Oklahoma HB 3958 Resource for Superintendents
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt recently signed House Bill 3958 into law as Section 6-401 of Title 70. This new legislation is intended to provide parental oversight when there are digital communications between students and teachers. This act goes into effect on July 1, 2024.
As stated in the law:
School personnel engaging in electronic or digital communication with an individual student shall include the student's parent or guardian in any electronic or digital communication, unless such communication is on a school-approved platform and related to school and academic communications.
School personnel are defined as “teachers, coaches, administrators, school bus drivers, or any other persons employed full-time or part-time by a public school or charter school.”
What this requires is for either A) parents to be included in an email or text exchange between a teacher/staff member and a student or B) for these communications to only take place on a school-approved platform.
There are exceptions for emergency situations. However, the law is clear that “School personnel shall make reasonable efforts to use school-approved platforms, systems, or applications that allow automatic inclusion of parents or guardians in communications with students.”
The law spells out consequences for employees not following these requirements, with the law calling for administrative leave pending an investigation. If misconduct is found, the employee “shall be disciplined according to the school district board of education's policy.”
Per the text of the bill, “Schools shall provide training, developed by the State Department of Education, for school personnel on the student communication requirements of this section.”
In recent years, many districts and leading education technology companies have been investing in two-way communications as teachers, staff, and parents look for better ways to communicate easily and securely. OPSRC partnered with Apptegy to offer Oklahoma schools a discounted rate to bring parent-teacher communications to their schools’ mobile app.
"We are pleased to offer Rooms as a solution to Oklahoma school districts as they consider the safest way to communicate with students and their families while also protecting students and district employees," said Jamie Ronck, Apptegy's Director of Partnerships, Oklahoma. "I am very excited about the timing of the new partnership with OPSRC and the benefits that it allows their member schools."
You can access and read House Bill 3958 on Oklahoma State’s website.
About Apptegy
Apptegy offers Thrillshare, a communications and brand management platform, to K-12 leaders building a strong digital brand for their schools. Apptegy’s custom branded school apps allow leaders to share positive stories directly to families and, with Rooms, gives teachers the ability to securely message parents and guardians right on their phones. Headquartered in Little Rock, AR, Apptegy recently became the largest provider of mobile apps and websites to school districts in the United States.
About OPSRC
Oklahoma Public School Resource Center envisions a quality public education for every child in Oklahoma. Its mission is to drive transformation and increased academic achievement within Oklahoma's public education system. OPSRC supports public education by making some resources available to all schools regardless of membership.