Terms and Conditions

Text Alerts — Terms and Conditions

Last updated: August 17, 2026 at 5:13 p.m.

About This Program

McDonogh School ("McDonogh," "we," "us") runs a text message program called McDonogh Text Alerts. It keeps our community informed about school closures and delays, weather conditions that affect outdoor activities, campus security events, and other time-sensitive school news. It also carries a weekly newsletter called the McDonogh Minute.

Who Can Join

The program is open to McDonogh parents and guardians, students, faculty, staff, and trustees, and to anyone who coordinates an event on our campus. You must be at least 13 years old to sign up for yourself. If you are under 18, please ask a parent or guardian first.

How to Join

Go to mcdonogh.org/alerts and enter your U.S. mobile phone number. We text you a one-time verification code. When you enter that code, you confirm the number is yours and you consent to receive text messages from McDonogh at that number. You then choose which categories of alerts you want, and for most categories, which seasons of the year they apply to.

Agreeing to receive text messages is not required to enroll at McDonogh, to work here, or to buy anything from us. You can take part in every part of school life without joining this program.

What You Will Receive

You choose any combination of these categories:

• School Closures and Delays — school closures, delayed openings, and early dismissals, most often because of snow or ice.
• Outdoor Activity Restrictions — extreme heat or cold, poor air quality, and lightning that limit or cancel outdoor activities. Sent between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. only.
• Critical Security Notices — campus hold, shelter-in-place, evacuation, or lockdown events.
• Informational Messages — other time-sensitive notices, such as traffic problems or event changes.
• McDonogh Minute — a weekly newsletter with upcoming events and announcements. This service comes from a different number, 667-275-7685.

Message Frequency

Message frequency varies. Alerts go out only when something happens, so in a quiet month you may get none at all. During a snow week or a campus emergency you may get several in one day. If you subscribe to the McDonogh Minute, you will get one message on most Sunday afternoons during the school year.

Cost

Message and data rates may apply. McDonogh does not charge you anything for these messages, but your mobile carrier may charge you for the texts or data you use to receive them. Check your plan if you are not sure.

Who Messages Come From

Messages are sent by McDonogh School. Every message identifies McDonogh by name. School messages are sent from McDonogh School phone numbers, and the number a given message arrives from may vary or change over time — the sender is identified by the McDonogh name in the message itself, not by the number it arrives from. You may receive messages from more than one McDonogh School number.

How to Stop Messages

Reply STOP to any McDonogh School text message to unsubscribe. A STOP reply to any of our numbers removes you from the program, not just from that one number. Replying STOP stops all McDonogh text alerts to that number, including school closure notices and campus security alerts. Your carrier blocks our messages after a STOP, so we cannot reach that number again even in an emergency. Note that McDonogh Minute is a seprate service, and you can STOP McDonogh Minute messages separately from text alerts about emergencies and closure notices.

If you would rather turn off only some categories and keep the rest, do not reply STOP. Go to mcdonogh.org/alerts and change your preferences there instead.

If you replied STOP earlier and now want text alert messages again, text START to 410-709-1730, then go to mcdonogh.org/alerts to set your preferences.

If you replied STOP earlier and now want McDonogh Minute messages again, text START to 667-275-7685, then go to mcdonogh.org/alerts to set your preferences.

How to Get Help

Reply HELP to any message from 410-709-1730 for text alerts, or 667-275-7685 for the McDonogh Minute, and we will text you back with contact information. You can also reach us at technology@mcdonogh.org or 443-544-7070.

Delivery Is Not Guaranteed

Text messages travel over your mobile carrier's network, and delivery is outside our control. Mobile carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages. McDonogh is not responsible for any delay, failed delivery, or other problem in sending or receiving a text message.

For that reason, text alerts are only one of the ways we reach our community during an emergency. Please do not rely on them alone. Always follow the instructions of school officials and emergency responders, and check mcdonogh.org for the latest information.

Supported Carriers

The program works on the major U.S. wireless carriers, including AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, and UScellular, and on many smaller carriers and resellers. Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages.

Your Privacy

We use your mobile number only to send you the alerts you asked for. We do not share, sell, rent, or trade your mobile phone number or your text messaging consent data with third parties, affiliates, or lead generators for marketing or promotional purposes. We share your number with one vendor only — the messaging service that delivers our texts (Twilio) — and only so that it can deliver those messages for us.

You can read our full Privacy Policy at https://www.mcdonogh.org/privacy-policy.

Changes to These Terms

We may update these terms from time to time. When we do, we will change the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. If you keep receiving messages after we post a change, you accept the updated terms.

Questions

If you have questions about this program or these terms, contact technology@mcdonogh.org, or write to us at:

McDonogh School
Attn: Technology
8600 McDonogh Road
Owings Mills, Maryland 21117