3 نقاط رئيسية
- Centralized vetting and transparency protect students and save money: Fayette County’s layered approval process ensures every app meets privacy, instructional, and budget standards—reducing risk and unnecessary spending.
- Ongoing monitoring and parent engagement are essential: The district uses dashboards and regular events to stay ahead of policy changes and build trust with families.
- Vendor relationships are active partnerships: Fayette County sets clear expectations for vendors—requiring them to meet local privacy standards and adapt as needed.
Hey everyone! Jiana Khazma here, Product Marketing Manager at Lightspeed Systems. In Episode 10 of our Lightning Chat Series, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Matt Jackson from Fayette County Public Schools in Georgia to talk about a topic that’s more important than ever: student data privacy.
Matt shared how Fayette County has transformed its approach to vetting digital apps and resources, moving from a chaotic landscape to a thoughtful, systematic, and transparent process that prioritizes both student safety and instructional value.
From “Wild West” to Well-Oiled Machine
Before implementing a formal vetting system, Fayette County’s process was, as Matt put it, “definitely the wild wild west.” Teachers would email their favorite tech leads to get new apps turned on, sometimes resulting in duplicate purchases or tools with little alignment to Georgia standards. Students could even download their own extensions and apps, with little oversight or consistency. There was no central process, no standard way to check privacy, and content coordinators weren’t always involved in decision-making.
Building a Structured Student Data Privacy Process
Fast forward to today, and it’s a very different story. Fayette County has established a clear, multi-step process for evaluating new digital resources:
- School-Level Conversations: Teachers first discuss app needs within their school and grade level, checking if existing resources already meet their needs—helping to avoid duplication and unnecessary spending.
- Formal Ticketing: If a new tool is still needed, teachers submit a ticket (via Incident IQ), providing details like vendor privacy policies and evidence of conversations with the vendor.
- Layered Review: Principal approval is required, followed by evaluation by content coordinators to ensure alignment with standards. The application review team then uses the One EdTech rubric to assess privacy, security, advertising, data sharing, and instructional value.
- الشفافية: Approved or denied apps (with reasons) are published to a public dashboard, so teachers, parents, and the whole community can see what’s in use and why.
Vendor Expectations & Ongoing Monitoring
Fayette County is serious about holding vendors to high standards. Every app, free or paid, goes through the One EdTech rubric, with close scrutiny on privacy policies, data collection, security measures like two-factor authentication, and whether there are ads aimed at students (which is an automatic “no”). The district even asks vendors to sign its own privacy policy, and will work directly with them to make necessary changes before moving forward.
But the work doesn’t stop at approval. Fayette County leverages the تقنية لايت سبيد إنسايت™ dashboard to stay on top of changing vendor privacy policies. If a vendor introduces new advertising or changes how data is handled, the team is alerted right away and can react quickly, turning off or restricting resources as needed.
Building Trust with the Community
Transparency is key. Fayette County’s public-facing dashboard allows teachers, parents, and the community to see exactly which apps are approved, denied, or in review, along with rationales and grade-level designations. Teachers are required to check this dashboard before submitting new requests, and the district regularly hosts parent nights and participates in Data Privacy Week to keep families informed and engaged.
ROI and Smarter Spending
A structured vetting process doesn’t just protect privacy. It saves money. By tracking app usage through Lightspeed Insights, Fayette County identified underused resources and cut $140,000 in spending on a tool barely being used. The district is now able to renegotiate contracts, cut out duplicative or non-compliant apps, and ensure every dollar spent brings instructional value.
In Summary
Fayette County’s journey shows that with the right process, schools can protect student data, align digital resources with instruction, build trust with families, and make smarter budget decisions, all at the same time. If you missed the episode, I highly recommend tuning in for more of Matt’s practical insights!
Thanks for reading and see you next time on the Lightning Chat Series!
