Milan board votes to join PowerSchool litigation invitation over 2024 breach

The Milan Area Schools Board of Education voted 6-0 Oct. 29 to approve a resolution inviting the district to participate in litigation related to a December 2024 data breach involving PowerSchool.

Superintendent McMahon told the board the invitation came through France Law Group and described the action as "low risk." He said the breach has been reported to involve tens of millions of records and that joining the litigation now may avoid being funneled later into a broader class action that could yield smaller per-party recoveries. "If we don't join this lawsuit, we may be funneled into a class action lawsuit if we're found to be in the breach," McMahon said.

McMahon noted the reported scope in the litigation materials: roughly 62.4 million student records and 9.5 million teacher records, though he said the district has no indication that Milan's data were specifically included. The district pays for contract protections from PowerSchool, he added, so the district could be affected even if an actual data set from Milan was not exposed.

The resolution authorizes district participation and designates counsel to pursue the claim if the district elects to proceed. Board members asked clarifying questions about who reached out to the district; McMahon said the district's school-law firm referred the invitation.

The motion was moved by Pryor and supported by Marais. Vote: 6-0.