FlexTime activities normally fill up on a first-come, first-served basis. Priority Assignments change that for the activities that matter most, like academic intervention or support sessions, by letting you reserve specific days for direct assignment instead of open registration. Everything else stays available for students to register into as usual.
By the end of this article, you'll know how to create a Priority Category and understand exactly how it changes registration behavior on the days it's active.
Permission Level Required: Owner
⚠️ This feature is available to Plus and Premium plans only.
In this article:
Creating a Priority Category: How to set up a new Priority Category and assign it to specific days.
How Priority Categories affect registration: What changes for students and teachers on a priority day.
Editing and removing Priority Categories: How to update or delete an existing category.
Creating a Priority Category
A Priority Category links specific FlexTime Activities to specific days, so those activities can directly assign students rather than compete for open registration seats.
Step-by-step guide to creating Priority Categories
Step-by-step guide to creating Priority Categories
Navigate to FlexTime > Settings.
Under the Priority Categories heading, set the toggle ON.
There is a default category named Other. Optional: Click on the blue edit pencil to select which days you want this category to take priority OR de-select all days.
To create a new category, click the Add category button.
Type a distinct Category name. Use a name that reflects its purpose, such as "Math Intervention" or "Science Support."
Select the day or days this Priority Category applies to.
Click Add to complete creation.
✅ Outcome: The Priority Category now appears in your Priority Categories list. Teachers can assign it to their Activity Templates.
💎 Tip: Create Priority Categories before your teachers build their Activity Templates for the term. This way, teachers can assign the category during template creation instead of editing templates afterward.
📖 Go deeper: For instructions on assigning a Priority Category to an Activity Template, see FlexTime Activity Templates: Creating, Cloning, and Assigning Activities.
Select Priority Categories on Activity Templates
When editing and existing Activity Template, or when creating a new one, the Priority Category can be selected to ensure this activity can be used to directly assign students.
Step-by-step guide to creating an Activity Template with Prority Categories
Step-by-step guide to creating an Activity Template with Prority Categories
Navigate to FlexTime > Activity Templates.
Click the blue edit pencil next to the activity template you want to link to a Priority Category, or click Create Activity to start a new one.
Select a category from the Priority Category dropdown. This dropdown lists every Priority Category already created in FlexTime Settings. If no Priority Categories exist yet, this dropdown is empty.
Click Save to apply the change.
For a deeper dive into creating Activity Templates, refer to FlexTime Activity Templates: Creating, Cloning, and Assigning Activities.
How Priority Categories affect registration
On a day when a Priority Category is active, activities assigned to that category behave differently from every other FlexTime activity running that day.
What happens on a priority day:
Activities associated with the active Priority Category can be used to directly assign students. Teachers and counselors place students into these activities instead of students self-registering.
Activities not associated with the active Priority Category remain open for standard student self-registration. These activities are not blocked or restricted, they simply do not have direct-assignment priority.
Students who are not directly assigned to a priority activity register for any open activity exactly as they would on a non-priority day.
⚠️ Note: A Priority Category only changes assignment behavior on the days it's active. On days without an active Priority Category, all activities operate under standard first-come, first-served registration.
✅ Outcome: Intervention and support activities are protected from being filled by general registration, while every other activity remains fully open to students.
Editing and removing Priority Categories
Step-by-step guide to editing Priority Categories
Step-by-step guide to editing Priority Categories
1. Navigate to FlexTime > Settings > Priority Categories.
2. Select the Priority Category you want to change.
3. Update the name or assigned days, or click [Remove/Delete]to delete the category.
🛑 Warning: Removing a Priority Category also removes its Priority Assignment behavior from any Activity Templates currently linked to it. Those activities revert to standard registration on their previously priority days.
Further reading
FlexTime Activity Templates: Creating, Cloning, and Assigning Activities: How to assign a Priority Category to a specific activity.
FlexTime Student Assignment: How teachers and counselors assign students to activities, including priority activities.
Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting
A teacher cannot directly assign students to their activity even though it's supposed to be a priority activity today.
If a teacher cannot directly assign students to an activity, confirm that the activity's Activity Template has the correct Priority Category assigned. If the template is not linked to a Priority Category, or is linked to a different one than the one active today, the activity behaves as a standard registration activity. An Owner or Manager can verify or correct the Priority Category assignment in FlexTime > Settings > Priority Categories.
FAQs
FAQs
Can I use a Priority Category on more than one activity template?
You can link a Priority Category to as many activity templates as you need. Every activity linked to the same Priority Category can directly assign students whenever that category is active.
What happens to a student who was directly assigned to a priority activity but doesn't attend?
Students who are directly assigned to a priority activity and do not attend are handled the same way as any unattended FlexTime assignment. See FlexTime Unassigned Students for how to identify and reassign these students.