment it supports, and get the model list in writing.

911 and safety

Federal rules for multi-line phone systems shape most of this list (FCC, as of Oct 2026). Chapter 7 explains them in plain English.

Direct dialing: anyone can dial 911 with no “9” or other prefix (Kari’s Law).
On-site notification: when someone dials 911, the system alerts a central spot such as the front office (Kari’s Law). Decide who gets alerted, how (a ring, an on-screen alert, a text or an email), and who covers after hours.
Dispatchable location: each 911 call carries the street address plus details like building, floor and room (RAY BAUM’S Act). List each building and each room or zone, including portables.
Phones that move: how the location is updated for apps and laptops used at home or at another site.
Power and internet outages: internet phone providers must tell you when 911 may not work, such as during a power or internet outage, and keep a record that you acknowledged it (47 CFR 9.11). Decide what needs backup power (network switches, for example) and what you’ll do if the internet goes down.
Labels: 911 information on or near each phone.

Fax and other analog devices

List every fax machine. Decide which can move to email-to-fax and which must stay a machine. A machine usually needs an analog telephone adapter (ATA), a small box that connects older devices to internet phone service.
List other devices on phone lines: postage meters, card terminals, door buzzers, gate call boxes and older modems.
List life-safety lines: fire alarm panels, elevator emergency phones, security alarms and emergency call boxes.

Important: Fire alarms, elevator phones and other life-safety lines need specialized equipment that is listed for that use, and often approval from your local fire authority. Ask your fire alarm or elevator vendor what’s required. Don’t assume a phone provider supports these lines, and get any promise in writing.

Voicemail

Who gets a personal voicemail box, and which shared boxes you need (attendance, counseling, front office).
Voicemail to email, and transcription to text, if you want them.
How long messages are kept, and who can open shared boxes.
Greetings in the languages your families speak.

Note: Voicemails and call recordings can include student information. Ask your business office whether the provider needs to sign your student data privacy agreement.

Call recording

Do you need recording at all? If so, on which lines (for example, transportation or the front office)?
How long recordings are kept, who can listen, and where they’re stored.

Important: California generally requires the consent of everyone on a confidential call before it’s recorded (Penal Code 632, as of Oct 2026). A separate section covers calls with cell and cordless phones (Penal Code 632.7). If you record, play a clear notice such as “This call may be recorded,” and review your plan with your attorney. This guide isn’t legal advice.

Accessibility

Hearing aid compatible (HAC) handsets with volume control. FCC rules require hearing aid compatibility for wireline phones, including phones for internet calling made or imported since February 28, 2020. Look for the “HAC” marking (FCC, as of Oct 2026).
Relay service: staff and callers can dial 711 to reach a relay operator (FCC). Interconnected VoIP (voice over internet protocol) providers must offer 711 dialing (FCC).
TTY (text telephone): support for anyone on staff or in your community who uses one.
Phone menus that are short and clear, and always offer a way to reach a person.

Admin control and support

Who can make changes (IT, office manager, principal), and what each person may change.
A web portal for everyday changes: adding a user, changing a greeting, updating the holiday calendar.
Multi-factor sign-in for admin accounts, and a log of who changed what.
Phones that set themselves up when plugged in (often called zero-touch provisioning).
Support: who you can call, during which hours, and how fast they respond during the school day.
A way to export your settings and call records if you ever leave.
An API (application programming interface, a way for software to make changes), if your IT team wants to automate tasks.

Reporting

Call history for each line, including missed calls on the main and attendance lines.
Busy-hour and queue reports, such as how long callers wait.
A record of 911 calls and alerts.
Usage reports you can check against your invoice.

Texting families

Will you send texts from a school or office number? US carriers require business texting from regular 10-digit numbers to be registered (called 10DLC registration), usually through your messaging provider (The Campaign Registry, as of Oct 2026).
Who will send texts, what kinds (attendance notices, reminders), and how families opt in and reply STOP to opt out.
Time for registration before your first message.

Put the list to work

Mark each item must have, nice to have or not needed.
Attach your phone inventory (inventory worksheet).
Send the same package to every provider, and ask them to answer item by item.
Compare the answers and the prices side by side (chapter 4).