Understanding Student Privacy and Its Impact on School Safety

I was inspired to write this blog after conversing with colleagues who were frustrated with the privacy surrounding student information. Frustration is born from a lack of understanding, so it is essential to shed some light on student privacy and its relationship to school safety. While I am not an attorney, I have dealt with these issues in various ways. For specific guidance, always consult your legal counsel and refer to your organization's policies.

Common sense should show us how important it is to protect all our information, not just our students. However, these protections can be a hindering factor when talking about school safety and students who are threatening violence. There are ways around these privacy issues. Even doctor-patient and attorney-client privileges have exemptions for the greater good of society, specifically when someone is a threat to themselves or others. The problem is that the protected information is maintained by people who don’t understand these exemptions and are risk-averse. This means they believe protecting student information is absolute and cannot be released to anyone under any circumstances.

The spirit of the laws protecting student privacy is to create a fair and unbiased educational environment for all students. They were also designed to protect student information from predators, just like we protect all our information. But what happens when protecting one student’s information jeopardizes the safety of others? Which student takes precedence? Where must the line be drawn to provide one student’s information to protect others? And who can we release that information to? Finally, how do we determine when the line has been crossed?

Every jurisdiction may handle these matters differently, so it is crucial to consult your legal counsel and refer to your organization's policies for specific guidance. When we are discussing cases of violence, we have all heard about the missed opportunities and the lack of communication between schools, law enforcement, and other agencies. Many missed opportunities are likely attributed to someone trying to protect student privacy or misunderstanding each other’s role in these cases. This is why we all must work together whenever possible. The more we work together, the better we understand each other. If we work together and understand each other’s roles, there should never be an issue surrounding the release of student information. It will be very clear when information can be released and when it cannot. That being said, often, when you are conducting threat and behavioral assessments, the entire team might be able to be privy to private student information if there is policy, training, an MOU, etc., in place. 

In most cases, student information has no protection regarding the threat of harm to themselves or others—understanding when a threat is made, and the determining factor for releasing information is crucial. If there is a determination to release information about a student, it will likely be on an “as-needed” basis. Here is the catch-22 for most of us: failing to provide the necessary information that results in injury or death may come with very harsh civil and criminal consequences. Here is what you need to know:

1. Seek legal counsel
2. Generally, privacy laws have exemptions for threats of self-harm and violent threats towards others.
3. That information can be shared with only those who have “a need to know” to protect specific targeted victims or a group of people. 
4. The protection the law provides returns when that threat is eliminated.
5. Establish a policy for sharing information that includes the answers to the above questions:
   1. The point when information can be shared
   2. Who has the authority to release information
   3. Who has a right to share information
   4. The understanding of the terms for use of the shared information
   5. How the determination to share information is made
   6. Etc.
6. Create a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that outlines the uses, responsibilities, limitations, and parameters for sharing information to be signed by all parties involved.
7. Include considerations and consequences for violating the terms of use and the mishandling of information, both in sharing information inappropriately and not sharing information under the agreed-upon conditions. 

Lastly, you need to conduct a threat assessment to determine when a threat is made AND if it crosses the line to where there is a necessity to share information. Additionally, with your new understanding of when and how you can share information, you will be very clear when you can’t; so will everyone else. That being said, if you determine that you can’t share the information, your actions are your responsibility. 

Ultimately, if you conduct threat and behavioral assessments early and take appropriate intervention steps to support students, you should rarely reach the point where releasing private information becomes necessary. But if you take all the appropriate steps and you still get to that point, it will be apparent to everyone that the need to share information meets all of the criteria you need for an exemption to the privacy laws.