The school pushed me over the edge

[MedicMom]

In the board meeting agenda they publish online, they published the IEPs that have to be approved. They redacted all but one child's name(his appeared in the body of the IEP) but included grade and diagnosis and birth date.

 

I called the school and was told it was an administrative/clerical error and they should not have been published. However everyone who could take it off their website was already gone for the weekend so it would have to wait until Monday morning.

 

I told them if it was still there by 6 am Monday morning my son would not be attending school that day.

 

We've been on the fence about homeschooling next fall. I think this may have just pushed us over.

[Rachel]

That's not something that should wait until Monday to be handled. Especially if a child's name is published.

[Katy]

Wow.  Time to call someone to complain about protected information.  I'm not sure who, but someone. Hopefully someone here will have better ideas than me.

[zoobie]

Omg. That's the worst kind of incompetence! :(

[MedicMom]

After I got no where with the school, I contacted two members of the board of education and some of other parents whose children's information was up there. i dont know what else to do over a weekend.

[OneStepAtATime]

After I got no where with the school, I contacted two members of the board of education and some of other parents whose children's information was up there. i dont know what else to do over a weekend.

I hope that is netting some action behind the scenes.   :grouphug:  :grouphug:  :grouphug:

[SKL]

They should get it off the website right now.  :/

 

I understand making mistakes, but then you make it right.  Leaving it public all weekend could be very damaging.  :(

[myfunnybunch]

That is unacceptable.

 

It's not as though the administrators only have access while at school. The school should have contacted them immediately at home. My guess is that the person you talked to on the phone has no flippin' idea how serious a violation of confidentiality and professionalism this is, and simply views it as similar to a typo instead of a lawsuit in the making.

 

I hope your additional calls get that info down fast.

[Rachel]

That is unacceptable.

 

It's not as though the administrators only have access while at school. The school should have contacted them immediately at home. My guess is that the person you talked to on the phone has no flippin' idea how serious a violation of confidentiality and professionalism this is, and simply views it as similar to a typo instead of a lawsuit in the making.

 

I hope your additional calls get that info down fast.

I agree. Most likely the person answering the phone didn't realize the seriousness of the issue.

[Rachel]

After I got no where with the school, I contacted two members of the board of education and some of other parents whose children's information was up there. i dont know what else to do over a weekend.

If you talked to a board member, they will contact IT, the superintendent, the principal or someone. I'd imagine at least one board member will recognize the gravity of the situation.

[PeachyDoodle]

IT can ABSOLUTELY fix this remotely, in a matter of seconds. Someone needs to pick up the phone. NOW.

[MedicMom]

If you talked to a board member, they will contact IT, the superintendent, the principal or someone. I'd imagine at least one board member will recognize the gravity of the situation.

I hope so. All the school needs to do is take it down, notify the affected parents and apologize.

It's pretty much the straw that broke the camel's back. This is actually a decent public school, if your child has no special needs. But I'm so tired of dealing with the school.

[gardenmom5]

Methinks whom ever is responsible for removing it needs to get their patootie in after hours tonight. That's their job, and why they're paid.

Seattle had some one who felt their vacation was more important than unsceduled but pressing citywide concerns . The mayor wouldn't fire her, and so he was voted out. She ended up fired. It was fresh in voters minds.

[Tsuga]

Appalling. That is a basic right violated. They can get in to work. I hope these families get their apologies.

[Arcadia]

After I got no where with the school, I contacted two members of the board of education and some of other parents whose children's information was up there. i dont know what else to do over a weekend.

 

Is the information on the school website and/or the school district website?  Is the board meeting at school level or school district level?   For district board meeting minutes, sometimes the my local public schools post a copy to the schools website to make it easy for parents.  So it is good to check that it is not also posted somewhere else.

 

It's not as though the administrators only have access while at school. The school should have contacted them immediately at home.

 

The admin is usually not the webadmin and may not know who is in charge because webadmin changes often sometimes and could even be a parent volunteer handling the maintenance of webpages. The IT head is the one who likely knows who has the password access to the school webpages..

.

[Seasider]

That is unacceptable.

 

It's not as though the administrators only have access while at school. The school should have contacted them immediately at home. My guess is that the person you talked to on the phone has no flippin' idea how serious a violation of confidentiality and professionalism this is, and simply views it as similar to a typo instead of a lawsuit in the making.

 

I hope your additional calls get that info down fast.

Agreed. And for the amount our local school district spends on tech support, there better be someone on call round the clock.

[ktgrok]

Start throwing the phrase FERPA violation around. It's the educational equivalent of HIPPA and it is a BIG deal. Someone should realize the seriousness when they hear FERPA. 

[hornblower]

screen cap all incidents and save them on your computer for evidence  

Pretty sure this is a violation of FERPA  http://familypolicy.ed.gov/complaint-form

[Seasider]

screen cap all incidents and save them on your computer for evidence

 

Pretty sure this is a violation of FERPA http://familypolicy.ed.gov/complaint-form

Screen shot for sure! Documentation, baby.

[Spryte]

Unbelievable. :(

[bettyandbob]

contact your state P&A

http://www.acl.gov/programs/aidd/Programs/PA/Contacts.aspx

 

Also, I believe this warrants a formal complaint to your state DOE and USDOE. 

