STUDENT DATA PRIVACY

  • CFISD Cybersecurity Mission Statement

    ​To help students and staff to succeed in their tasks in a secure manner, and to protect our CFISD community from cybercrime.

    ​Student safety – in both physical and virtual environments – is of great importance at Cypress-Fairbanks ISD. To ensure that students, their personally identifiable information, and intellectual property are ethically and legally protected, CFISD has privacy and data policies in place. Adherence to these policies by vendors and staff greatly increases our ability to protect our students from physical and virtual harm such as identity theft, harassment, and unauthorized data collection.

    ​With the rapid growth and accessibility of technology and resources – teachers, students, and parents have access to an ever increasing wealth of tools to support teaching and learning. Accompanied with this extraordinary access comes great potential to inadvertently leak sensitive student data.

    As a district on the cutting edge of innovative uses of technology in education, CFISD is committed to ensuring the protection of our students' privacy as we continue to transform education – providing world-class quality K-12 systems. Check out our Cybersecurity resources for parents and students.

    What is student data?

    The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) protects personally identifiable information (PII) from students' education records from unauthorized disclosure. FERPA defines education records as "records that are: (1) directly related to a student; and (2) maintained by an educational agency or institution or by a party acting for the agency or institution". FERPA also defines the term PII, which includes direct identifiers (such as a student's or other family member's name) and indirect identifiers (such as a student's date of birth, place of birth, or mother's maiden name). For more information about FERPA, please visit the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) page. ​​(Source: PTAC)

    Who uses student data?

    Most personal student information stays local. Districts, states, and the federal government all collect data about students for important purposes like informing instruction and providing information to the public. But the type of data collected, and who can access them, is different at each point. Check out this student data use infographic.
    (Source: DQC)

    What laws are in place to protect student data?

    Federal laws and regulations have been created for organizations to help protect students' information. In addition to these federal mandates, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD has implemented additional district policies and procedures to safeguard sensitive student information. Learn more about federal laws and regulations currently in place as well as CFISD's policies on cybersecurity.

    What resources use student data?

    Parents can view the approval status of district software, applications, and web services.

    trusted learning environment valid through december 2024

    ​Cypress-Fairbanks ISD is honored to have received the Trusted Learning TLE Seal distinction. We have worked diligently with district leadership, staff and students to ensure that appropriate measures are in place to secure information. Our team understands that earning this distinction is not the end of this process, but only the beginning. We will continue to implement and improve security measures regularly in order to deliver a 'Trusted Learning Environment' for our community.

    The Trusted Learning Environment (TLE) Seal is a mark of distinction for school systems, signaling that they have taken strong and measurable steps to help ensure the privacy of student data.

    The TLE Seal is the nation's only data privacy seal for school systems, focused on building a culture of trust and transparency. The Trusted Learning Environment (TLE) Seal Program was developed by CoSN (the Consortium for School Networking), in collaboration with a diverse group of 28 school system leaders nationwide and with support from AASA, the School Superintendents Association, the Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO) and ASCD.

    The Program requires school systems to have implemented high standards for student data privacy protections around five core practice areas: Leadership, Business, Data Security, Professional Development and Classroom. School systems that meet the Program requirements will earn the TLE Seal, signifying their commitment to student data privacy to their community.

    TLE Seal recipients commit to high standards and continuous examination and advancement of their privacy practices.