It is important to understand that Washington Parents Network is actually two different websites combined into one. Washington Parents Network dot com is actually a Content Management System (CMS) which allows us to easily post and organize articles, text, images and videos. Here is the URL to Washington Parents Network dot com: https://washingtonparentsnetwork.com/
Some of these articles are then copied to our other website called Washington Parents Network dot org – which is a Social Networking System (SNS). Here is the URL to Washington Parents Network dot org: https://washingtonparentsnetwork.org/
A Social Network System has a much different purpose than a Content Management System. It is designed to help people find and communicate with other people who share similar goals and interests. Facebook is the most well known example of a Social Network System. There are some tools that are available on Facebook that are not available on Washington Parents Network. But there are also many tools that are available on Washington Parents Network that are not available on Facebook. In particular, the Member Search function, Group Creation, Event Creation and Communication and Group Discussion tools (as well as your control over the privacy of your communication) are all much better on Washington Parents Network.
When you join our Parents Network, you are actually joining our Social Network System (Washington Parents Network dot org). When you are first getting started, you may spend some time reading articles on Washington Parents Network dot com explaining how to make the most out of our Social Network. However, eventually you and other parents in your community will spend most of your time communicating with each other on our Social Network, Washington Parents Network dot org.
The reason we are using both a Content Management System and a Social Network System is that social networks can take a lot of band width on our server. Separating the Content Management System from the Social Network System means that both websites will run a lot faster.
Navigating between Washington Parents Network dot com and dot org
The purpose of Washington Parents Network dot com is mainly to provide parents with news on our schools and other educational options as well as articles and tips for new members on how to use our Social Network. Therefore, while the top menus of both websites look about the same, there are several important differences.