September 7th, 2026

Usability Improvement

Family App: Attach a photo straight from the camera

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Overview:

Parents can now take and attach photos directly from their device camera when creating passes in the Orah for Families app. Previously, parents had to first capture a photo in their camera app, save it, and then upload the file through a multi-step process. This streamlined workflow makes it faster to attach medical notes, permission slips, or other documentation when requesting leave passes for students.

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How it works

  1. In the Orah Families app, start a new pass or open a form that asks for a file.

  2. Scroll to Attach Files and tap Add File.

  3. Choose Take a photo, Choose from library, or Browse files.

  4. Take or pick the photo. It attaches to the pass, and the request submits as it always did.

Good to know

  • Nothing to switch on - No new setting, no permission to configure. The attachment field appears wherever it already did, which means a pass type with Attach File enabled, or a form with a file upload question.

  • Parents need the updated app - This ships inside the Families app rather than as a server change, so a parent sees it once their phone has the new version.

  • Photos are resized before upload - Capped at 1920px on the longest side at quality 0.8, turning a typical 4-5 MB camera file into a few hundred KB. Still readable, and it finishes on a weak signal.

  • Denied permissions now say so - If camera or photo access is off for Orah, the app shows a message pointing at device Settings instead of appearing to do nothing.