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Board upholds FOIA denial, cites student-privacy protections
Summary
The East China School District Board voted 7-0 to uphold denial of FOIA request 25-02 by Laurie Gardner after district legal counsel said the record is protected by FERPA; the Board directed staff to issue written notice affirming the denial.
The East China School District Board of Education voted unanimously to uphold the denial of a Freedom of Information Act request after the district said the requested record was protected by student-privacy law.
On Dec. 15, 2025, Angie Gleason presented a FOIA appeal submitted by Laurie Gardner and explained that the district denied release because the record was protected under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). The Board voted to affirm the FOIA Coordinator’s decision and directed staff to issue written notice to the requester confirming the denial.
The motion to uphold the denial was made by Trustee Lindsay Chopp and seconded by Trustee Shawn Treadaway; the vote was recorded as yea 7, nay 0. The Board’s action followed an informational presentation during the meeting; the district stated that releasing the specific record would implicate student-privacy protections and therefore could not be disclosed under FOIA.
The written notice required by the FOIA ruling will be sent to the requester. The Board did not disclose the content of the record in open session.
The FOIA matter was handled alongside other business on the Board’s agenda and does not change the district’s broader FOIA procedures; the district cited FERPA as the legal basis for denying this specific request.
