Big news for Hillsborough Township Public Schools! We're thrilled to announce that HTPS has officially joined the Student Data Privacy Consortium (SDPC). This is a huge step forward in our ongoing commitment to ensuring the highest levels of privacy and security for all our digital data. That's because, even though it says students, we want to ensure all data of HTPS members is protected, covered, and safe.
You might be wondering, "What exactly is the SDPC?" Well, it's a fantastic, collaborative effort involving schools, districts, and EdTech companies across the country, all working together to protect data. Think of it as a national team dedicated to making sure the digital tools our students and teachers use every day are as safe and secure as possible. The SDPC provides standardized agreements that streamline the process of how we, as a district, ensure that the companies providing our digital resources are meeting stringent privacy requirements.
Our Unwavering Commitment to Data Protection
At HTPS, safeguarding our students' personal information has always been a top priority. We understand that in today's digital learning environment, students interact with countless online tools and platforms. Each of these interactions generates data, and it's our responsibility to ensure that this data is handled with the utmost care and respect. Joining the SDPC significantly strengthens our efforts by providing us with robust frameworks and a supportive community dedicated to best practices in data privacy. This means more secure learning environments and greater peace of mind for everyone.
Navigating the Path to Approved Digital Resources
This new partnership introduces a standardized process for how we evaluate and approve any new digital resource that requires a student or staff login. We're talking about everything from educational apps and online platforms to learning management systems.
Here's an important heads-up for all staff: securing a signed data privacy agreement can sometimes take a bit of time, and we appreciate your patience and understanding as we navigate this essential process. Several factors can influence the timeline, such as whether the EdTech company has a signed agreement with a district in NJ, a district in another state, or if their legal department needs time to review and or amend the agreement before signing.
Because of these factors, the process for a new resource to get an approved agreement can sometimes take days, weeks, or even a few months. This is why we strongly encourage you to submit requests for any new digital resources you anticipate needing as early as possible. The sooner we can begin the review process, the sooner we can get those valuable tools into the hands of our students and teachers! Keep in mind that this is for resources requiring a login such as "Sign In with Google", not for a website we visit to watch a video, play a game, read content, etc.Approved Agreements
In addition to our Approved Apps/Extensions Sheet, we have a public list of all digital resources that have approved SDPC agreements for HTPS. You can find this list here.
Thank you for your cooperation and dedication to keeping HTPS a leader in student data privacy!