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For this legal Padlet, the topic that I chose is confidentiality and the school counseling profession. After considering all of the legal aspects of school counseling, I decided that confidentiality is one of the most important legal issues that school counselors face. The audience for this legal Padlet is my future employer (school counseling lead or the director of school counseling for Belton ISD).

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For this interview, I chose to interview Holly Mayes, a counselor at Belton High School in Belton, Texas. When talking with Mrs. Mayes, we focused on the topic of confidentiality. She told me that confidentiality is important not only for legal purposes, but also to ensure that there is trust between student and counselor. She explained that confidentiality is the one of the most important legal aspects of being a school counselor. School counselors must try to uphold confidentiality unless a student is in harm's way. She mentioned a few examples that require a counselor to report what a student tells them. Examples include abuse, pregnancy, and suicidal thoughts.

When discussing the best practices for confidentiality, she explained that when speaking with students for the first time, it is important to go over the limits of confidentiality when dealing with minors. This helps students understand where school counselors are coming from. Another practice that she told me was that counselors must be familiar with laws related to confidentiality and the importance of not discussing any information with other staff, family, or friends. Lastly, a good practice when dealing with confidentiality is to rely heavily on the standards outlined by the American School Counselor Association (ASCA).

When discussing an emerging issues in confidentiality and education is the growth of social media. She told me that although school counselors are knowledgable about student privacy, social media has become a quick way for educators to share a bit too much information. Educators must be careful when posting or sharing things on social media that is about students, no matter what is posted (H. Mayes, personal communication, April 30 2021).

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American School Counselor Association (ASCA)

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American School Counselor Association (ASCA)

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This course is the last course that I have to take in the Professional School Counseling Program. Throughout this program, I have used the ethical standards outlined by the ASCA for nearly every course. This resources is extremely useful for school counselors to refer to when questions arise about ethical dilemmas, including confidentiality standards. The ethical standards outlined by the ASCA provide school counselors with ethical standards to ensure a high-quality school counseling program. These standards ensure that students are receiving the best guidance and care by their counselors as possible.

https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/f041cbd0-7004-47a5-ba01-3a5d657c6743/Ethical-Standards.pdf

ASCA (2016). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors.

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-This law explains the rights that students and parents have regarding record disclosure and privacy.
-In the event that school counselors are to share records, they can only be obtained by a third party agency if there is written consent from the parent (if the student is under 18), or the student who is 18 or older. Another scenario outlined by this law is in the event that there is a court order.
-Counselors can only share records with other educational entities at parent/student request.

(34 C.F.R §99)

https://ecfr.io/cgi-bin/retrieveECFR?gp=1&amp;SID=717aafb0e19bcffaf40b4b007335b2d9&amp;ty=HTML&amp;h=L&amp;mc=true&amp;n=pt34.1.99&amp;r=PART

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-Students and parents can request their records
-Records may be released without consent if the health/safety of the student is in question

(20 U.S.C §1232g)
https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title20-section1232g)&num=0&edition=prelim

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-Regarding a child's misbehavior, interested officials may receive limited access under FERPA.

Jensen v. Reeves, 45 F. Supp. 2d 1265 (1999).
http://ca10.washburnlaw.edu/cases/2001/02/99-4142.htm

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-Provides parents with control over what information is obtained from their children online.
-No online personal information should be disclosed without parental consent
-Applies to and protects children under the age of 13

(16 C.F.R § 312)
https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/rules/rulemaking-regulatory-reform-proceedings/childrens-online-privacy-protection-rule

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Parents and/or students have the right to access records related to school counseling such as attendance info, test scores, grades, counseling records, behavioral records, and evaluations recorded and kept by the counselor. Belton ISD will release requested records within 45 days of request. Records may be released to courts, educational institutions that the student enrolls, officials such as CPS workers, or financial aid offices (Belton ISD, 2020).

Belton ISD. (2020). Belton ISD parent and student handbook.

https://www.bisd.net/cms/lib/TX50000217/Centricity/Domain/219/2020-2021-ss-Student-Handbook.pdf

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School counselors should strive to maintain a student's confidentiality as much as possible. In the event a student communicates something harmful such as suicidal thoughts, school counselors are to communicate these thoughts with a guardian. The school counselor should communicate these serious thoughts through a visit or via phone.

ASCA (2016). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors.

https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/f041cbd0-7004-47a5-ba01-3a5d657c6743/Ethical-Standards.pdf

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I am thankful for the legal and ethical standards provided by the various laws and ethical standards. School counseling is a profession that requires careful attention to the laws and standards relating to student confidentiality, and when it does not apply. When working with minors, it is important for school counselors to understand that their ultimate duty is to protect the student, even if that means communicating harmful thoughts or behaviors that the student may have. As a future school counselor, I am glad that although my ultimate goal is to ensure trust, I do have the right to make sure that students are safe. Throughout this program, I have often wondered how school counselors ensure that they are following the laws and ethical standards, and after exploring the laws and standards throughout this program, I now see that there are ample resources for school counselors to refer to.

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-When questions arise about ethical dilemmas, refer to the standards outlined by the ASCA.
-Although counselors have to uphold confidentiality, there are instances where their duty is the ensure that the student is protected.
-School counselors should make sure that they are familiar with the local policies in their district handbooks.
-School counselors may release information in the event that there is a court order or if the student is in harm (34 C.F.R §99)
-When in doubt, ask another counselor or admin for advice when dealing with a situation (without breaching confidentiality)
-It is important for school counselors to consider the age of the student .
-School counselors need to be familiar with FERPA laws and laws dealing with IDEA in order to protect students and their careers.
-With the growth of social media and computers, school counselors should stay up-to-date on laws relating to confidentiality and the online platform

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With with growth of online learning through the COVID-19 pandemic, may schools are not adhering to FERPA policies regarding student privacy. Schools are not properly communicating with families regarding ways to opt-out of the dissemination of personal information online.

Sawchuk, S., Sparks, S. D., Walsh, M., & Will, M. (2020). Thousands of Schools Failing To Protect Students’ Privacy. Education Week, 39(30), 4.

https://www-edweek-org.easydb.angelo.edu/technology/thousands-of-schools-are-falling-short-on-students-data-privacy-rights-report-says/2020/04

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This article discusses that because the use of the internet has grown so rapidly, it is difficult for schools and school officials to stay up-to-date on student privacy.

Many schools say that they are no even sure if the platforms that they are using are approved by the district

Staff need more professional development on how to maintain student privacy and protection with the growth of online usage
Tate, E. (2020). Students are online like never before. What does that mean for their privacy? EdSurge.
https://www.edsurge.com/news/2020-10-27-students-are-online-like-never-before-what-does-that-mean-for-their-privacy