 

Seriously unbelievable. 

[bettyandbob]

You should contact USDOE.

 

http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html?src=rn

 

 

[Mimm]

Jeez. Yeah, I'd contact everyone I could get ahold of about this. :( "Sorry but we went home for the weekend" doesn't remotely cut it.

[SparklyUnicorn]

That's pretty lousy. 

 

 

[Tsuga]

Is the information on the school website and/or the school district website?  Is the board meeting at school level or school district level?   For district board meeting minutes, sometimes the my local public schools post a copy to the schools website to make it easy for parents.  So it is good to check that it is not also posted somewhere else.

 

 

The admin is usually not the webadmin and may not know who is in charge because webadmin changes often sometimes and could even be a parent volunteer handling the maintenance of webpages. The IT head is the one who likely knows who has the password access to the school webpages..

.

 

It seems to me that whoever put it up can take it back down.

 

I have worked with school websites. It's not that complicated. For something like this that is a violation of federal law (FERPA, HIPPA), you find that person and you figure out a way to get someone in there. You can take down the whole page if you want.

[myfunnybunch]

The admin is usually not the webadmin and may not know who is in charge because webadmin changes often sometimes and could even be a parent volunteer handling the maintenance of webpages. The IT head is the one who likely knows who has the password access to the school webpages..

.

 

My point isn't really about who will be taking the information down. It is that "They've gone home for the weekend," is not an acceptable excuse. It doesn't matter who has the actual password. The school administrator should be on the phone immediately and for as long as possible to get it sorted out, not waiting until Monday morning.

[Tsuga]

My point isn't really about who will be taking the information down. It is that "They've gone home for the weekend," is not an acceptable excuse. It doesn't matter who has the actual password. The school administrator should be on the phone immediately and for as long as possible to get it sorted out, not waiting until Monday morning.

 

Yes. The principal him or herself should be taking action and in contact with those families, even if he or she cannot access the information at the moment due to lack of passwords.

[Rachel]

I hope so. All the school needs to do is take it down, notify the affected parents and apologize.

It's pretty much the straw that broke the camel's back. This is actually a decent public school, if your child has no special needs. But I'm so tired of dealing with the school.

I'm sorry too! Even if your child's name wasn't published, I imagine you feel pretty violated right now. I hope the problem has been resolved by now.

[Katy]

Now that you know the terms, frankly I'd contact the local news stations and newspapers.

[Alessandra]

In the board meeting agenda they publish online, they published the IEPs that have to be approved. They redacted all but one child's name(his appeared in the body of the IEP) but included grade and diagnosis and birth date.

 

What???? I am not following. They published the entire IEP? I can't believe they published name, grade, birth date, DIAGNOSIS???? And the BOARD approves IEPs????? I never heard of a board having power to approve IEPs. Boards usually approve only outside placements, because there is a susstancial cost involved --$30,000, $75,000 -- that sort of thing. But students are identified only by number. Every.single.thing about this is so wrong.

 

Usually state Ed departments have a due process officer/office. That would be one place to start. But the violation is so egregious that it should go a lot further. I would also spend some time reading through your school districts policies and through state policies. FERPA is not what it used to be, but privacy protection for special Ed students is still strong. Check anti-bullying statutes, if there are any good ones in your state. You may be able to get an individual on that.

 

Screen shot everything and email it to yourself.

Edited April 16, 2016 by Alessandra

[klmama]

I understand why you'd want to call in the local media, but if the info were shared via the news before the names were taken down, even more people would have access to the private information. 

 

 

[Katy]

If the news media contacted a school board member to discuss legal ramifications being covered on the news, I guarantee the information would be down within the hour.  The media is more powerful than the government.

[Tsuga]

Now that you know the terms, frankly I'd contact the local news stations and newspapers.

 

I would not do this. Those people are vipers. (Edit: second glass of wine, "vipers" is unkind, but I will clarify: can be vipers.) There is no reason this information needs to get any further than it already has.

 

I would absolutely keep records for the state and for possible lawsuits but never contact the media.

 

Yes, the media are powerful but the chances of people browsing the school website on a Friday night without the media: practically none. It needs to be taken down STAT but at this point it's really a question of legality.

 

If the media have a slow news night, ugh. The kids and families do not need that in their lives.

 

If you want to get their panties in a bunch, call a lawyer. This is a clearly illegal situation so a lawyer seeking damages might give them a call on their home phones.

 

The media for a privacy issue, no.

Edited April 16, 2016 by Tsuga

[OneStepAtATime]

I understand why you'd want to call in the local media, but if the info were shared via the news before the names were taken down, even more people would have access to the private information. 

 

This.  I worked in media.  I wouldn't risk it.

If the news media contacted a school board member to discuss legal ramifications being covered on the news, I guarantee the information would be down within the hour.  The media is more powerful than the government.

I agree up to a point but there are a lot of unknown variables here.  Among them how fast people involved would communicate with each other and how efficient their chain of command is.  And it is a weekend.  Local news sites frequently post on their websites long before a TV news show or print media may carry a story.  

