Cybersecurity and Data Privacy

Data Privacy Policy: Goose Creek CISD has taken action to ensure that all student data is handled securely and in compliance with all state and federal legislation. Through rigorous processes and high standards of compliance, our goal is to not only abide to state and federal law, but to provide students, parents, and our community with the resources and information needed to protect student privacy. This is accomplished by a process of continual improvement of security practices. The district employees the principle of least privilege and role based security to ensure that data is only accessed by those that have a legitimate educational purpose. A multi-layered defense is also employed to ensure that your data remains protected. As the technology landscape is constantly changing, these processes are reviewed at least annually to make sure they are still relevant and provide strong protection. In an effort to achieve these goals, the Goose Creek CISD Technology Department seeks to implement the following programs:

Trusted Learning Environment Seal Program - The CoSN Trusted Learning Environment (TLE) Seal program is the nation’s only data privacy framework for school systems, focused on building a culture of trust and transparency. The TLE Seal was developed by CoSN in collaboration with a diverse group of 28 school system leaders nationwide and with support from AASA, The School Superintendents Association, the Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO) and ASCD. School systems that meet the program requirements will earn the TLE Seal, signifying their commitment to student data privacy to their community. TLE Seal recipients also commit to continuous examination and demonstrable future advancement of their privacy practices.

CoSN has awarded the Trusted Learning Environment (TLE) Seal to Goose Creek Consolidated Independent School District (GCCISD) in 2022 and 2024. The TLE Seal is a prestigious national distinction that school districts earn for demonstrating a commitment to protecting student data through modern, rigorous policies and practices.
Texas Cybersecurity Framework - The Texas Cybersecurity Framework is a self-assessment to determine cybersecurity risks. While local governments and K-12 organizations are not required to submit a Cybersecurity Plan to the State, using the framework helps to align security goals and practices with other government entities and institutions of Higher Education across the State of Texas.

The district uses data to support a variety of processes throughout the district including supporting student learning, evaluating teachers, improving instructional and operational practices, and complying with various state and federal requirements. For more information on who uses student data, see this infographic.

GCCISD uses many applications to encourage learning through innovation. See this page for more information on approved/denied applications and the process for requesting a free or paid app.

Website Privacy Policy: Goose Creek Consolidated Independent School District (Goose Creek CISD or GCCISD) is committed to respecting and protecting your privacy as a visitor to our websites. This includes the Here, We Grow Giants site. We will only collect, store and use your personal information for defined purposes. Goose Creek CISD values accountability and transparency at all levels including ensuring that student data privacy and security are a top priority. For more information on what data is collected as well as records management, see the Data Governance tab.

Data Governance Objectives

ongoing and transparent communication with parents and the community regarding data privacy practices.
Establish a centralized data governance framework or enterprise architecture that all departments and stakeholders must adhere to, ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of district data.
Develop and implement standardized policies to prevent the misuse of personal information related to students and employees.
Regularly propose, develop, review, and update data security and privacy standards, procedures, and related documentation.
Ensure district compliance with all applicable state and federal data privacy laws and regulations.

Student Data Collection and Security Fact Sheet

Employee Data Privacy Handbook

Data Governance Guidelines

Software FAQ

* Handbooks, procedures and guidelines are reviewed at least annually to provide updates that align with changes in laws/regulations and the constantly changing technology landscape.

Sharing Data with Vendors/Third-Parties

Goose Creek CISD takes the privacy of both student and staff data very seriously. Before procuring services or contracting with a third-party, a security risk assessment is performed. Much like a credit score is used in the lending process, a security risk score can reveal risks that a company would present and the likelihood they would suffer a data breach or other security incident. Goose Creek continuously monitors these third-parties in order to manage any risk that may occur and take appropriate proactive measures to keep district data secure. Secondly, if data will be shared with a vendor/third-party, a signed Data Privacy Agreement MUST be in place before a contract is signed. The current Data Privacy Agreement in use is the TX_NDPA_v1r6.

Records Management Compliance Training

This required training describes and mandates that every staff member, elected official, or anyone serving the district is responsible for school district records.
Records include any type of record about a student including paper or electronic forms is a legal requirement.
It is a shared responsibility and is every person’s responsibility.
All new hires are required to complete district-provided FERPA training.
All staff complete mandatory trainings yearly that include trainings on FERPA, CIPPA, COPA, and other laws.
The training is updated annually and regularly when new information is needed.

Records Management Board Policies

CPC (LEGAL) - OFFICE MANAGEMENT: RECORDS MANAGEMENT

CPC (LOCAL) - OFFICE MANAGEMENT: RECORDS MANAGEMENT

FL (LEGAL) - STUDENT RECORDS

FL (LOCAL) - STUDENT RECORDS

The Texas Local Government Records Act, Chapter 201

*Board Policy is reviewed regularly to ensure that they align with all current laws and regulations.

