A federal judge tweaked her initial court order for the release of sensitive student data to a statewide parent group of special education advocates March 1, as a result of a “large number of objections” from parents who mailed in opt-out forms to the U.S. District Court in Sacramento.
“The court has heard loud and clear from California’s families that they want their students’ privacy protected. This is a good first step,” said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, who heads the California Department of Education. The department is the defendant in the “Morgan Hill case” filed by the California Concerned Parents Association. “The court responded to these concerns and ordered additional measures to safeguard data.”
In her March 1 order, U.S. District Court Judge Kimberly Mueller noted the large number of objections to the potential release of student data received by the court following the posting of the “Notice of Disclosure of Student Records” on Feb. 1.
CCPA Vice President Christine English said the “large number of objections” is a result of the CDE’s “fear-based campaign” to persuade parents to submit the opt-out forms.
“If parents are informed, we support whatever decision they feel is appropriate for their child,” English said.
In response to the high volume, the court ordered that the CDE maintain custody of the most sensitive of its databases—the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS)—while running searches for information requested by the plaintiffs, according to the CDE release.
English said that has always been an option in the court order and, in fact, one her group prefers in order to preserve the “authenticity” and “fidelity” of the data being requested by the group’s attorneys.
“There has always been an option ‘A’ or an option ‘B’, and she’s now choosing to go with option ‘B’,” English explained. “We said let’s do it that way for three years now with the CALPADS database.”
The switch from one option to the next is solely for the CALPADS database, which does include student directory information provided by the local school districts, according to English.
“CALPADS does contain some of the most sensitive data,” English added. “For that to remain on the property of CDE, if that makes parents more comfortable, that’s excellent.”
The court also reiterated that no student’s personally identifiable information may be released to the plaintiffs unless and until they demonstrate to the satisfaction of the court that the method to be used to store the sensitive student data is secure, the CDE noted. The parties are still litigating the extent of the disclosure of student data.
“The California Department of Education will continue to fight vigorously to protect student privacy rights as this case proceeds,” Torlakson said.
Objection forms and letters can still be sent to the court by an April 1 deadline. They should be sent to: United States District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller c/o Clerk of the Court Robert T. Matsui United States Courthouse 501 I Street, Room 4-200 Sacramento, CA 95814 Attn: Document Filed Under Seal.
Judge Mueller’s order made clear that the objection forms are not a means to “opt-out” of any data release. The court will maintain the objection forms in sealed boxes in a secure room at the federal court building in Sacramento.
