This post is part of The Datamation Guide to Managing School District Records.
Keeping your student records secure is of the utmost importance for your district. Under FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act), students have the right to privacy concerning their records, and with new changes to the Student Online Privacy and Protection Act (SOPPA), it is the school’s responsibility to keep those records safe. Many districts still maintain their student records in paper form, which makes them susceptible to physical damage and prying eyes. Datamation can ensure that student records will be as secure as possible, and accessible to the right people.
Because paper records are, well, paper, if there were to ever be a fire, flood, or natural disaster in or around your school, those records would be badly damaged or even destroyed completely. Attempting to recover these documents would involve extensive time and effort that could have been directed elsewhere. Because these records are stored in filing cabinets or boxes all in one room, no one can be sure who has accessed what record, and at what time.
The first step in making these records as secure as possible is to digitize them. Though that may seem like a daunting task to have thousands of documents scanned, Datamation can pick up these files and scan them either on-site or at our own secure facilities. You can also have access to these documents as they are being scanned, if need be. Your district can even track the progress of the scanning process.
Beyond having your records scanned and digitized, Datamation offers many more ways to manage your digital documents. ImageSilo is a great example of a storage and management system that keeps your records both safe and organized. Because your documents are stored in a digital cloud, they can’t be harmed by fires or floods, and with five layers of security, records are safe from human threats as well. Unlike paper records, access to digital records with ImageSilo can be tracked—you can see exactly who accessed the records and when.
Scriborder is also a great program that can be implemented to more securely send requested academic documents like transcripts, diplomas, certificates, and more. Scriborder enables school districts to manage all requests through one portal. Orders are made online, and the document is sent digitally rather than by mail. If there are any issues detected during the mailing process, the student’s private data is automatically captured before it can be seen by anyone. Because the data is sent digitally, it is much more secure than if the transcript was sent by regular mail.
Scanning your student records with Datamation is just the first step in making the records more secure than ever. Paper records and their storage are outdated, risky, and inconvenient, especially where sensitive records are concerned.
