YS 10.6.23

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) gives parents and students age 18 and older rights over student education records. The Parents’ Bill of Rights for Data Privacy and Security provides you with additional rights, and Chancellor’s Regulation A-820 provides additional information. Please note that if you are a student and age 18 or over, these rights belong to you, and not your arents or guardians.

Among other things, you have the right to:

• Inspect and review your child’s education records within 45 days after the DOE receives your request.
  o You should submit a written request that identifies the record(s) you wish to inspect.
  o Your child’s school will notify you of the time and place where you may inspect the records.
• Request changes to your child’s education records when you believe they are inaccurate, misleading, or violate your child’s privacy rights under FERPA.
  o You should make requests to amend records in writing, and identify what you want changed and the reason for doing so.
  o If the DOE decides not to amend records as requested, you will be notified of the decision, and of your right to a hearing and certain hearing procedures.Provide written consent before personally identifiable information in your child’s education
  records is disclosed. However, in certain cases, FERPA allows disclosure without consent. Cases permitting disclosure without consent include: 
  • Disclosure to school officials who need to review education records to fulfill their professional responsibilities. School officials include:
    • DOE employees (such as administrators, supervisors, teachers, other instructors, or support staff members); and
    • People whom the DOE engages to perform services or functions for which it would otherwise use its employees. These include (a) individuals and entities providing DOE services and functions through contracts, (b) employees of other government agencies providing DOE-related services or functions, such as attorneys in the NYC Law Department representing the DOE, and school nurses and Office of School Health staff employed by the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, (c) parents, students, or other volunteers assisting other
      school officials in performing their tasks, and (d) other qualifying individuals or organizations, such as consultants and community-based organizations, but only if they have agreed in writing to keep student information confidential. Such people are required to be under the direct control of the DOE with respect to
      the use and maintenance of personally identifiable information from education records. Direct control is achieved in various ways, including by written
      agreement.
      o
• When records are requested by officials of another school, district or education institution in which your child seeks or plans to enroll, or is already enrolled if made for purposes of your child’s enrollment or transfer.
• Other exceptions exist that permit disclosure of personally identifiable information without consent include certain types of disclosures. Some are listed below. Most of these types of disclosures are subject to certain additional requirements and limitations.

Please see FERPA and Chancellor’s Regulation A-820 for more information about them.

• • to authorized representatives of government entities and officials in connection with audits, evaluations, or certain other activities;
  • in connection with financial aid for which the student has applied or which the student has received;
  • to organizations conducting studies for, or on behalf of, the NYCDOE;
  • to accrediting organizations to carry out their accrediting functions;
  • to parents of students age 18 and over if the student is a dependent for Internal Revenue Service (IRS) tax purposes;
  • to comply with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena;
  • to appropriate officials in connection with a health or safety emergency; and
  • of information that the NYCDOE has designated as “directory information.”

File a complaint with the USDOE if you believe the NYC DOE failed to comply with FERPA’s
requirements. Complaints may be filed here:

• Student Privacy Policy Office
  U.S. Department of Education
  400 Maryland Avenue
  SW Washington, DC 20202-8520
  or by email to FERPA.Complaints@ed.gov

VIEW on NYC Public Schools Site

Several laws and regulations protect the confidentiality of information about your children when that information identifies them. Such information, which includes student‐specific data, is known as “personally identifiable information” or “PII.”

The federal laws that protect your child’s PII include the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA), and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). State laws, such as N.Y. Education Law 2-d and the related regulations of the N.Y. State Commissioner of Education; and the DOE Chancellor’s Regulation A-820 also protect the confidentiality of your child’s PII.

Under New York state law, if you are a parent of a child in the New York City public school district (the DOE), you have the following rights regarding the privacy and security of your child’s PII:

• Your child’s PII cannot be sold or released for any marketing or other commercial purposes.
•  If your child is under age 18:
  • You have the right to inspect and review the complete contents of your child’s education records within 45 days of the DOE receiving your request and verifying your identity.
  • You also have the right to request changes to your child’s education records when you believe they are inaccurate, misleading, or violate your child’s privacy.
• Your rights extend to education records stored by DOE contractors or other outside parties on the DOE’s behalf.
• You have the right to be notified if a breach or unauthorized release of your child’s PII occurs. You have the right to make complaints about possible breaches and unauthorized disclosures of your child’s PII and to have such complaints addressed. The DOE must provide you with a response no more than 60 calendar days from when we receive your complaint. If more time is needed, the DOE will provide an explanation to you, along with an approximate date for a response.

