Maine’s public school students are now carrying all sorts of papers home to be signed. I urge parents to think hard about two particularly important things they will be asked to sign.
Beginning this fall, the Maine Department of Education will begin collecting and storing student Social Security numbers, as a means to track student progress – beyond their school years and into the work place. It feels to me that even though there may be reasons for this, it opens up so much risk to have social security numbers floating around. It should be noted that families can opt out of releasing this sensitive information to the schools.
Also, a little known part of the No Child Left Behind Law directs schools to release student contact information to the Armed Forces – unless the student has explicitly requested otherwise. This feels like a violation of student privacy, regardless of the fact that it was slipped into the NCLB law. I believe recruitment should be limited to the recruiting stations in most towns, and should never take place in our schools.
Optimally, the school’s Emergency Card will include an “Opt-Out” form, where it will not be missed. If parents are aware of this, they can take time to read and weigh these matters carefully. They can have far-reaching implications.
In any case, in addition to just trying to stay afloat, families must be vigilant in protecting their childrens’ privacy.
Eileen Kreutz
Industry
Good call Eileen. Who generates these forms, where will they reside and who has access to the information? Maybe it’s the FBI. I’ve yet to see any but I hope they explain the potential ” Big Brother ” ramifacetions of the invasion of privacy of our children’s privacy. If the Armed Forces want me kids contact info thay can wait until he/she walks into the recruitment office.
Thanks for the information Eileen. Good to know.
Thank you for sharing this information; I know that I crossed out the spot for my child’s SS# and circled the word “optional” on the form and guess what – a letter was sent home a week later to me with another form stating I forgot to complete the form. Same thing with the releasing my child’s information such a height weight and etc on the web so when the two new forms came home again – I wrote across them – refuse and signed my name. Why do children’s height, weight, and etc need to be posted on any website school or not? Then I wrote on the teacher’s note, these were already completed the way I wanted them and sent in earlier. These are children we are talking about, its bad enough adults are being told my government to be careful of what personal info we put out there – so why is the schools trying to do it?
NCLB of 2001 became law under President GW Bush and a republican congress…..
what short memories we citizens have…..
Why are schools asking these questions? Although most are taking a stand and recommending that parents do not disclose the information, they are required by law to ask. Failure to ask, means loss of funding.
Declining is the best option.
These forms are mandated by state law for the school systems to send them out to parents.. we have no option other than that except to break the law. In SAD 58 we also agreed as a board, to recommend that the SS #’s not be filled out and sent to the schools as we were not comfortable gaining that information. I personally agree, your or your students social securtiy number is none of our business and should not be handed out lightly.
I can only guess at the height and weight from my other profession, as a EMT on the local ambulance service, that the school system may need that for medical purposes to administer medications in emergency situations.
This is a natural end result of what happens when you vote for candidates with a “D” beside their names.
I’m pretty sure that the height/weight information is requested in case your child goes out for a sport (imagine a report saying “the 6’5″ center” or “the 200-pound running back” and you’ll get the idea.
It’s a Democrat thing! We are all their children for them to look over and take care of. Socialism is another wor for it.
Its not a Democrat thing. The blame goes to GW Bush and the republican majority at the time in 2001. This legislation is in my book unconstitutional, as it takes away the rights of the states. I wish our Gov at the time ans after had the gumption to say, no we will not comply as its a state and local issue. This possibly is the single worse piece of legislation ever passed as it effects everyone on the local level.
Hey Mac and the fool (aptly named) It was Bush and a republican congress that passed NCLB. An unfunded mandate that dumped more work on an already overburded educational system by creating more bureaucracy, more forms to fill out, teaching to the test etc. Talk about too much government interference. Ask any educater if Bush’s NCLB has done anything but fail. If that’s socialism it came from a republican. Learn the facts.
Bush was a Republican in name only. He operated from the left hand side of the road for much of his presidency. I stand firm in saying that legislation like this comes from the “D” side. I don’t know exactly what the voting line was in Congress on this issue, but I have a strong feeling that this was a bi-partisan agreement.
Oh yeah, it’s Bush’s fault. I forgot. It’s Bush’s fault that we had a short summer……..and that the leaves are turning already.
If this was passed in 2001, then why is the Maine Department of Education sending out letters now? Just curious if any of you Obama lovers or Dems/Liberals and Bush haters know.
I am a Libertarian, which means I believe in a world in which all individuals are sovereign over their own lives and no one is forced to sacrifice his or her values for the benefit of others. The fact is it was passed under GW. I, like you, get sick of lets blame Bush, but this has his signature on it. Thats is a fact.
Being sick of people blaming Bush for all his stupidity is like being sick of hearing that Bin Laden was responsible for 9/11. In the way that Bin Laden killed nearly 3000 Americans Bush killed 4423 Americans and over one hundred thousand Iraqis while costing Maine tax payers over $2 billion. $ 2 billion…check it. Now blame the dems. for that as I’m sure you will. All this because Bush and Cheney lied and you conservatives chose to believe the lies, blindly and unquestioningly following in lockstep. Before he died Saddam admitted there never were any WMDs. Bush knew this. Those are the facts. For some reason you conservatives can’t stand the truth. But if your only source of news is Fox, you don’t get the truth anyway.