Ferpa violation student email

A sensitive topic!

FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. A FERPA violation occurs when an educational institution or an individual discloses personally identifiable information (PII) from a student's education record without the student's consent.

Here are some examples of FERPA violations that may occur through student email:

  1. Unauthorized disclosure of grades: If a teacher or administrator sends a student's grades or academic performance information to a third party without the student's consent, it may be a FERPA violation.
  2. Sharing of personal information: If a school employee shares a student's personal information, such as their address, phone number, or social security number, with someone who is not authorized to receive that information, it may be a FERPA violation.
  3. Disclosing special education information: If a school employee discloses a student's special education information, such as their Individualized Education Program (IEP), to someone who is not authorized to receive that information, it may be a FERPA violation.
  4. Sending emails to unauthorized recipients: If a school employee sends an email to a student's email account that contains PII about another student, it may be a FERPA violation.

To avoid FERPA violations when communicating with students via email, schools and educators should:

  1. Use secure email protocols: Use encrypted email protocols, such as HTTPS, to protect student data.
  2. Use student email addresses only: Only use student email addresses to communicate with students, and not their personal email addresses.
  3. Limit disclosure of PII: Only disclose PII that is necessary for the purpose of the communication.
  4. Get consent: Obtain consent from students before disclosing their PII to third parties.
  5. Use BCC instead of CC: When sending emails to multiple students, use the BCC (blind carbon copy) field instead of the CC (carbon copy) field to protect student email addresses.
  6. Use secure email clients: Use email clients that have built-in security features, such as encryption and two-factor authentication.
  7. Train staff and faculty: Provide regular training to school staff and faculty on FERPA regulations and best practices for communicating with students via email.

Remember, FERPA violations can result in serious consequences, including fines and legal action. It's essential to prioritize student privacy and follow FERPA guidelines when communicating with students via email.