Frequently Asked Questions

WATCH D.O.G.S. (Dads Of Great Students) is a family and community engagement educational initiative.

1. To provide positive male role models for the students, demonstrating by their presence that education is important.
2. To provide extra sets of eyes and ears to enhance school security and reduce bullying.

WatchDOGS are fathers, grandfathers, uncles, and other father figures who volunteer for at least one day each year at an official WATCH D.O.G.S. school.

WATCH D.O.G.S., a K-12 program, invites fathers, grandfathers, uncles, or other father figures to volunteer at least one day all day at their child’s/student’s school during the school year. Fathers and father figures sign up to volunteer through a ‘Launch Event’ such as a “Dads and Kids Pizza Night” or “Donuts with Dad” or by calling their child’s school any time throughout the school year. The program is overseen by a “Top Dogs” volunteer team who partners with the school administrator to coordinate scheduling and identify opportunities for WatchDOGS to assist at the school. WatchDOG dads and volunteers perform a variety of tasks during their volunteer day including monitoring the school entrance, assisting with unloading and loading of buses and cars, monitoring the lunch room, or helping in the classroom with a teacher’s guidance by working with small groups of students on homework, flashcards, or spelling.

During the day, WatchDOGS may read and work on flash cards with students, play at recess, eat lunch with students, patrol the school entrances and hallways, assist with traffic flow, and any other assigned activities where they actively engage with not only their students but other students as well.

Many school principals have reported that the mere presence of a WatchDOG dad dramatically reduces reports of bullying. On the day of their participation, WatchDOG dads are given a brief review of their involvement and they wear an official WATCH D.O.G.S. t-shirt with a disposable ‘Dog Tag’ identifying them as a WatchDOG.

Yes! WATCH D.O.G.S. has a great track record of bringing fathers and father figures to school for the whole day. If you run your program as we outline for you, men will show up. While volunteering a day is a sacrifice for these fathers and father figures, once they serve their day they will be glad that they did. In fact, in many cases, these fathers and father figures will sign up for more days, both because they had an incredible experience and because it gives them a greater appreciation for what the teachers are doing to educate their children.

If your school does not already have a WATCH D.O.G.S. program, the first step is to sign up for our toll-free ‘7 Steps to Success’ training conference call. After you have completed our ‘7 Steps to Success’ training conference call, the next step is to meet with your principal to make sure they want to implement a WATCH D.O.G.S. program (at their school) to help them meet their educational goals. If your principal wants to implement a WATCH D.O.G.S. program, the next step is to purchase a Startup Kit. Learn more about how to get a WATCH D.O.G.S. program started here.

Note: If you don’t receive an order confirmation email within 48 hours of placing your order, please call 888.540.3647 and speak with a program developer.

• Principal and/or assistant principal
• President or representative of a parent support group such as PTA
• Watch Dog School Representative and/or School Counselor
• Top Dog Coordinator and Top Dog Team Members

The entire series of videos lasts about 45 minutes. They are broken up into short segments that you can review at your own pace.

The WATCH D.O.G.S. National Office is the only authorized provider of the official ‘7 Steps to Success’ training.

If you have attended the ‘7 Steps to Success’ training conference call, the next step is to purchase a Startup Kit. The WATCH D.O.G.S. Startup Kit costs approximately $500.00. 

We accept purchase orders, and Title I funds, can invoice your school, school district, or PTA, and accept all 4 major credit cards.

We also have a resource for helping schools learn how many programs pay for themselves.

We offer Elementary and Secondary level Startup Kits. See the full list of items included in your Startup Kit here! Note: All schools must be trained before ordering their Startup Kit.

No. Each school that would like to start a WATCH D.O.G.S. program must take our ‘7 Steps to Success’ training conference call and purchase their kit. Whether you are in a school district that has three schools or two hundred, each school that would like to start a WATCH D.O.G.S. program must be trained and purchase its own kit. 

Note: A single kit may NOT be used to implement the WATCH D.O.G.S. program in multiple schools.

Approved schools can “log in” to the WATCH D.O.G.S. using their unique school code and password.

Approved schools ‘at checkout’ have the option to pay with a credit card, PayPal, be invoiced, or pay with a purchase order. All school orders are shipped directly to your school.

If you have any questions, or cannot locate your unique school code and/or password, please contact our office at 888-540-DOGS (3647), and a Program Developer will be happy to assist you.

Yes, the WATCH D.O.G.S. is a 24/7 online ordering center for administrators, teachers, Top Dog Coordinators, parents, and WATCH D.O.G.S. volunteers shop for your favorite WATCH D.O.G.S. products.

The WATCH D.O.G.S. program at your school should host two ‘Launch Events’ each year, which should be budgeted for as well.

