Colorado Privacy of School Records Laws

If a school district needs written consent from a parent or guardian to release personally identifiably student’s records (other than directory information), they must provide the following specific information:

1. Records to be released
2. Reasons for the release
3. Person or organization requesting the information
4. Manner in which the records will be released
5. Right to review or receive a copy of the records to be released

At the beginning of each school year, the parent or guardian of each student in a school district must be sent written notice of their rights under federal and Colorado law.

The PPRA protects the rights of parents and students by ensuring schools make instruction materials available to parents for inspection, including surveys and evaluations their children will participate in, and ensures schools get written parental consent before students are required to participate in those surveys or evaluations. This is also part of the Colorado law. Any student evaluation or assessment on the following topics can only be done with the written consent of the student’s parent or guardian:

• Political or religious affiliations
• Mental conditions
• Sexual behaviors
• Illegal or self-incriminating behavior
• Critical appraisals of the student’s close family
• Legally privileged relationships or the equivalent, such as with a lawyer, doctor, or clergy
• Income, except as required by law (such as for public benefits including free school lunch)
• Social Security Number

Written consent by a parent to a survey or evaluation of his or her student is only valid if the school district makes a copy of the survey document available for viewing at convenient places and times for at least two weeks after parents receive the written notice. This would include information on:

1. How the assessment will be disseminated
2. What information will be obtained
3. The purpose of the assessment
4. Who will have access to the information, and
5. How a parent or guardian can grant or deny permission to access the school records or survey their child for this purpose.

Note: Once a student is 18 years old or is attending a college or vocational school, consent is only required by the student.

• Reporting suspected child abuse or neglect
• Assessing a child for a suicide risk or other threats
• Complying with a court order for school records, such as a subpoena of the school records of a defendant or witness to a crime
• Disclosing disciplinary actions of a student who poses a safety risk to themselves, other students, or the community or to other teachers who have a legitimate educational interest in the behavior of the student
• Providing to law enforcement or prosecutors for authorized investigations or prosecutions of potential domestic or international terrorism

Family Policy Compliance Office U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20202-5920