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SAU29 Digital Resources Toolkit

Digital Resources Toolkit

Data Privacy

SAU29 and its schools are dedicated to protecting student and staff privacy through the creation of policies and administrative procedures and by abiding by State and Federal Privacy Laws.

All employees of SAU29 and its School districts must abide by the policies and administrative procedures of SAU29 along with State and Federal privacy laws. This means that no teacher or staff member should be purchasing, downloading or using digital resources (apps, software, extensions, online databases and websites) on their own. All digital resources must be approved by the SAU29 Technology Department.
 
SAU29 uses five criteria in vetting digital resources to assure we meet federal and state data privacy laws. They are: 
  1. Has the digital resource vendor signed a Data Privacy Agreement (DPA) with SAU29 through the Student Data Privacy Consortium (SDPC)?

  2. Is the digital resource available through the Clever Portal?

  3. Is the vendor's digital resource ISO 270001 compliant?

  4. Does the digital resource include advertising within it's app/software or on it's site?

  5. Does the vendor collector PII (Personally Identifiable Information)?
This is only part of the picture, however. With the growing number of apps, software, extensions, online databases and websites it is difficult to properly vet all of them.
 
This is why SAU29 Administration has developed the Digital Resource Toolkit. The toolkit will streamline digital resources for offer within all of SAU29's school districts and limit the amount of confusion over which app a teacher should use for a specific class or topic.
 
SAU29 and its schools have many online digital resources (apps, software, extensions, online databases and websites) already in place. These are tools that meet federal and state law for student and staff data privacy. 
 
We have provided a list below to make the process of finding approved digital resources much easier. The list will indicate:
 
  • The name of the digital resource
  • The school district(s) and grade level(s) using the digital resource
  • The type of digital resource
  • What the digital resource is being used for
  • Which SAU29 data privacy criteria was met

Twice a year (before the start of the new school year in late July and before the end of the school year in early May) we will open Digital Resources Toolkit for evaluation by school administration and staff. During this time schools will be encouraged to evaluate the digital resources available through SAU29. They should evaluate possible replacements for outdated or unused digital resources and make sure the curriculum is in place for those resources to be fully engaged. 
 
Once school administration and staff have clarified their digital resource goals and needs a representative will meet with other SAU29 schools and the Technology Director to come up with an updated version of the Digital Resources Toolkit.
 
 

Why We Cannot Approve Free Digital Resources

Unless a digital resource is completely free and approved by SDPC we cannot approve it's use in SAU29 schools. 
 
The reason for this is because the SDPC vendor signed Digital Privacy Agreement (DPA) only applies to paid versions of their digital resources.
 
By privacy law we are not allowed to have digital resources that have advertising. Many vendors take advantage of the free status and use advertising to supplement their cost.
 

Why Your Digital Resource Is Not Approved

As part of our vetting process we have to consider many criteria including federal and state laws. Often times federal law will say it's OK when state law says it's not and vice versa.
Below is short list of why digital resources may not be approved:
 
  • The digital resource has advertising within it.
  • The digital resource vendor refuses to sign the SDPC Data Privacy Agreement.
  • The digital resource vendor does not respond to the SDPC agreement request.
  • The digital resource vendor is no longer in business.
  • The digital resource is "End-of-life" (EOL) which means the vendor is no longer supporting it.
  • The digital resource is no longer compatible with the current operating system(s) running on the device/devices.
  • The privacy and terms of agreement do not allow SAU29 control over student/staff data.
  • Apple Apps for Education has withdrawn the app from the app store.
 
Keep in mind that there are plenty of alternatives available that can replace a non-approved digital resource.