June 6, 1995; School District 458 (Truman)
6/6/1995 10:14:43 AM
This is an opinion of the Commissioner of Administration issued pursuant to section 13.072 of Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 13 - the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act. It is based on the facts and information available to the Commissioner as described below.
Facts and Procedural History:For purposes of simplification, the information presented by the government entity which requested this opinion is presented in summary form. Copies of the complete submission are on file at the offices of PIPA and are available for public access.On May 8, 1995, PIPA received a letter dated May 2, 1995, from Kevin J. Rupp, an attorney representing Independent School District No. 458, Truman, hereinafter District. On behalf of the District, Mr. Rupp requested an advisory opinion on the issues described below. Mr. Rupp enclosed a copy of a sexual harassment report, which described an incident which took place during a field trip. A teacher, three volunteer chaperones, and a group of high school juniors were involved. Two of the chaperones are school employees who took personal leave to go on the trip. The teacher, the two employee-chaperones, and twelve students were identified in the report. The teacher was disciplined, by letter of reprimand, as a result of the incident. He did not file a grievance over the discipline within the time period allowed. The twelve students received in-school suspensions, and the volunteer chaperones were issued letters ...expressing dissatisfaction with their level of supervision. (The $200.00 fee required of government entities, pursuant to Section 13.072, subdivision 3 was not enclosed in Mr. Rupp's opinion request. The fee was received by PIPA on May 16, 1995. Mr. Rupp was notified by letter of the deadline for issuance of this opinion.)
Issues:
In his request for an opinion, Mr. Rupp asked the Commissioner to address the following issues:
Discussion:
The first issue concerns the rights of a parent to gain access to data on his/her (presumably) minor child. Minnesota Statutes Chapter 13, the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act, confers specific rights upon parents to have access to government data about their minor children. Private data about a minor child are accessible by the parent of that child, pursuant to Section 13.02, subdivision 8. Educational data are private, pursuant to Section 13.32. Educational data about a minor child are accessible by the parent of that child.
Therefore, the parent has the right to gain access to the private data about his/her child contained in the District's report. Further, pursuant to Section 13.03, subdivision 1, the parent has the right to gain access to any public data contained in the report. The second issue concerns the specific data in the report to which the parent is entitled access. The report appears to contain a mixture of public and private personnel data pursuant to Section 13.43, private educational data pursuant to Section 13.32, and data not classified under either of those Sections. Personnel data as defined in Section 13.43, subdivision 1, are ...data on individuals collected because the individual is or was an employeeof or an applicant for employment by, performs services on a voluntary basisfor, or acts as an independent contractor with a state agency, statewide system or political subdivision.... (Emphasis added.) Pursuant to Section 13.43, subdivision 2, ...the final disposition of any disciplinary action together with the specific reasons for the action and data documenting the basis of the action.... are public personnel data. A final disposition occurs when a government entity makes its final decision about the disciplinary action, or, as is the case here, upon the failure of the employee to elect arbitration within the time provided by the collective bargaining agreement. From the information provided, the data on the teacher contained in the report appear to be data which document the basis for the District's disciplinary action (i.e., the reprimand of the teacher.) There has been a final disposition of the discipline, because the teacher did not choose to file a grievance. Therefore, the data in the report about the employee who was disciplined and which document the basis for the disciplinary action are public. The question of the classification of the data on the volunteer chaperones is not as clear. Although two of the chaperones are also employees, they were on leave for the field trip and, therefore, not acting in their capacity as employees. However, the definition of personnel data includes data on volunteers. Therefore, pursuant to Section 13.43, subdivision 2, the names of individuals who volunteer to perform services as school chaperones are public. The report also contains a reference to the letters sent to all three chaperones by the District. From the information provided, it is not clear whether the District considers the letters it sent to the volunteers to be disciplinary action. Although Section 13.43 clearly applies to data on volunteers, it is not clear just how the Legislature intended the provisions of this Section which deal with discipline to apply to volunteers. Typically it is employees who are subject to disciplinary measures, not volunteers. However, it is conceivable that volunteers may be subject to disciplinary action in some circumstances. The Commissioner was not provided with information which allows her to make a determination about whether the District's action in writing letters to the chaperones constitutes disciplinary action within the meaning of Section 13.43. However, if the District considers that action to be disciplinary action, and if the action is final within the meaning of subdivision 2(b), then the reference in the report to those letters is public personnel data. If the action taken by the District concerning the volunteers is not considered disciplinary action, then the reference to the letters is private personnel data. Twelve students were identified by name in the report, and reference was made to the in-house suspensions they received. Section 13.32, subdivision 1, provides that educational data are defined as ...data on individuals maintained by a public educational agency or institution or by a person acting for the agency or institution which relates to a student. Subdivision 3 provides that educational data are classified as private. Therefore, the data on the students in the report are private educational data. The parent who requested access to the report is entitled to gain access to the data in the report which relate to his/her child as a data subject. The parent is not entitled to gain access to the identities of the other students involved. The other data in the report which are not classified as private under either Section 13.43 or Section 13.32 are government data not on individuals, pursuant to Section 13.02. It appears those data are public, pursuant to Section 13.03, subdivision 1, and are therefore accessible by the parent. Opinion:Based on the correspondence in this matter, my opinion on the issues raised by Mr. Rupp is as follows:
Signed:
Elaine S. Hansen
Dated: June 6, 1995
|
Data subjects
Educational data
Personnel data
Harassment claims, investigations
Education data
Volunteers
Volunteers
