OHIO — Last week, the Ohio House of Representatives passed a bill that would allow schools to withhold student directory information and protect students’ privacy.
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House Bill 127, sponsored by State Representatives Adam Mathews (R-Lebanon) and Mike Odioso (R-Green Twp.), passed in the House on Wednesday, May 28.
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The legislation makes student director information, which includes names, addresses, phone numbers, birth dates, extracurricular activities, dates of attendance, graduation dates, and more, no longer automatically subject to public records law.
It also clarifies that school boards may choose not to release the information,
If a school board does choose to release information, any limitations must be applied uniformly to all requesters, in line with existing law.
Under current Ohio law (ORC 3319.321), student directory information is considered a public record, which means it can be accessed by any member of the public, even for non-academic or anonymous reasons.
“While parents and students currently have the ability to opt out of directory information release, school boards face unnecessary ambiguity about their ability to protect student data more broadly,” Mathews said. “House Bill 127 clears up that confusion by explicitly allowing school boards to withhold this information if they choose.”
HB 127 ensures that information can still be shared with colleges, employers, and businesses when in the best interests of the students.
It also maintains the existing federal requirement that schools provide names and addresses to military recruiters unless a student or parent opts out.
“School board members are uniquely positioned to understand the needs and best interests of their students and communities,” Odioso said. “House Bill 127 simply empowers them to make decisions that reflect those priorities while safeguarding student privacy.”
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