Academy for Science and Design Recognizes Data Privacy Week

For Immediate Release

January 27, 2022

Academy for Science and Design Recognizes Data Privacy Week (January 24-28, 2022)

NASHUA, NEW HAMPSHIRE—In recognition of Data Privacy Week (January 24-28), Academy for Science and Design is reaffirming its commitment to safeguarding student data.
The National Cybersecurity Alliance (NCA) Data Privacy Week is an “international effort to empower individuals and encourage businesses to respect privacy, safeguard data, and enable trust.”

According to NCA, “Millions of people are unaware of and uninformed about how their personal information is being used, collected, or shared in our digital society. Data Privacy Week aims to inspire dialogue and empower individuals and companies to take action.”
Data collection is essential for improving academic achievement in today’s modern digital learning environments—effective use of data measures student progress to steer personalized learning decisions to ensure that every child learns. While recognizing the importance of real-time data in guiding student success, school officials also acknowledge their roles as gatekeepers. “As a school district, we have a moral and ethical duty to ensure that our students’ information is protected while using any online digital tools for learning, explains School Director Jennifer Cava.” Jennifer Cava further notes, “While technology may make accessing student data relatively easy, it needs to be maintained securely and confidentially, and that is a responsibility we take very seriously. Our partnering with TEC’s Student Data Privacy Alliance is vital to our district’s student data privacy efforts.”

“We are encouraged to see so many school districts demonstrating a real commitment to the safety and security of their students’ information”, said Liz McGonagle, Executive Director of the Educational Collaborative (TEC). Academy for Science and Design efforts in joining with TEC’s Student Data Privacy Alliance is truly a reflection of Academy for Science and Design dedication to protecting a student’s personally identifiable information.”

Academy for Science and Design will utilize TEC’s Student Data Privacy Alliance (SDPA) administrative and legal support to negotiate privacy terms with their software vendors. TEC’s service was launched in 2016 in response to the needs of the Technology Directors of its member districts. Many had attempted to secure signed Data Privacy Agreements (DPAs) for online digital resources in use in their districts. Still, they found that without dedicated administrative resources and adequate funding for legal services, it proved to be an expensive and time-consuming struggle that yielded mixed results.

TEC recognized that districts could achieve internal economies of scale and leverage negotiating strength by outsourcing these specialized tasks and processes by working together. Therefore, in cooperation with the Student Data Privacy Consortium, TEC developed a statewide Data Privacy Agreement (DPA) for MA, NH, RI, ME, and VT. These legally enforceable documents articulate a vendor’s responsibilities and the duties required to protect student data in compliance with all applicable federal and state privacy statutes, including FERPA, PPRA, COPPA.

TEC services over 240 school districts in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Maine, and Vermont with expert legal counsel and experienced contract administrators. To date, they have achieved over 1700 signed vendor agreements.

For more information about the Academy for Science and Design, go to www.asdnh.org or TEC’s Student Data Privacy Alliance; go to [https://tec-coop.org/data-privacy/]. To learn more about Data Privacy Week, visit https://staysafeonline.org/data-privacy-week/about-dpw/.