Legal Ease/School Law Notes: A back-to-school ritual: mandated annual notices

For many districts, the beginning of the school year is the best time to distribute notices to parents, students, and the public. While state governments also require districts to distribute certain information, we will limit the discussion here to the federal mandates.

The No Child Left Behind Act includes many requirements on annual notices. The most well-known is the annual report card, but NCLB also mandates notices on progress reviews, school improvement, parent involvement policies, teacher qualifications, student achievement information, and the status of English language learners.

The Federal Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) requires school districts to notify parents, guardians, and adult students annually about their rights to inspect, review, and amend education records and ask them whether they agree to disclose personally identifiable information in their education records.

Districts may disclose directory data (such as name, date of birth, and address) only if they have given notice of what information has been designated as directory data and how to opt out of the disclosure.

FERPA also requires school districts to inform parents that school officials might release the name, address, and phone number of students to military recruiters unless parents opt out.

The Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) requires school districts to notify parents at the beginning of each school year of their policies regarding surveys, instructional materials, physical examinations, and personal information used for marketing purposes. 

Districts must also notify parents at the beginning of the school year of any scheduled or approximate dates that the district plans to use student information for marketing purposes, administer any survey regarding certain topics defined under PPRA, or administer any non-emergency, invasive physical examinations.

Any district that receives federal funds is required to have a Title IX coordinator and to notify all students and employees of the coordinator’s contact information.

Additionally, a notice of nondiscrimination, stating that the district does not discriminate on the basis of sex in admissions or employment and directing any inquiries regarding Title IX to the coordinator or the Office of Civil Rights, must be displayed prominently in any information used to recruit employees and students.

Once a year, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, school districts must give parents of children with disabilities a copy of the procedural safeguards under the law. Additionally, procedural safeguards must be provided to parents upon initial referral, when parents request their child be evaluated, and when they request a due process hearing.

The notice must fully explain the procedural safeguards specified in the statute in the native language of the parents and must be written clearly. In lieu of providing written copies, school districts are allowed to post a copy of the procedural safeguards on the district’s website.

School districts that participate in the national school lunch program, the school breakfast program, or the special milk program are required, at the beginning of the year, to give parents and the public information on the availability of free and reduced-price meals and free milk. Also, districts must provide parents with an application form.

The Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act requires districts to inspect their buildings for asbestos-containing building materials and develop, maintain, and update an asbestos management plan. Districts must provide annual written notice to parents, teachers, and employee organizations on the availability of the management plan and the status of inspections.

While creating and distributing annual notices can be time-consuming, such notices are a great way for a school district to stay connected with parents and the community.