How to submit complaints to the NY State Education Department (NYSED):
Online: http://www.nysed.gov/data-privacysecurity/report-improper-disclosure
By email: CPO@mail.nysed.gov
By mail:

Chief Privacy Officer
New York State Education Department
89 Washington Avenue, Albany NY 12234

By phone at: 518-474- 0937

How to submit complaints to the DOE:

By email: studentprivacy@schools.nyc.gov

T-34531 OGC 2022 Aug PBOR Data Privacy and Security (English)

By mail:

Chief Privacy Officer,
Office of the General Counsel Room 308
New York City Department of Education
52 Chambers St, New York, NY 10007

These federal and state laws and regulations also impose requirements on the DOE and certain outside
parties to ensure your child’s PII remains confidential and secure. For example, the DOE and certain
outside parties must adhere to the following:

• Your child’s PII will be collected and disclosed only as necessary to achieve educational purposes
  in accordance with state and federal law.
• Safeguards must be in place to protect your child’s PII when it is stored or transferred. These safeguards must meet industry standards and best practices. Examples of such safeguards include encryption, firewalls and password protection.
  Steps must be taken to minimize its collection, processing and transmission of PII.
• DOE staff members and outside parties who handle your child’s PII must be trained in applicable laws, policies, and safeguards associated with industry standards and best practices.
• Written agreements with outside parties who receive your child’s PII from the DOE must address legal requirements with respect to the privacy and security of your child’s PII.
• Outside parties should not maintain copies of your child’s PII once it is no longer needed for the educational purpose for which the DOE has disclosed it to the outside party. PII should be permanently and securely deleted no later than when the contract ends.

You can find a complete list of all of the types of student data that the New York State Education Department collects. You may also obtain a copy of this list by writing to the Office of Information & Reporting Services, New York State Education Department, Room 863 EBA, 89 Washington Avenue, Albany, NY 12234.

VIEW ON NYC PUBLIC SCHOOLS SITE

Certain types of basic information about you and your child are considered "directory information." Schools can disclose directory information without your consent if, and only if, they first inform you of the following:

• The types of information they designate as "directory information"
• Who they are disclosing the directory information to and why they are disclosing it
• Your right to tell the school not to disclose the directory information (known as an "opt-out")
• The timeframe you have to opt out of the disclosure

The types of information LaGuardia designates as "directory information"

Only a few pieces of information about your child are eligible to be considered directory information. These include their name; participation in school activities; honors, awards and recognition they've received; photographs of them; school enrollment and graduation details; studio; their grade level.  Examples include:

• Graduation and honor rolls
• Receipt of scholarships or awards
• School publications that likely include student names and photographs, such as yearbooks, playbills, programs, art exhibits, graduation lists, and participation in school sports and other activities.

Who we are disclosing the directory information to and why wesing it

LaGuardia believes in recognizing student accomplishments in both studio and academic classes to our school community.  This may occur in print or online material (programs or on our website); the artist of specific pieces or gallery shows (e.g. name of student, course, grade, and title of the artwork is displayed in front of artwork in various Fine Arts exhibits.).  Names and achievements over the Daily Morning Announcements.

Your right to tell LaGuardia not to disclose the directory information (known as an "opt-out")

Families or students may choose for LaGuardia not to use their student's name; participation in school activities; honors, awards, and recognition they've received; photographs of them; school enrollment and graduation details; studio; their grade level by writing a letter saying what information and in what situation should the school not disclose directory information.  The request should be emailed to Assistant Principal, Engagement & Admissions, Dr. Stricklin-Witherspoon at mstricklin@schools.nyc.gov

The timeframe you have to opt out of the disclosure

Requests should be submitted by October 20, 2023.

For more information on this topic, please contact: mstricklin@schools.nyc.gov