Meta expands Instagram school program to nearly 17,000 schools

Meta is expanding Instagram’s School Partnership Program in the United States, adding tools for participating schools and verified students as the company said nearly 17,000 schools have joined the initiative to date. The new features include school-specific communication channels and content, hubs for clubs and teams, and a student directory. Meta described the features and enrollment figure; the available reports do not establish how widely students will use them or whether they improve safety. Participating schools can create Channels for updates to students, parents and the broader school community. Only school administrators can post in those Channels, according to Meta. Schools can also share Stories and Notes intended to be visible only to verified students at their school. Students at participating schools can access pages for clubs and teams, which serve as hubs for events and information, as well as a directory of other students. Meta said high school students must be verified through UNiDAYS before using the new student features. The company said student directory listings are limited to other verified students and teen followers whom the student follows back.