UW–Madison instructors and employees who work with student education records now have a clear guide to help them make informed decisions about which tools protect student privacy.
The Office of the Registrar’s new FERPA-Approved Productivity Tools guide answers a critical question for many employees who work with student education records: Which productivity tools can I use with student data protected by the Family Educational Rights & Privacy Act (FERPA)?
The guide organizes common university tools into three categories — permitted, review required and prohibited — to help you determine what you can use with student education records.
What you’ll find in the guide
Start by reviewing the tool categories to understand what’s available.
The guide highlights commonly used, university-approved tools that employees may use with FERPA-protected data, such as Google Drive, Microsoft 365, Zoom, Box and Qualtrics. It is not a comprehensive list of all acceptable tools; instead focusing on tools that employees ask about most often. It also specifies features of those tools that are not permitted, such as Microsoft Copilot.
You’ll also learn which tools require a privacy and security risk review before use, and which tools are prohibited entirely for student records, including social media platforms, personal cloud storage and unapproved AI tools.
The guide provides clear steps for getting approval when you need to use a tool that requires review. But remember, this is not meant to be a comprehensive list or roadblock. If you’re considering a tool that’s not on the permitted list, you can direct your questions to the Student Record Data Steward.