Challenge
Before implementing a formal app vetting process, Fayette County Public Schools faced what Matt Jackson, Coordinator for Digital and Media Services, calls “the wild, wild west.” Teachers independently discovered apps at conferences and emailed IT to enable them—with no consistency, no privacy review, and no instructional alignment check. Students could even pull down their own browser extensions. The district had no centralized way to track what was being used, whether it was effective, or whether it was safe.
“There was no centralized way for us to stay in touch with the data privacy part of all of this. We were newbies to it as well.”
Matt Jackson, Coordinator for Digital and Media Services, Fayette County Public Schools
With over 2,000 apps in common use across K–12 districts and an average of 50 hours per month spent on edtech management and compliance vetting, the stakes were clear: without a structured process, districts risk exposing student PII to vendors across the globe, paying for redundant tools, and losing teacher trust when decisions feel arbitrary.
Solution
Fayette County partnered with Lightspeed Systems and 1EdTech to build a layered, transparent app governance system—one that protects student data, empowers teachers, and gives parents full visibility into district decisions.
Lightspeed Insight — transparency and compliance dashboard
- Public-facing approved apps dashboard lets teachers, students, and parents see what’s in use and why.
- Automatic alerts flag changes in vendor privacy policies with highlighted before-and-after changes—eliminating manual annual tracking and reviews.
- Role-based admin permissions ensure the right people receive the right notifications.
- Usage analytics pinpoint which tools are actually being used—and which aren’t.
1EdTech Trusted App Management (TAMS) integration
- 12,000+ pre-vetted apps, extensions, and websites available inside Lightspeed Insight.
- Four-criteria rubric covers advertising, third-party data sharing, security practices, and data collection.
- 1EdTech Data Privacy Certification (annual) accelerates the district’s own review process.
- Certifications surface COPPA, FERPA, and GDPR compliance status at a glance.
District-built request workflow
- Teachers submit app requests via IncidentIQ with a custom form requiring privacy policy review, age-appropriateness confirmation, and principal sign-off.
- Content coordinators hold final approval authority, with decisions and rationale published publicly in the dashboard.
- Approved apps are rostered in ClassLink; denied apps include written explanations so teachers understand the why.
“We’ve probably made more back than we’ve had to spend so far. And it helps us with compliance—we now have quantifiable information we can share if it’s ever requested.”
Matt Jackson, Coordinator for Digital and Media Services
Results
- $140K saved in one year by eliminating an underused resource
- 2–3 hrs saved per app review with 1EdTech certification + Insight alerts
- ~3 yrs to build a mature, districtwide governance program from scratch
By correlating usage data with app spending, Fayette County identified a district-paid resource used only 30–40 times across multiple schools in a year. Cutting it freed $140,000 that was reinvested elsewhere. The team has since used the same usage visibility to renegotiate contracts and redirect professional development toward tools that teachers actually use.
Staying ahead of privacy policy changes went from a manual, once-a-year audit to a real-time notification workflow. When a vendor’s policy shifts, Insight surfaces it immediately, allowing the team to act before a parent discovers the change during homework time.
The district also built meaningful community trust. Parent nights, Data Privacy Week communications, and the public-facing dashboard have transformed the conversation from “the internet police” into a visible commitment to student safety—both online and off.
“It wasn’t just a yes or a no. We give them a why. That buy-in part is important.”
Matt Jackson, Coordinator for Digital and Media Services
Fayette County’s experience shows that a strong app governance program isn’t built overnight—but with the right tools, a committed team, and a culture of transparency, districts can move from reactive chaos to proactive confidence.
The result: safer students, smarter spending, and a community that trusts you with their kids’ data.
