Create an Event

Creating an event is the first hands-on step. In this guide you'll set up the event itself — its name and schedule, where it happens, and the rules for who can register and how many. Pricing, extras, and questions come in the guides that follow, and they live on the same page, so you can do everything in one sitting or come back later.

Where to Create an Event

Click Events in the left sidebar, then click New event in the top right. The event form opens, with your settings on the left and an At a glance summary on the right that updates as you type.

Every new event starts as a draft. Nothing is visible to families until you publish it, so you have room to get everything right first.

Details

The Details section covers what families see first:

Event name — the title on the event page and in every email, so make it clear and specific: "Fall Open House," "6th Grade Science Museum Trip."
Starts and Ends — the date and time of the event. Times are in your school's time zone, which you set under Settings \> General.
Description — what families should know: what to expect, what to bring, who it's for. It appears on the event page exactly as you write it, line breaks included.
Header image — an optional banner across the top of the event page. Wide images in a 21:9 ratio look best.

Location

For an in-person event, enter a Location name (like "School Gym") and an Address. Start typing the address and pick the match from the suggestions — the event page then shows a map so families can find you.

If you leave the location blank, the event page says the location is to be announced.

Virtual Events

On the Premium plan, turn on Virtual event to run the event online. Instead of an address, you'll enter a Join link (a Zoom or Meet link, for example). The link is never shown on the public event page — it's only included in each family's registration confirmation email, so only registered families can join.

Registration Settings

The Registration section controls who can sign up and how many:

Capacity (attendees) — the maximum number of attendees. Capacity counts people, not registrations, so a parent bringing two children uses three spots. Leave it blank for unlimited. When you reach capacity, registration closes on its own and the event page shows that the event is full. When fewer than 10 spots remain, the event page shows "Only X spots left."
Registration closes — the date and time registration ends. We recommend always setting this, usually shortly before the event starts, so late sign-ups don't slip through.
Invite-only (no public registration) — turn this on to limit registration to the families you invite. Anyone can still see the event page, but only invited email addresses receive a registration link. See Invite Families & How Registration Works.
Hold spots for unpaid registrations — appears for paid events and is on by default. When it's on, a family's spots count toward capacity as soon as they register, paid or not. When it's off, spots count only once a registration is paid, so a family who hasn't paid yet can lose their place if the event fills.
Who is this event for? — if your school has set up program categories (such as grade levels) under Settings \> General, you can tag the event with the groups it's meant for. The tags appear on the event page so families can tell at a glance. They don't restrict who can register.

Save Your Draft

When the summary on the right says Ready to save, click Create draft. Only the event name, start, and end are required — plus a price, if the event isn't free. If anything is missing, the summary lists what's still needed.

Your event opens with its roster and settings. Click Edit at any time to change the details, and Save changes when you're done.

Tip: If you run the same event every year, the Premium plan lets you Duplicate it. The copy keeps the settings, extras, volunteer slots, and questions, starts as a new draft with no registrations, and is named "(Copy)" — just update the name and dates before you publish.

With your event created, the next step is setting its price and any extras.