Rappahannock

An HEAV school board monitor identified a violation of the homeschool statute’s privacy law, §22.1-254.1(G). A homeschool child’s personal identifying information–full name, city and state of residence, grade level, and new-homeschooler status–was posted publicly on a school board agenda.

HEAV immediately sent an urgent request to the school board clerk, chair, vice chair, and superintendent to remove the child’s personal data from public view. Unfortunately, Columbus Day weekend had begun, and the child’s personal data was not removed from public view until staff returned the next work day.

HEAV was contacted by the human resources coordinator the following Tuesday afternoon. She thanked us for letting them know about the incident, apologized for the error, and confirmed the child’s personal information had been removed from the public agenda. HEAV appreciates Rappahannock’s positive response and correction to this concern.

What You Should Know:

• In 2015, HEAV initiated a change to the homeschool law, ensuring privacy protections for homeschool parents and children.
• The homeschool law prohibits school districts from disclosing information received from a parent or student when notifying the superintendent of their intent to homeschool (NOI form) or submitting information regarding a religious exemption. This information cannot be disclosed to anyone outside the school district without the parent’s consent. Districts are prohibited from providing information to other school districts, the VDOE (other than the annual number of homeschoolers), neighbors, employers, military recruiters, colleges, academies, or other entities.
• Reference: §22.1-254.1(G)