It is also important that the fathers or father figures purchase their own official WATCH D.O.G.S. uniform t-shirt. The school or PTA should not purchase the shirts for their WatchDOGS though we do recommend the school has extra shirts on hand for WatchDOGS to purchase from the school or the PTA. We have learned that asking the WatchDOGS to purchase their WATCH D.O.G.S. official uniforms, will keep your overall costs minimal. It will also ensure the WatchDOGS not only sign the calendar but show up on their day because of the small investment they made. If you have questions about additional costs, please do not hesitate to call our office at 888.540.3647 (DOGS).

Yes! Shipping and handling will be added to your order at the time your order is finalized. If you place your order via our WATCH D.O.G.S. store, at checkout you can see shipping and handling cost. Shipping and handling costs vary depending on the level of method or service you choose. If you need an estimate for shipping and handling, log in to the WATCH D.O.G.S. or give our office a call at 888.540.3647 (DOGS) to get an estimate or quote.

Please note additional shipping and handling costs may apply to those states outside the 48 Continental United States. If you reside outside the 48 Continental United States and/or if you are in another country please call our office for estimated delivery time and approximate costs.

Welcome back! Your school has made a great decision to maintain your WATCH D.O.G.S. Program!

View our latest Program Renewal Pack in the DOGStore!

Methods of Payment:

• To order your Renewal Pack, “log in” to the WATCH D.O.G.S. . You will need your school code and password to log in and place your order.
• Order your Renewal Pack, and ‘at checkout’ select your method of payment.
• Please note your order will be shipped directly to your school.
• If you cannot locate your school code and/or password for the WATCH D.O.G.S., call our office at 888-540-3647 (DOGS) and a Program Developer will be happy to assist you.

Yes, we offer our implementation guide and training materials in Spanish. All of our major documents are in Spanish including our WATCH D.O.G.S. poster set. We also offer our ‘7 Steps to Success’ training conference call in Spanish.

For more information, email info@dadsofgreatstudents.com or call us at 888-540-3647 (DOGS) to speak with a Program Developer. Para informacion en español llame a Sarah Romo de Vivar al 888-540-3647 (DOGS) o por e-mail a info@dadsofgreatstudents.com.

It is a matter of priorities, not economics. It might be easier for the school to purchase the Startup Kit with a purchase order and/or Title I Funds, and have your school’s PTA fund the ‘Launch Events’. However, a school can easily raise money by sending their Top Dog Team into the business community seeking donations and partnerships. The Top Dog Team should have the ALL ABOUT WATCH D.O.G.S. flyer and the “business donation” forms from the forms USB drive with them. This program is an investment with a high return. To get more information or ideas, please feel free to call us at 888-540-3647 (DOGS) or email us at info@dadsofgreatstudents.com.

Yes! WATCH D.O.G.S. would love to be set as an approved vendor in your school district. Please email questions about us becoming an approved vendor to info@dadsofgreatstudents.com and we will be happy to email or fax you a copy of our W9.

Yes! WATCH D.O.G.S. is the sole source provider for all materials and products bearing and/or encompassing our logo or name. The WATCH D.O.G.S. logos and training materials are copyright and trademark protected. To see a list of our official products, materials, and merchandise, please visit our Website and Dogstore. The WATCH DOGS logos may not be reproduced without the expressed written consent of the National WATCH D.O.G.S. office. In addition, the WATCH D.O.G.S. National Office is the only authorized provider of the official ‘7 Steps to Success’ training video series.

If you reside in Texas, all school districts, schools, and PTA’s will be charged sales tax – no exceptions. If you have any questions, please call 888-540-3647 or email info@dadsofgreatstudents.com.

No. Almost all our WATCH D.O.G.S. programs are funded by the school or by the school’s PTA program. There is no need to “reinvent the wheel.” Use your school’s existing infrastructure to handle funds and limit liability.

If you cannot locate your login and/or password for the WATCH D.O.G.S., call our office at 888.540.3647 (DOGS) and we will be happy to reset it.

The ‘7 Steps to Success’ training conference call is designed to explain how to start a new WATCH D.O.G.S. program. The ‘7 Steps to Success’ training conference call is for principals, assistant principals, counselors, school representatives, Top Dog Coordinator, Top Dog Team members, and a representative from your parental involvement program. WATCH D.O.G.S. suggests your Watch Dog School Representative, Top Dog Coordinator, and Top Dog Team listen to the call at least once each year.

Thanks for being an involved father or father figure! You are going to love your day as a WatchDOG, and your kids will too. To sign up to be a WatchDOG, please call your child’s school and ask for the Top Dog Coordinator or the Watch Dog School Representative to find out a date you can sign up.

To change your volunteer date, please call your child’s school and ask for the Top Dog Coordinator or the Watch Dog School Representative to find out a new date you can sign up for.

Please help us keep your school information up-to-date. If there are changes to your Top Dog Team or Watch Dog School Representative for this school year, please email the changes to info@dadsofgreatstudents.com. 

We need to know the following information: first and last name, role with the school or the school’s WATCH D.O.G.S. program, email address, and telephone number. Include your school name, city, and state (in the email or subject line) to help us easily identify your school.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call us at 888-540-3647 (DOGS) or email us at info@dadsofgreatstudents.com.