Employee Privacy on Personal Technology

LEGAL BRIEF

Imagine these scenarios:

Two school board members at a meeting are using their personally owned cellphones to text derogatory comments about another member’s remarks. Now change the facts to not on school property. Does it change the legal implications?

An administrator using his personal device while at work and at home shares explicit photos with a district colleague with whom he is engaging in an extramarital relationship. Does it change anything?

A teacher uses her personal iPad to create content on her personal Facebook account, which includes her classroom Facebook account. Does it make a difference if the teacher posts content showing a reenactment of Ferris Bueller’s actions on a sunny workday when she called in sick?

Transparency Laws

Each of these scenarios play out in school districts everyday. Some observers would say transparency laws mandate disclosure of sensitive information, upon public request. I say not so fast. How we handle actions by public officials or public employees that take place on personally owned technology devices is not so straightforward or clear.