Dear parent/guardian of school-aged children under the age of 13,
For schools within the Atlanta Public Schools (APS) System to provide your child with engaging web-based tools and applications for learning, the District must abide by federal regulations that require your consent. (See links above.)
Our district uses several software applications and web-based services that include software functions operated by third parties*. These include Google Apps for Education (GAFE), and similar educational programs. A list of the APS programs, the Board policy for acceptable use, and links to COPPA can be found
HERE. (Access to the
complete document.)
For our students to use these programs and services, certain personal identifying information (generally the student’s name and email address) must be provided to the website operator. Your child will receive a Google email account to participate in the Google Apps for Education (GAFE) program used by Atlanta Public Schools. Under federal law entitled the
Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), Atlanta Public Schools must provide notification and obtain consent before children under the age of 13 can participate in educational activities facilitated through programs such as GAFE.
For more information on COPPA, please visit
https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/complying-coppa-frequently-asked-questions.
*Third party applications are programs written to work within software applications and web-based services, but are written by individuals or companies other than the provider of the application or service. For example, Google Apps for Education come packed with several software applications. Of these, any program authored by Google is a first party application. The second party is the user (your child). Any program authored by a different company or an individual is a third party application (e.g.
Powtoon,
Thinglink).
