How Colorado Parents Used Federal Law to Protect Student Privacy
A Guide to Halting Invasive Pronoun Surveys in Schools
Parents like me ended student pronoun surveys in Jefferson County Public Schools Colorado, thanks to federal law.
You can do it, too.
In January 2023 families from the grassroots parents group that I started Jeffco Kids First began pushing back on rampant surveying of our children’s pronouns.
At the time, common questions written by some teachers looked something like this:
What are your pronouns?
Should I use these pronouns when addressing your parents?
We learned that teachers from nearly every middle and high school were surveying students on gender identity. Many students were asked these questions up to six times in one day at the beginning of the year or semester.
In August 2023, parents found the following statements on the local teacher’s union’s social media page:
“If I were in the classroom I’d have them fill out a ‘Get to know you’ questionnaire, take the home to read, and then lose them.”
“There’s enough wiggle room to do the right thing and treat somebody as a human, as long as you don’t keep a record of it.”
This was a vocalized breach of protected student information and family privacy laws otherwise known as FERPA.
We also learned about an email from the local teachers union instructing members to avoid federal law survey requirements by “making notations about students and not holding onto the documents” and to “make it a paper and pencil activity” to avoid violating FERPA.
In essence, the union was giving formal advice to give and destroy surveys and usurp parents and federal transparency laws.
By September, we had made it to the local CBS news.
The story was also featured in The Daily Mail.
Now, as a result of collecting examples of unlawful surveys across the district, hundreds of hours of advocacy, federal laws, and media attention, these surveys have largely been eradicated from Jeffco Schools.
Federal law makes it simple!
PPRA or The Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment addresses protected student information, parental rights, and surveys. There are eight protected categories that require parental/guardian notice and opportunity to opt out (whether required or voluntary):
Political affiliations/beliefs of the student or the student’s parent
Mental health
Sex behaviors or attitudes (bingo!)
Illegal or antisocial behavior
Critical appraisals of family members
Privileged relationships (doctors/lawyers)
Religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs
Income
Here's what parents need to do to take action regarding "getting to know you surveys" that might infringe on student privacy or parental rights:
Gather Evidence: If you suspect a survey violates the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA), collect evidence such as screenshots or copies of the surveys.
Document Your Findings: Compile your evidence into a document that clearly shows the issues with the surveys.
Communicate with School Officials: Send your documentation to district leaders, including the legal department, to highlight potential violations.
Push for Policy Change: Advocate for formal guidance to be issued to schools explaining PPRA requirements and prohibiting unauthorized surveys.
Request Regular Updates: At the start of each school year or semester, ask for refresher guidance and training for school leadership on survey compliance.
Monitor Compliance: Keep an eye on survey practices to ensure they remain compliant with legal standards.
Advocate Individually: Remember, you don't need a group to enforce legal accountability; advocating for your own child can lead to district-wide change.
By taking these steps, parents can effectively ensure that schools respect privacy laws and parental rights and end the invasive student surveys.
 | A guest post by
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I would like to talk with you about this. I advocated on my child’s behalf and found out how the school was not in compliance with their GSA club. It took more than a year. I complained about the surveys at the beginning of sixth grade. We are now halfway through seventh. The school and superintendent have only ever dug in and acted in a bureaucratic legalistic manner on this issue.