Virginia Department of Education to Investigate Fairfax County Public Schools for Systemic Privacy Violations

The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) is finally investigating Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) for systemic privacy violations.

Today, October 6, 2021, VDOE issued a Notice of Complaint (NOC) stating it is opening an investigation.

For years I’ve tracked FCPS’s noncompliance and for years I’ve asked VDOE to initiate an investigation into FCPS’s repeat failures to secure private information. (See: “FERPA Violation Report Card: Fairfax County Public Schools“)

VDOE has always had a reason NOT to initiate a systemic investigation — even after it was provided an internal FCPS document in which FCPS itself stated concerns with privacy breaches — and then was repeatedly made aware of more privacy breaches. (See “Hot Topics” and “FCPS Reports List 400+ Special Education Violations; VDOE Refuses to Investigate“)

What changed VDOE’s mind this time? I have no idea.

All I know is that VDOE has found FCPS in noncompliance on numerous occasions. FCPS responds to the noncompliance by stating it has addressed the noncompliance—and then the noncompliance happens again.

Here’s hoping for a thorough investigation—and for the noncompliance to stop.

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