Private colleges and universities employing student workers face the unique challenge of balancing privacy obligations and a growing push from federal labor authorities to release student information to unions. Recent...more
Can you believe it? Summer isn’t over yet, but it’s already time to start thinking about the upcoming school year. For parents of younger children, this means shopping for school supplies and new clothes, reestablishing...more
We previously wrote about Public Act 102-0543, which required the Illinois State Board of Education (“ISBE”) to collect and report student sexual orientation, gender, and sex data. ISBE postponed implementation of the Act in...more
The New York State Education Department (“NYSED”) released new guidance to support transgender and gender-expansive (“TGE”) K-12 students. This much anticipated update substantially expands previous guidelines issued eight...more
The NABITA Case Management Standards and Best Practices guides members and practitioners and provides a structure for case management delivery. The standards create consistency and equity in settings with decentralized case...more
The NABITA Case Management Standards and Best Practices guides members and practitioners and provides a structure for case management delivery. The standards anchor consistency and equity in settings with decentralized case...more
The United States Department of Education (DOE) recently released two new guidance documents focused on student health records to remind schools of their continued obligations to protect students’ rights under the Family...more
In an effort to remind school officials of their obligations to protect student privacy, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) has issued guidance on the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) that focuses on the...more
It seems private and independent schools are finding themselves in the unlikely and undesirable position of being entangled in family custodial and court proceedings more frequently than ever. Given the increase in divorced...more
Recently, the Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued two non-binding opinions concerning the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), both upholding school district decisions to exert exemptions and withhold key documents under the...more
The Virginia Department of Education issued new 2022 Model Policies pursuant to Virginia School Code § 22.1-23.3 that reverse the 2021 Model Policies. The new policies provide that parents, not students, must communicate with...more
Higher Education CLE Webinar Series | Presented by Bricker & Eckler and the Southern Illinois University School of Law - Join us for a free webinar series in the month of June on important topics in higher education. ...more
The Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law & Policy is pleased to announce their highly popular program - The FERPA Compliance Certificate Program. Featuring a refreshing approach to developing knowledge and skills...more
Schools, colleges and universities often will outsource to third parties any number of functions or services, such as the operation of campus bookstores and dining facilities, campus security, management of campus parking,...more
What’s new in student confidentiality and compliance? How has the pandemic impacted student confidentiality on campus? Join avowed FERPA geeks Melissa Carleton and Warren Grody as we review what every higher education...more
As colleges and universities know, higher education institutions have a duty to protect the confidentiality of student records, codified in the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”), 20 U.S.C. § 1232g. When...more
Easton Area Sch. Dist. v. Miller, 232 A.3d 716 (Pa. 2020). Pennsylvania Supreme Court holds that images of students in a school bus surveillance video are “educational records” under FERPA and must be redacted before...more
The Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law & Policy is pleased to announce a new program - The FERPA Compliance Certificate Program. Featuring a refreshing approach to developing knowledge and skills related to FERPA...more
Aspiring college students spend enormous amounts of time trying to unlock the magic formula that leads to those magic words: Congratulations, you’ve been accepted! But, for many students, the focus on admissions does not stop...more
In a rare case where the Ohio Supreme Court’s analysis primarily focused on the Ohio Student Privacy Act, R.C. 3319.321 (OSPA), the Court determined the Act’s provisions apply to the records of a former student, even when the...more
Now more than ever, during COVID-19, we need to have access to our student’s health and financial records. Many parents do not realize that once their child attains the age of 18 years old, they no longer have legal access to...more
As a result of COVID-19, institutions may expect to receive more requests from parents for records concerning their student. The following are some of the statues that may require release of such records....more
North Dakota’s State Board of Higher Education recently implemented the Student Data Privacy and Security Bill of Rights (the “Policy”). The Policy, which went into effect on May 29, 2020, was created by the North Dakota...more
More than 50 years ago, Justice Michael Musmanno, speaking for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, eloquently expounded on the importance of the right to privacy in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania: The greatest joy that can be...more
As the issues related to the mandated school closures in response to the COVID-19 crisis continue to rapidly evolve, the Governor extended the closure through April 7, and in all likelihood, Illinois schools will remain...more