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USED Student Privacy Actions Timeline

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Student Privacy USED Student Privacy Actions Timeline This timeline chronicles major student privacy related announcements from and activities by the U.S. Department of Education (USED). By Morgan Sexton, Jess Arciniega, and Amelia Vance · September 2026 · 9 min read 2025-03-27 U.S. Department of Education Launches Investigation into California Department of Education for Alleged FERPA Violations Tags: FERPA · Investigation opened · California SEA · State education agency (SEA) SPPO launched an investigation into the California Department of Education (CDE) for “allegedly abdicat[ing] the responsibilities FERPA imposes due to a new California state law [AB 1955] that prohibits school personnel […]

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USED Ramps Up PPRA Enforcement

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Student Privacy USED Ramps Up PPRA Enforcement USED found a Massachusetts district violated the law and opened three new investigations. By Jess Arciniega, Amelia Vance, and Morgan Sexton · September 2026 · 9 min read Table of Contents PPRA OverviewBurlingtonWashington, Colorado & MinnesotaDOJ & USED collaborationWhat Comes Next? On July 28 and 29, 2026, the U.S. Department of Education’s (USED) Student Privacy Policy Office (SPPO) opened investigations into Bethel School District in Washington State, Denver Public Schools in Colorado, and the Minnesota Department of Education, for allegedly violating the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA). USED also announced it had

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DOJ’s Role in FERPA Enforcement: What USED’s Interagency Agreements Do (and Don’t) Change

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Student Privacy · FERPA DOJ’s Role in FERPA Enforcement: What USED’s Interagency Agreements Do (and Don’t) Change A June 2026 interagency agreement gives DOJ’s Civil Rights Division a role in enforcing FERPA “in coordination with” USED. Here is what the agreement changes, what it doesn’t, and three student-privacy questions it raises. By Morgan Sexton, Amelia Vance, and Jess Arciniega · September 2026 Table of Contents 1 How will student privacy enforcement change?2 When will FERPA protections still apply?3 Will USED share student data with other agencies?What to watch next Over the past year, USED announced several Inter-Agency Agreements (IAAs) that

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COPPA 2.0 AINS Brings House Closer to Senate-Approved Language

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COPPA 2.0 AINS Brings House Closer to Senate-Approved Language March 27, 2026 Jessica Arciniega, Morgan Sexton, and Amelia Vance       CC BY-NC 4.0 On March 5, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce held a full committee markup that focused on child privacy and online safety legislation, advancing the Kids Internet and Digital Safety (KIDS) Act, Sammy’s Law, and App Store Accountability Act out of committee. But what didn’t happen at the markup may be an even bigger step towards strengthening protections for children online.  The Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) was on the

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Understanding FERPA’s Enforcement Process

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Understanding FERPA’s Enforcement Process January 30, 2026 Katherine Kalpos, Morgan Sexton, and Amelia Vance   CC BY-NC 4.0 On January 28, 2026, the U.S. Department of Education (USED) announced that it has found the California Department of Education (CDE) in violation of FERPA “for policies that pressure school officials to conceal information about students’ ‘gender identity.'” As far as PIPC is aware, this is the first time USED has issued a written notice of findings that has progressed to this stage in the FERPA enforcement process—making this an appropriate moment to explain what could come next. Where We Are in

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Feeding the Machine?: What the Updated COPPA Rule Says About Using Children’s Data to Train Algorithms

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Feeding the Machine?: What the Updated COPPA Rule Says About Using Children’s Data to Train Algorithms December 4, 2025 Jessica Arciniega, Morgan Sexton, and Amelia Vance       CC BY-NC 4.0 When your 8-year-old plays their favorite mobile game or uses an educational app to practice math, they’re not just learning or having fun: they’re also generating valuable data. Every click, swipe, and answer creates information about how children think, learn, and behave online. Until recently, many companies were operating under the belief that they could use this data to train artificial intelligence (AI) systems with few restrictions. The

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AI Changes Everything: Why Student Data Review Can’t Wait Another Semester

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AI Changes Everything: Why Student Data Review Can’t Wait Another Semester October 15, 2025 Jessica Arciniega, Katherine Kalpos, Morgan Sexton, and Amelia Vance       CC BY-NC 4.0 As schools embrace the potential of AI, a critical question demands attention: How do sophisticated AI models alter what it means to protect student data? For starters, it underscores the need for schools to reassess the data they collect from students and the duration for which they retain it.  AI makes students’ sensitive information more vulnerable than ever before. Earlier this month, the Texas Attorney General filed a lawsuit against edtech

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New COPPA Case: What a Recent FTC Amicus Brief Does–and Does Not–Change for Schools

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New COPPA Case: What a Recent FTC Amicus Brief Does–and Does Not–Change for Schools September 3, 2025 Jessica Arciniega, Morgan Sexton, and Amelia Vance       CC BY-NC 4.0 Introduction On August 13, the FTC filed an amicus brief in a lawsuit against edtech vendor IXL Learning (Shanahan v. IXL Learning Inc., 3:24-cv-02724, (N.D. Cal.)). Since then, there has been speculation that the Commission’s interpretations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), as outlined in the brief, somehow change existing COPPA obligations regarding schools and edtech vendors. This blog outlines exactly what this case is about, the FTC’s

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Fixing FERPA: Clarifying Law Enforcement Access to Student Data

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Fixing FERPA: Clarifying Law Enforcement Access to Student Data August 2025 Jessica Arciniega, Katherine Kalpos, Morgan Sexton, and Amelia Vance   CC BY-NC 4.0 A middle school teacher, Ms. Walters, notices one of her students exhibiting increasingly concerning behaviors as he struggles to process his parents’ ongoing divorce. She knows that the school resource officer (SRO), Officer Luke, went through his own parents’ divorce in high school and has built strong, supportive relationships with students facing similar challenges. Ms. Walters wants to connect them, knowing this kind of mentorship and support often helps students navigate difficult family transitions. But she

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Fixing FERPA: Expanding Discipline Disclosures in K-12

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Expanding Discipline Disclosures in K-12 August 2025 Jessica Arciniega, Katherine Kalpos, Morgan Sexton, and Amelia Vance   CC BY-NC 4.0 Imagine your child is harmed by another student at school. You’re assured the situation is being handled, but when you ask for specific details—What actions did you take to protect my child? Was the other student suspended?—you get no answers.  If your child is enrolled in K-12, the school’s silence is often mandated under federal student privacy law. For K-12 schools, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is a wall that prohibits them from sharing disciplinary results from

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