Emily Milton
Editor
On Tuesday, January 24, 2023, ACPS families were notified via Parentsquare about the conclusion of the investigation into released student and staff information. The released information included staff email addresses and names, and students’ full names, gender, grade level, and their parents’ email addresses, phone number, and mailing addresses.
ACPS notified FinalSite (when affiliated with ACPS, known as BlackBoard Connect) on January 17, 2023, to remove the information from public access. Immediately after FinalSite followed ACPS’s request to remove the information, they initiated an investigation to find out how the information became accessible.
In recent years, ACPS has been under scrutiny for their inconsistent communication to students, staff, and families. At the end of June 2022, ACPS ceased their relationship with BlackBoard Connect as their form of family communication, not renewing their contract. By the time ACPS was notified of the breach, Parentsquare had been the main communication tool utilized for some time.
The investigation revealed the leak of information was not intentional. Dr. Elizabeth Hoover, ACPS Chief Technology Officer, writes, “The vendor has reported that there is no evidence that this was a result of bad intent or other malicious breach of the system. Instead, it was the result of a mistake by a vendor engineer.”
Dr. Hoover said, on behalf of ACPS, that they were “disappointed” with the breach of information, as they understand how important privacy is to all students and families.
Originally created in 2011 by computer engineer Anupama Vald, after realizing the disconnect between herself and her child’s schools, Parentsquare has become a platform for modern engagement in school systems. It is used by over 11,000 school districts, and now hopes to address communication barriers that exist in ACPS.
To read the full Parentsquare post
