Since April 2003, school nurse and school health officials have been clamoring for guidance on how the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Family Education Rights Privacy Act (FERPA) interface in the school environment. This article provides an up-to-date explanation of how school health leaders are interpreting the…

Student education records are official and confidential documents that are protected by one of the nation's strongest privacy-protection laws, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). FERPA, also known as the Buckley Amendment, defines education records as all records that schools or education agencies maintain about students. FERPA…

This report gives an overview of the past and present domestic and international legal framework for database protection. It describes database industry practices in securing protection against unauthorized use and Copyright Office registration practices relating to databases. Finally, it discusses issues raised and concerns expressed in a series…

In October, 1998, Congress enacted the Child Online Protection Act and established the Commission on Online Child Protection (COPA) to study methods to help reduce access by minors to certain sexually explicit material, defined in the statute as harmful to minors. Congress directed the Commission to evaluate the accessibility, cost, and…

The appendices for the Commission on Child Online Protection (COPA) Report to Congress, October 20, 2000, include the following: Commission overview, which includes scope and timeline, original statute, amended statute, technologies and methods, and biographies of the commissioners; Commission finances; Commission meetings for the year 2000;…

This paper discusses the importance of intellectual freedom for libraries, librarians, and library associations. Examples of attempts at censorship in Australia are presented, including the Broadcasting Services Amendment (Online Services) Act, 1999, legislation that requires filtering of Internet content. The IFLA (International Federation of…

President Clinton discusses issues affecting libraries and explains his administration's plans regarding them. Addresses connecting educational environments to the Internet, the Communications Decency Act, the Federal Communications Commission, the Telecommunications Act of 1996, and rates for "universal service." Describes federal…

This article addresses issues of confidentiality and the management of student records as affected by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy act (FERPA). It identifies violations of FERPA and relates FERPA to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. (DB)

The Internet remains as a wonder for the 21st century and its growth is phenomenon. According to a recent survey, the online population is now about 500 million globally and if this trend continues, it should reach 700 million by the end of 2002. This exponential growth of the Internet has given rise to several security, privacy and ethical…

For years computer viruses have threatened productive use of personal computers, challenging users and support providers to prevent and recover from viral attacks. Now another type of computing malady has begun to enter popular consciousness: spyware. Typically, analyses of spyware focus on technical issues or provide pointers to resources for…

Policy briefs are reports on the status of current issues in education from a national perspective; descriptions of actions and agendas in the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL) region; and commentaries by experts from their particular point of view; and resources for further information. The focus of this report is technology…

Struggles over educational access to new communications technologies in the age of U.S. radio and television provide insights into current struggles of educational access to the "information superhighway." Findings from an historical analysis of these earlier periods show that educational access to new communications technologies is…

This hearing addresses legislative proposals to protect children from inappropriate materials on the Internet. Among the issues discussed are federal investments and information access, defining standards for protection, child pornography and marketing to children, filtering technology and adult verification services, and freedom of speech.…

Maintaining safe schools requires the forging of partnerships to share information between schools and youth-serving agencies, including the police department, court system, youth parole and probation offices, and child protective services. All public elementary and secondary schools are subject to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act…

In the wake of the Communications Decency Act of 1996, discussions have raged both online and in the press about free speech, online pornography, and the protection of children. This paper discusses the legal and social science issues surrounding content regulation of the World Wide Web and the Internet as a whole, with an emphasis on the…