FILE: IDDFC-P
PROCEDURES FOR USING CAMERAS IN SPECIAL EDUCATION CLASSROOMS
A parent or legal guardian may submit a written request to the Superintendent or his designee to have a video and audio camera installed in a special education classroom. That parent or legal guardian shall complete the Request for the Installation of Video and Audio Recording Equipment (“Request for Installation”) form. The St. Tammany Parish School Board authorizes the Superintendent or his designee to consider the approval or denial of such a request based upon the facts and circumstances surrounding the proposed installation, the information contained on the Request for Installation form, and the availability of specific and adequate funding. Within seven (7) school business days of receiving the signed and completed Request for Installation form, the Superintendent or his designee shall return the form to the requestor approving or denying the request. The installation of cameras shall be accomplished consistent with state and federal laws.
For purposes of this policy and policy IDDFC, Cameras in Special Education Classrooms, classroom shall mean a self-contained classroom or other special education setting in which a majority of students in regular attendance are provided special education and related services and are assigned to one or more self-contained classrooms or other special education settings for at least fifty percent (50%) of the instructional day and for which a parent or legal guardian has requested a camera to be installed. Classroom shall not mean special education classrooms and other special education settings where the only students with exceptionalities receiving special education and related services are those who have been deemed to be gifted or talented and have not been identified as also having a disability.
Before the installation of a video and audio camera in a self-contained classroom, the Superintendent or his designee shall provide written notice of the placement to the following:
The parents or legal guardians of the students who are assigned to the self-contained classroom; and
The school employee(s) who is assigned to work with one or more students in the self-contained classroom.
After the installation of the cameras, but prior to the use of those cameras, the school classrooms where the cameras are located shall contain a notice sign or placard that informs individuals that cameras are in use.
The video and audio recordings from a special education classroom shall be confidential and shall not constitute public records. The video and audio recordings shall only be reviewed, or released, as part of an alleged incident or an investigation. An incident or investigation shall include, but shall not be limited to, situations wherein a school employee, a teacher, a paraprofessional, or a parent or legal guardian have knowledge of, or suspect or have cause for concern regarding, the safety of a child, abuse, neglect of a child, or harm to an employee or child. Consistent with relevant state and federal law, the decision to allow the reviewing or release of the video and audio recordings shall be made on a case-by-case basis by the Superintendent or his designee.
A parent or legal guardian of a student in a special education classroom, with an installed camera, may request to review the video and audio recordings for a particular day, or days, in connection with an incident or investigation. This request shall be made as soon as possible but no later than twenty (20) days after an alleged incident to prevent the recording(s) from being deleted. The parent or legal guardian shall complete the Request for Reviewing of Video/Audio Recording in a Special Education Classroom (“Request for Reviewing”) form.
Within seven (7) school business days of receiving the signed and completed Request for Reviewing form, the Superintendent or his designee shall return the form to the requestor approving, or denying, a reviewing of the recording and/or redacted video recording by the following:
A parent or legal guardian of a student who is involved in an alleged incident or investigation;
As authorized by state or federal law, an employee of the St. Tammany Parish School Board as part of an investigation into an alleged incident that is documented by the video recording;
As authorized by state or federal law, a law-enforcement officer as part of an investigation into an alleged incident that is documented by the video recording; or
As authorized by state or federal law, the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services, or related governmental agency, as part of a child abuse and neglect investigation.
The reviewing of recordings shall take place within thirty (30) days or a reasonable period of time that allows for the redaction of video recordings if necessary. All access to the recording(s) shall comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, 20 USC 1232g (FERPA) and La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:3914. This policy does not waive any immunity from liability for the St. Tammany Parish School Board or its employees. Likewise, this policy does not create any liability or cause of action against the St. Tammany Parish School Board or its employees.
In the event that the Request for Reviewing form is returned with a denial, or the Superintendent or his designee deny the reviewing of the recording(s), then the requestor (parent or legal guardian) shall have seven (7) days to appeal the decision to the St. Tammany Parish School Board. To the extent allowed under state law, including but not limited to La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §42:17, the meetings before the St. Tammany Parish School Board will be conducted in executive session to protect the privacy of the students on the camera recording(s). If the requestor does not appeal the denial decision of the Superintendent or his designee to the St. Tammany Parish School Board, then said decision will be considered final. Any decision from the St. Tammany Parish School Board on the issue of reviewing recordings may be appealed to the Twenty-Second Judicial District Court for the Parish of St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana but only if allowed under state law.
The Superintendent or his designee shall take appropriate measures to protect the privacy of the students on the recording(s). The Superintendent or his designee shall also take necessary precautions to conceal the identity of a students who appear in a video recording but is not involved in an alleged incident or investigation. Such procedures include, but are not limited to, the blurring the face of the uninvolved student(s) and providing procedures to protect the confidentiality of student records contained in a video recording in accordance with FERPA and La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:3914.
If a parent or legal guardian, or other legally authorized individual, makes a request to review a recording, the St. Tammany Parish School Board and/or its employees shall retain the recording from the date of the request until:
The individual reviews the recording, or
The completion of any investigation, administrative hearing, or legal proceedings that result from the recording, including without limitation, the exhaustion of all appeals.
An individual who requests to review a recording shall make him/herself available within thirty (30) days after being notified by the Superintendent or his designee that the individual’s request has been approved.
It is not a violation of this policy if a contractor or other school employee incidentally reviews a recording in a self-contained classroom if the contractor or other school employee is performing job duties or responsibilities related to the installation, operation, or maintenance of equipment, or the retention or redaction of recordings.
This policy does not limit the access of a student’s parent or legal guardian to a video or audio recording regarding the student under FERPA and La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:3914.
The use of video or audio recordings shall not be used for teacher evaluations. The recordings of the cameras in special education classrooms are for the purpose of promoting the health, well-being, and safety of students receiving special education and related services in a self-contained classroom.
A video camera placed in a self-contained classroom shall not monitor a restroom or any other area in the self-contained classroom where a student changes his or her clothes, except for incidental monitoring of a minor portion of a restroom or other area where a student changes his or her clothes because of the layout of the classroom.
A camera placed in a special education classroom is not required to be in operation for the period of time when the students are not present in the classroom due to school closure or vacation.
The St. Tammany Parish School Board and/or its employees shall retain video and audio recorded from a camera in a special education classroom for at least thirty (30) days from the recording date, after which the recording shall be deleted or otherwise made irretrievable.
Teachers or other St. Tammany Parish School Board employees in the special education classrooms will be provided training and/or professional development regarding the use of video and audio cameras in classrooms.
Consistent with the mandatory reporting laws of the State of Louisiana, including provisions in the Children’s Code, any individual who views a recording and suspects the recording documents a violation of state or federal law, including but not limited to those laws regarding child abuse, shall report the suspected violation to Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services or law enforcement agency.
Each camera installed in connection with this policy shall be in compliance with the National Fire Protection Association's Life Safety Code and the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), commonly known as the “John McCain Act.”
The video and audio recordings shall not be considered "personally identifiable information" as defined in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:3914.
New policy: February 10, 2022
Ref: 20 USC 1232g (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act)
La. Rev. Stat. §§17:1948, 17:3914, 44:4.1(B)(9)
Board minutes, 2-10-22
St. Tammany Parish School Board