Hundreds of Minnesota K-12 school districts have a ‘Protection and Privacy of Pupil Records’ policy that appears to violate federal law by allowing district staff to keep information from parents.

Investigations

Total number of districts with the policy: 229

Total number of schools: 1,637

Total number of students who fall under this policy: 703,901

SUMMARY

Hundreds of Minnesota K-12 school districts have a ‘Protection and Privacy of Pupil Records’ policy that appears to violate federal law (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)) by allowing district staff to keep information from parents and/or legal guardians.

The mandatory “Privacy and Protection of Pupil Records” or similarly titled policies include a section labeled “Private Records Not Accessible to Parent” that states “In certain cases state law intends, and clearly provides, that certain information contained in the education records of the school district pertaining to a student be accessible to the student alone, and to the parent only under special circumstances, if at all.”

The policy goes on to state that the “responsible authority may deny access to private data by a parent when a minor student who is the subject of that data requests that the responsible authority deny such access.” It continues with a list of determining “factors” that allows the district to refuse parental access to the requested information.

Stillwater Area Public Schools 515 Policy – Data Privacy Protection and Privacy of Pupil Specific Data

Most districts appear to be using a model policy from the Minnesota School Boards Association (MSBA).

Additionally, districts have adopted a policy titled “Public Data and Data Subject Requests” which states that an “individual” includes “a parent or guardian or an individual acting as a parent or guardian in the absence of a parent or guardian, except that the responsible authority shall withhold data from parents or guardians, or individuals acting as parents or guardians in the absence of parents or guardians, upon request by the minor if the responsible authority determines that withholding the data would be in the best interest of the minor.”

Minnetonka Public Schools Policy 722 – Public Data and Data Subject Requests

Many districts appear to have updated this specific policy in the last year.

SCHOOL DISTRICTS

The following list of Minnesota K-12 school districts includes links to policies that include language that appears to allow minors and the district to keep information from parents and/or guardians. This is not a comprehensive list and will be updated as new information is presented. In some cases, the policy name is listed because of the inability to link directly to the policy.