|
Protection of Pupil
Rights Amendment (PPRA) requires school policy, parent notification; some
surveys may require active parental permission
Public school districts
(legal education entities/LEAs) must have policies covering the requirements
of the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) and must notify parents
annually of the policies and/or any substantive changes to the policies,
according to a reminder received from the U.S. Dept. of Education.
South Dakota schools
recently received a letter on the subject from U.S. Department of
Education’s Family Policy Compliance Office and a follow-up memo from Dr.
Rick Melmer, Secretary, South Dakota Dept. of Education.
In addition to the
policy and notification requirements, student surveys that are funded in
whole or part by the U.S. Department of Education and ask students
for personal information in any of eight categories require prior written
parental consent before a student may participate in the survey. If a
survey contains one or more of the identified categories, schools and
contractors must protect student privacy and give parents the right to
inspect the survey.
The eight categories
set forth in PPRA, a provision of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001,
include:
-
Political affiliations or beliefs of the student or the student’s
parent(s);
-
Mental and psychological problems of the student or the student’s
family;
- Sex
behavior or attitudes;
-
Illegal, anti-social, self-incriminating, or demeaning behavior;
-
Critical appraisals of other individuals with whom the student has close
family relationships;
-
Legally-recognized privileged or analogous relationships, such as those
of lawyers, physicians, ministers;
-
Religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs of the student or
student’s parent(s);
-
Income (other than that required by law to determine eligibility for
participation in a program or for receiving financial assistance under
such a program).
South Dakota schools
that had PPRA policies in place prior to the enactment of No Child Left
Behind in January 2002 are not required to develop or adopt a new
policy; however, it is important to note that policies may need to be
updated. Within No Child Left Behind, the Protection of Pupil Rights
Amendment (PPRA) was amended--an additional category (religious practices,
affiliations, or beliefs of the student or student’s parent) was added to
the seven previously-existing categories and other minor changes were made
to existing language.
It should also be noted
that South Dakota’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey is not funded by the
U.S. Department of Education and therefore not subject to the requirement
for prior parental permission. Currently, PPRA requires active parental
permission before minor students are required to participate in a survey
only when the survey is a) funded in whole or part by the U.S. Department of
Education and b) reveals information concerning one or more of the eight
categories denoted above.
Overall, PPRA requires
every local education agency (LEA) that receives funds under any U.S.
Department of Education program to develop and adopt policies, in
consultation with parents, concerning student privacy. The policies relating
to surveying of students must address:
- The
rights of parents to inspect, upon request, a survey created by a third
party before the survey is administered or distributed by a school to
students, and procedures for granting a parent request to access the
survey within a reasonable period of time after the request is received
-
Arrangements to protect student privacy in the event of the
administration of a survey to students, including the right of parents
to inspect, upon request, the survey if the survey contains one
or more of the eight categories of information noted above.
LEAs must directly
notify parents of these policies, and at a minimum, they shall provide the
notice at least annually, at the beginning of the school year. Also, an LEA
shall notify parents within a reasonable period of time if any substantive
change is made to the policies. In the notification, the LEA shall:
-
Provide an opportunity for parents to opt out of (remove their child
from) participation in the administration of any survey containing one
or more of the eight categories of information noted above, and
-
Provide parents with the specific or approximate dates during the school
year when the surveys are scheduled
Frequently asked
questions about PPRA:
-
What is the difference between “active” and “passive”
parental permission?
Answer: Active parental permission requires
prior written parental consent. It is required before a student may
participate in a survey funded in whole or in part by the U.S. Department of
Education that asks for personal information in the eight categories
described in PPRA (e.g., sexual behavior, illegal or antisocial behavior,
and mental or psychological problems).
Passive parental permission means the parent
is provided an opportunity to opt out of (remove the child from)
participation. The district may assume parental consent if they hear no
timely objection from the parent.
-
Does the state currently conduct any surveys that are not funded in
whole or in part by the U.S. Department of Education that ask for
personal information described in the PPRA?
Answer: Yes. The Youth Risk Behavior Survey
(YRBS) and the Youth Tobacco Survey (YTS) are both examples of these types
of surveys. Neither of these surveys is funded in whole or in part by the
U.S. Department of Education. Both require “passive” parental permission and
are voluntary.
Questions concerning the Protection of Pupil
Rights Amendment (PPRA) may be directed to: Janet Ricketts, Director,
Coordinated School Health Program, phone (605) 773-3261, email
janet.ricketts@state.sd.us.
For more information:
U.S. Department of Education, Family Policy
Compliance Office. phone (202) 260-3887, website
www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco. |
