In a letter to school superintendents across the Commonwealth, the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky urged administrators to improve their procedures to inform parents and students about their right to control the release of student information to military recruiters, colleges, and the general public.

“Personal information belongs to students and their parents,” said ACLU of Kentucky Executive Director Beth Wilson. “Parents and students have the right to control who gets the information and for what purpose, and school officials have the duty to respect that privacy right.”

Student directory information, which may include birthplace and extracurricular activities, is made publicly available under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), unless parents choose to “opt-out” or withhold the disclosure of their child’s information. But, under the federal “No Child Left Behind Act” (NCLB), school districts must provide military recruiters with at least contact information – name, address and listed telephone number – of secondary school students upon request by military recruiters, even if parents previously opted-out of disclosure under FERPA.

Under both federal laws, schools also are required to inform students and their parents of their right to opt-out.  Each right to opt-out may be exercised independently, so parents and students can bar disclosure of student information to military recruiters and other third parties, while giving colleges and universities access to that information.

Opt-out forms are typically buried in lengthy student code handbooks that are sent home with the students, and are often overlooked by parents.

In the letter mailed late last week to school superintendents, the ACLU of Kentucky is urging school officials to:

· provide the required notice of the opportunity to opt-out in a communication separate from other school directives and regulations;

· provide a simple form for opting out;

· clearly inform parents and students of any deadline to opt-out and inform them that student contact information will be disclosed if an opt-out response is not received by the specified deadline;

· honor any opt-out form received from parents or students after the deadline to prevent future disclosure of student information;

· provide opt-out forms in languages other than English.

The ACLU of Kentucky is urging parents to contact their local school district to inquire about the opt-out procedure, and also to ask about any relevant deadlines to opt-out. If there is a form available, parents are encouraged to complete the school-issued form.

The ACLU of Kentucky has model opt-out forms available for parents and students to mail to school officials if one is not provided by the local school district.

Click here to read the text of the letter to Kentucky school superintendents.