Confidentiality is a given with special education. Here are some important points to remember!
© Special education student records are protected by both the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
© Student records are defined as containing information directly related to a student and are maintained by an educational agency or institution.
© Personally identifiable information is the student’s name, name and address of the parents, social security or student number, biometric records or other indirect identifiers (see FAQs regarding personally identifiable information in emails).
© Districts must not disclose information related to other students—i.e. discuss other students at one student’s IEP meeting, have another’s paperwork in plain sight at one’s IEP meeting, etc.
© There are only a few exceptions of what can be disclosed without a parent’s consent—when in doubt get it in writing (or ask)!!
—From “Student Record Privacy: What Districts Can, Should and Must Do to Comply with FERPA and IDEA” from LRP Conferences
Presented by Daniel A. Osher, Esq. through LRP Conferences