Classroom photo consent: FERPA basics and a sample release form

If a class project uses photos of individual children (a class book, a coloring page drawn from each child's photo, a bulletin board), send a short written permission note to every family before you take or collect a single photo, even if your school already has a general photo policy. Under FERPA, the federal student privacy law, a photo can count as directory information that parents may opt out of, and a photo that focuses on one child can be part of that child's education record. The note costs you ten minutes. This page explains the basics and gives you a sample to copy. It is general information for teachers and room parents, not legal advice: your school or district has the final word.

What FERPA says about photos

Three pieces of the law matter for a class project.

A photo can be an education record. The Department of Education's Student Privacy Policy Office says a photo or video is an education record when it is directly related to a student and maintained by the school or someone acting for it. One factor it lists is whether the person taking the photo intends to make a specific student the focus, with ID photos as the example. The same FAQ says a student who is only in the background, or shown at a public school event without a focus on any one person, generally is not "directly related." A class book page built around one child's face is much closer to the ID photo than to the crowd shot.

Photos can be directory information. The FERPA regulations define directory information as information that would not generally be considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if disclosed, and the list includes a student's name, photograph, and date and place of birth, among others. A school can share properly designated directory information without consent, but only after giving parents public notice of what it designates and their right to refuse to let the school designate any or all of it. So the office keeps a list of families who opted out. Ask for it before you plan anything.

Otherwise, consent is written and specific. Outside the exceptions, FERPA requires a signed and dated written consent that names the records, the purpose and who will receive them. The same rule allows the signature to be electronic if it identifies the person. That is a good model for a classroom note even where it is not strictly required: say what, why and who.

Does FERPA apply to your program?

Not every early childhood program is covered. The regulations apply to an educational agency or institution to which funds have been made available under any program administered by the Secretary of Education. The Department's parent guide adds that private and faith-based schools at the elementary and secondary levels generally do not receive such funding and are generally not subject to FERPA.

In practice:

Program	FERPA likely?	What to check
Public school pre-K or kindergarten	Yes	District photo policy and the directory information opt-out list
Private preschool or daycare with no Department of Education funding	Often no	The center's own photo policy, enrollment forms and any state child care rules
Faith-based school	Generally no, per the parent guide	The school's policy
Program that receives some Department of Education funds	Ask	The director or district

Whether or not FERPA applies, the same written note is the fair answer. Families trust a program that asks.

What a good permission note says

Keep it to half a page, in plain language, with a real choice.

1. What the photo is for. "One coloring page of your child in our class book," not "classroom use."
2. Who will see it. The families in this class, the teacher, and any service that turns photos into pages.
3. Where it will not go. No social media, no public website, no school newsletter, unless you ask separately.
4. What appears with it. First name only. No last name, birthday or school name.
5. How long you keep it. "Photos will be deleted when the book is finished."
6. A clear yes and a clear no. Two checkboxes, a signature and a date.
7. The alternative. Children without a yes get a self-portrait page, so nobody is left out.

A sample note to copy

Dear families,

This spring our class is making a coloring book with one page for every child. To draw your child's page, we would like to use one photo of them, taken at school or sent by you.

The book will be shared only with the families in our class. Your child will be named by first name only. We will not post the photo or the page online or share it outside the class without asking you again. If we use a service to turn photos into coloring pages, the photo goes only to that service for this project. Photos will be deleted when the book is finished.

Your child will have a page either way: children without a photo will draw a self-portrait for their page.

[ ] Yes, you may use one photo of my child for the class coloring book. [ ] No, please have my child draw a self-portrait page instead.

Child's first name: _ Parent or guardian signature: _ Date: __

Adjust it to your project and run it past your director or office before it goes home.

Handling the edge cases

• A family says no. Accept it without follow-up questions and give the child the self-portrait option. Treat it as final for that project.
• A family on the opt-out list says yes on your note. Their written yes for this specific project is clear, but tell the office so the records match.
• Group shots. A wide shot of the class at the pumpkin patch is a different thing from a portrait, but if any family has opted out, crop or retake rather than guess.
• Photos on your personal phone. Move them to wherever your school says student photos belong and delete them from your phone when the project is done.
• Outside apps and services. Ask your school before uploading student photos to any website or app. Check how long the service keeps photos and who can see them.

Projects this applies to

Most of the projects in our classroom guides use photos at some point: a class coloring book, a class memory book and all about me coloring pages. Each of them also works without photos, which is the best backup plan for any family that says no.

If you use a photo service for a class book, the same note covers it. Colorkin's Classroom Edition, for example, uses one photo per child, and photos are deleted 30 days after delivery. Only send photos families have said yes to.

More guides for teachers and room parents are in classrooms and groups.

Questions parents ask