** Note: Local government records retention schedules are available on the TSLAC website.

GCCISD Resources

For Teachers

Make sure you identify which students have restrictions on what their personal information and pictures can and cannot be used for by running the following report.

Unexpected Emails

04/13/2021

When you receive an email from an online service or business partner that you are not expecting, proceed with caution.
For example, if you receive an email from eBay stating that you have just won an online auction, there are a couple of questions you should ask yourself.

Are you a member of eBay? (This goes for online banking as well. If you receive an email from a bank you do not have an account with, do not click any links)
Did you bid on any auctions recently? (If you did not bid, you cannot have won)

This does not apply to eBay alone. The bad guys can use any online service such as banking, shopping and social networking to try and trick you.

Remember to Stop, Look, and Think before clicking on any email links.

When in doubt, open a web browser and visit the company website of the person who sent you the email. From there you can log in to your account to verify any activity that has taken place.
Do not click a link in the email to visit the site... Open a browser and type in the address of the company.

Stop Look Think - Don't be fooled
The KnowBe4 Security Team
KnowBe4.com

Privacy & Security Discussion Topic Ideas

Phishing Emails
- Have you noticed any phishing emails to share with others? What clues did you notice that made you aware that it was not legitimate? How should these emails be reported? Should general SPAM be reported as Phishing?

Social Engineering
- Have you received phone calls using social engineering techniques trying to get you to give information to someone that you do not know? What did you do to verify their identity before sharing information?

Current Events
- What are some recent cyber attacks or data breaches in K-12 from news sources? How we can better be prepared to prevent a similar attack at Goose Creek CISD?
- What recent cybersecurity/data privacy news have you seen and how could it impact us?
- What are upcoming/recent laws or regulations around privacy and cybersecurity that would impact Goose Creek CISD?

Applications & 3rd Party Systems
- Have you used a new app, program, or website lately? Did you make sure you knew what data is being collected/transmitted and if it is being protected? How did you verify?
- Why is it important to vet our applications for security, privacy, or content concerns?
- Thinking about using a new app? Discuss the vetting process and assign someone to submit it for review.

Data Privacy Webpage
- What data do you collect on students? Review the Data Fact Sheet.
- Review resources on Data Privacy site

Data Breach Notice
- If you became aware of a potential data breach, who would you notify?
- What is the role of the District's cybersecurity coordinator? Who is this at Goose Creek CISD?

Data Privacy Curriculum
- How are you implementing data privacy in your classrooms?
- How do you integrate the Digital Citizenship Curriculum in your classrooms?
- What discussions have you had with students, parents, teachers, or staff about privacy/security?

Disaster and Recovery
- How do we protect data when in a disaster (fire, flood, hurricane, cyber attack, school shooting, etc)?
- How would we recover from a disaster and is that documented?

Cybersecurity and Privacy Training
- Has everyone completed the required trainings on Cybersecurity and Privacy?
- What is something each person learned from the Texas Cybersecurity training.
- What is Board Policy CQB and why is it important?

Handbooks

Employee Handbook

Student Handbook (English)

Student Handbook (Spanish)

* Handbooks, procedures and guidelines are reviewed at least annually to provide updates that align with changes in laws/regulations and the constantly changing technology landscape.

Board Policy

CQB - Cybersecurity

*Board Policy is reviewed regularly to ensure that they align with all current laws and regulations.

Laws/Regulations

FERPA - Family Education Rights and Privacy Act

PPRA - Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment

COPPA - Children's Online Privacy Protection Act

CIPA - Children's Internet Protection Act

GCCISD Resources

Employee Data Privacy Handbook

Third-Party Data Privacy Video

Agenda Discussion Topics

Security Access Procedure

GCCISD Digital Safety

Digital Citizenship Curriculum

Are you considering an application?

Before you start, review our Software FAQ.

Is the app already approved or denied?

Check the Student Data Privacy Consortium (SDPC) Database
Check the Goose Creek Approved & Denied App List

You must follow the approval process to request apps for student use. Teachers may research apps they wish to use. Consider the resources below before using a third-party application (website or app). If you feel the app is a good candidate, please follow the approval process listed below or on the Ed Tech webpage.

First ask yourself these questions:
Checklist for Choosing Tools Worth Your (and Your Students') Time
Educational App Evaluation Checklist
Second make sure you understand how the data is being used. To protect student data as well as the security of other district systems, you need to understand the importance of App Vetting. Things to look at are the privacy policy, is the data encrypted, can you request deletion of data, is the data strictly used for educational purposes, is the data protected, is the app appropriate for the targeted age group, etc.
What is App Vetting and Why is it Important?
Vetting Apps Across the District (RED FLAGS to watch out for)

Vetting Process

iPad App Approval Video HOW-TO

iPad App Approval Process

iPad App Approval Workflow

Data Privacy

Educator's Guide to Student Data Privacy

Protecting Student Privacy While Using Online Educational Resources

Privacy Basics - Facebook

Privacy Basics - Twitter

Laws, Regulations and Standards

COPPA 101

FERPA 101