 

ETA:  I worked in media for many years.  There are a lot of wonderful people that work in the news.  The news organizations themselves are not there to protect people's privacy or watch out for the little guy.  They are there to make money and to make money they sell advertising and they sell advertising by keeping up or increasing ratings.  How do they do that?  By putting out stories that increase viewership/readers.  They are business organizations that can do good but that is not their primary mandate.

Edited April 16, 2016 by OneStepAtATime

[Janeway]

Make sure you have screen shots. I am livid!

[mommymonster]

I want to second (or third, or fourth) the following: 

 

Start throwing the phrase FERPA violation around. It's the educational equivalent of HIPPA and it is a BIG deal. Someone should realize the seriousness when they hear FERPA. 

 

contact your state P&A

http://www.acl.gov/programs/aidd/Programs/PA/Contacts.aspx

 

Also, I believe this warrants a formal complaint to your state DOE and USDOE. 

 

Seriously unbelievable. 

 

 

Here's information on complaining to the USDOE: http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/students.html I would go with your state DOE as well. 

 

I tend to be pretty moderate, but in this case I would file complaints based on the school's refusal after you contacted them and gave them the opportunity to remedy. That's just incompetence.

 

 

[MedicMom]

So around 10 my friend on the BOE called back and said he doesn't know how it got put out publicly but they are trying to get it addressed---but no one is answering their phones.

As of five minutes ago it was still up.

 

This school district is honestly unbelievable. I will delete this link because it has the location, but the second story down will give you an idea of the type of people I'm dealing with.

http://odessafile.com/government.html

 

The BOE approves all recommendations of the Committee for Special Education meetings. So you have a CSE meeting and then the recommendations are approved by the board. The recommendations for services including special class placement are on the IEP, and that is what was published. One child's name was there, the rest were redacted but had birthdate, grade, diagnosis, and services and placement recommended.

Edited April 16, 2016 by MedicMom

[Harriet Vane]

:lurk5:

[zimom]

Something similar to this happened in our town.  Of course it was a controversial school board member SON's information that was published online.  If I remember correctly, he sued the school district as there was indication that is was actually done on purpose rather then 'accidentally'.  

[Daria]

Posting the information might be an "accident", but school board members, IT people, etc . . . Likely aren't part of a child's IEP team. I would think that providing them with access to IEPs and identifying information would be a FERPA violation in itself, and that was clearly done intentionally.

[Alessandra]

Here is some info on how FERPA has been weakened since 2011. But I don't think the old FERPA still applies to you. There is also a post about a parent suing over FERPA violations.

 

https://dianeravitch.net/?s=Ferpa

 

Also

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2014/03/06/why-a-student-privacy-bill-of-rights-is-desperately-needed/

 

https://dianeravitch.net/?s=Privacy

 

But more to the point for you is the rights you have under IDEA.

 

https://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/ptac/pdf/idea-ferpa.pdf

 

I find the concept of the BOE 'approving' IEPs revolting and despicable. Certainly, where I live, that is the responsibility of the Director of Special Services. Our Director will not so much as send an email to special needs parents unless they have signed up to be on the mailing list. Our Director's lips seal shut, as if superglued, even at the possibility of mentioning a specific name. That is what I am used to.

 

Btw, I think I reached your district's website. It looks nice, actually. But they deserve multiple lawsuits for what they seem to be doing to special Ed students. JMHO.

Edited April 16, 2016 by Alessandra

[Scarlett]

Wow!

[SproutMamaK]

Any update?

 

[Daria]

Wait, I misunderstood. I thought they were talking about IEPs that had not been approved by a parent or something like that.

 

Federal law is very specific that a representative/designee of the LEA who has decision making power needs to be present at the meeting because the decision is made there.

[MedicMom]

The info was taken down this morning. Finally.

 

The IEPs are determined by the Committee for Special Education. They are then sent to the board of education who approves the CSEs recommendations for services. Names are generally redacted, but include birthday, grade and diagnosis. I assume the process has been vetted by the district's attorney.

 

It's actually a decent school district, if you have a typical child. My almost four-year-old will be in preschool this fall and will do great. They just stink when it comes to handling special needs.

[Alessandra]

The info was taken down this morning. Finally.

 

The IEPs are determined by the Committee for Special Education. They are then sent to the board of education who approves the CSEs recommendations for services. Names are generally redacted, but include birthday, grade and diagnosis. I assume the process has been vetted by the district's attorney.

 

It's actually a decent school district, if you have a typical child. My almost four-year-old will be in preschool this fall and will do great. They just stink when it comes to handling special needs.

I am seriously not getting this. IEPs are supposed to be put together by a team -- case manager, special Ed teacher, etc and PARENT (student also as they get older). Is your CSE a group of school professionals? That would make sense as long as you are part of the committee. If the CSE is a subcommittee of the BOE, then I am speechless. (Well, not actually, swear words are popping into my head.)

 

Can you cross post on special needs board. There are people there like OhElizabeth who have a wealth of info. (Sorry to leave out some names. OhE writes especially long, informative posts, but there are many great people over there...)

Edited April 16, 2016 by Alessandra