STUDENT PRIVACY
STUDENT ONLINE PERSONAL PROTECTION ACT (SOPPA): Effective July 1, 2021, school districts will be required by the Student Online Personal Protection Act (SOPPA) to provide additional guarantees that student data is protected when collected by educational technology companies, and that data is used for beneficial purposes only (105 ILCS 85).
LINK TO OUR ANNUAL NOTICE FOR FAMILIES RE: SOPPA AND EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY
As required by SOPPA, BCUSD8 appoints the Director of Technology as the Student Data Privacy officer. This person, along with other staff members, works to ensure that all educational technology partners, services, and applications, adhere to the regulations of SOPPA. These regulations are put in place to ensure the sale, rental, lease, or trading of any District student records or covered information by the District is prohibited. Any operator of such service is required to have a signed agreement with the District accepting the strict regulations of SOPPA.
BCUSD8 leverages the Student Data Privacy Consortium (SDPC), which is a unique collaborative of schools, districts, regional, territories and state agencies, policymakers, trade organizations and marketplace providers addressing real-world, adaptable, and implementable solutions to growing data privacy concerns. If you would like to read more about the SDPC, click here. Through the SDPC we enter into contracts with 3rd party vendors who handle our student's data. We utilize several different pieces of software and websites to help students gain the best education possible. If you would like to view the DPAs that BCUSD8 currently holds, please click the following link.
sdpc.a4l.org/district_listing.php?districtID=6348 LINK TO OTHER PRIVACY AGREEMENTS
In addition, there are other websites that we use for educational purposes that are not considered an operator per the SOPPA guidelines. Some examples of these websites are Adobe, Brightful Online Games, Microsoft Office, Grammarly, Zoom, GroupMe, Remind, Floorplanner and others. These are websites that we use for educational purposes but do not require an agreement. The majority of these websites collect a minimum of information, often only the Gmail address, but at other times could be the first and last name of the student as well as DOB (rarely) of the student. We are currently working on creating a list of websites that each grade level and/or department uses that we will publish as well. In the interim, if you have any questions about the specific websites your child will use, please contact their teacher(s).
If you have any questions regarding the district's use of educational technology, please reach out to us at: privacy@bethalto.org
LINK TO INFORMATION ON HOW TO INSPECT YOUR CHILD'S INFORMATION
LINK TO OUR ANNUAL NOTICE FOR FAMILIES RE: SOPPA AND EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY
As required by SOPPA, BCUSD8 appoints the Director of Technology as the Student Data Privacy officer. This person, along with other staff members, works to ensure that all educational technology partners, services, and applications, adhere to the regulations of SOPPA. These regulations are put in place to ensure the sale, rental, lease, or trading of any District student records or covered information by the District is prohibited. Any operator of such service is required to have a signed agreement with the District accepting the strict regulations of SOPPA.
BCUSD8 leverages the Student Data Privacy Consortium (SDPC), which is a unique collaborative of schools, districts, regional, territories and state agencies, policymakers, trade organizations and marketplace providers addressing real-world, adaptable, and implementable solutions to growing data privacy concerns. If you would like to read more about the SDPC, click here. Through the SDPC we enter into contracts with 3rd party vendors who handle our student's data. We utilize several different pieces of software and websites to help students gain the best education possible. If you would like to view the DPAs that BCUSD8 currently holds, please click the following link.
sdpc.a4l.org/district_listing.php?districtID=6348 LINK TO OTHER PRIVACY AGREEMENTS
In addition, there are other websites that we use for educational purposes that are not considered an operator per the SOPPA guidelines. Some examples of these websites are Adobe, Brightful Online Games, Microsoft Office, Grammarly, Zoom, GroupMe, Remind, Floorplanner and others. These are websites that we use for educational purposes but do not require an agreement. The majority of these websites collect a minimum of information, often only the Gmail address, but at other times could be the first and last name of the student as well as DOB (rarely) of the student. We are currently working on creating a list of websites that each grade level and/or department uses that we will publish as well. In the interim, if you have any questions about the specific websites your child will use, please contact their teacher(s).
If you have any questions regarding the district's use of educational technology, please reach out to us at: privacy@bethalto.org
LINK TO INFORMATION ON HOW TO INSPECT YOUR CHILD'S INFORMATION
Important Data Privacy Laws
Understanding COPPA |
Understanding SOPPA |
Understanding FERPA |
Understanding CIPA |
Information Regarding Data Breaches
In the event that there is a data breach, the District will notify parents/guardians via district communication systems within 30 days the data breach and within 60 days if a third-party is responsible for the data breach.
Any individual who suspects that a theft, breach or exposure of BCUSD#8 protected data or BCUSD#8 sensitive data has occurred should immediately provide a description of what occurred via email to privacy@bethalto.org or by calling 618-3770-7200 during normal school hours.
The responding member of the team will escalate as appropriate to management and administration within the district and begin the process to investigate and confirm if a theft, breach or exposure has occurred. If a theft, breach or exposure has occurred, the responsible members will follow the appropriate procedure in place.
Additionally, in the event of a data breach regarding student information, details will be provided in the space below.
DATA BREACH INFORMATION: