m

Apply to Sign the Student Privacy Pledge

The Student Privacy Pledge is a public commitment to the responsible collection and use of student data. You must be a school service provider who collects, processes, or shares student data to apply to sign the Student Privacy Pledge. If you are a school service provider and would like to be added to the list of Signatories of the Student Privacy Pledge, you may submit the information below. 

Before doing so, please read the full text of the Student Privacy Pledge and then review your policies around student data, including any company's Privacy Policy, to ensure that your policies are consistent with the commitments outlined in the Pledge.

As part of the Pledge application process, you must provide the language in your privacy policy that applies to each Pledge commitment.

Eligibility

The Student Privacy Pledge applies to “school service providers.” that are

  1. a commercial company or non-profit (not a government entity or individual);
  2. provide an online or mobile application or service designed for United States K-12 educational institutions; and
  3. is used at the direction of K-12 teachers or school employees.

You must also collect or process K-12 student data. The Pledge does not apply to companies that sell software to schools but do not process student data. The Pledge does not apply to companies that provide educational software directly to students or parents, and not used at the direction of K-12 teachers or school employees. See the full definition here.

K12 Schools and Districts are not eligible to sign the Student Privacy Pledge. Colleges and Universities may only take the Pledge where they function as "School Service Providers" as described above.

Do you collect K-12 Student Data? (any data that is directly or indirectly related to a student as part of a service provided to a K-12 school)
The Student Privacy Pledge applies to “school service providers.” that collect This means you must be (1) a commercial company (not a government entity or individual person); and (2) provide an online or mobile application or service that is designed for United States K-12 educational institutions; and (3) is used at the direction of their teachers or school employees. It does not matter whether you receive the information from the school or directly from student users, the Pledge does not apply to companies that merely sell software to schools (but never see or handle any of the student data). The Pledge does not apply to companies that provide educational software directly to students or parents, and not used at the direction of K-12 teachers or school employees.

Privacy Policy Review

In this section, please review each pledge commitment against your current privacy policy and provide the privacy policy language that addresses each pledge commitment below.

Pledge Commitment 1

We will collect, use, share, and retain student personal information only for purposes for which we were authorized by the educational institution/agency, teacher or the parent/student.

Explanation: A signatory cannot use the student's PII for purposes outside of those authorized by the school or parent. A parent may authorize a signatory to use student PII for non-educational purposes. This Pledge provision is intended to align with the structure for disclosing student educational records to school officials under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and its applicable regulations, 20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99. In some circumstances, signatories may be required to disclose Student PII in compliance with a judicial order or pursuant to other legal process (e.g., a lawfully issued subpoena). A disclosure under such circumstances qualifies as an authorized school purpose, provided the signatory follows all applicable laws in disclosing Student PII. Please familiarize yourself with the many laws that prohibit or limit a company’s ability to disclose information so that you know the limits on sharing data.

In the box below, please paste the language from your privacy policy that relates to the above pledge commitment.

Pledge Commitment 2

We will not sell Student Personally Identifiable Information (PII)

Explanation: The Pledge aligns with the general requirements in FERPA and many state student privacy laws that also prohibit the sale of student PII. In the context of the Pledge, "sell" means selling, renting, releasing, disclosing, disseminating, making available, transferring, or otherwise communicating orally, in writing, or by electronic or other means a student's personal information by the signatory to a third party for monetary or other valuable consideration.

In the box below, please paste the language from your privacy policy that relates to the above pledge commitment.