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Tennessee's attorney general has weighed in on whether school districts can withhold student data from charter schools that want it for recruiting purposes. According to the state's top attorney, they cannot.
The public school districts in Nashville and Memphis have resisted demands from the state to turn over student information like addresses and grade levels to charters. School board members have expressed concerns about that the data would help charters poach students from district-run schools. They've also pointed to a federal privacy statute known as FERPA to say they're not legally allowed to share student data.
The state's education commissioner, Candice McQueen, has been meeting in person with district leaders to find middle ground. Meanwhile, she requested an opinion from Attorney General Herbert Slatery. And he found that FERPA does not prevent a school district from giving out contact info for students.
If districts are concerned about privacy, he says, the most they can do is give families the chance to opt out.
More: Read the opinion from Attorney General Herbert Slatery's office
Commissioner McQueen has granted districts until Sept. 25 to comply. After that, she says in a letterto the respective superintendents that "we will be forced to consider actions to enforce the law."
Previously, penalties have included withholding state funding.
In response, Metro Schools officials have said they're reviewing the opinion.
"The school board is in receipt of Commissioner McQueen's latest correspondence and the opinion of her attorney," board chair Anna Shepherd said in a written statement. "We are reviewing the documents and will discuss with our attorney."
Earlier this week, the school board voted specifically to limit the sharing of student data.
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