Privacy & Student Safety

PFACentral is built for school communities, so student privacy is a design requirement — not an afterthought.

How we protect families

Each school's portal runs on its own isolated database — schools can never see each other's data. Children's records are limited to what a PFA needs (first name, grade, classroom) and are visible only to that child's parent, school administration, and PFA board. We collect no student photos without explicit parental consent, and uploaded photos are visible only to the PFA board. Financial documents are restricted to finance roles. Classroom chats are consent-based, adult-only, moderated by an automated assistant plus the teacher and room parent, and members must agree to posted rules before joining.

Regulatory alignment

FERPA: PFACentral does not access school education records; the data here is provided voluntarily by parents. Schools remain the custodians of official records. COPPA: accounts are for adults (parents, guardians, teachers, staff) — children under 13 cannot register, and no child-directed data collection occurs. Public records (FOIA/state equivalents): for PFAs attached to public charter schools, financial records are export-ready (P&L, budget, transaction reports) to support any lawful records request.

Text messaging (SMS)

Some schools using PFACentral turn on optional text message alerts alongside email. If your school has this on and you've added a mobile number to your account, we only text you about things you've chosen to receive — volunteer opportunity reminders, event/meeting alerts, and PFA announcements — based on the contact preference (email, text, both, or none) and the "Send me volunteer reminders" setting on your Account page. The one exception is a volunteer clearance/background-check status reminder, which your school's board may send by your normal contact channel since it's tied to your volunteer eligibility rather than a marketing choice.

We never sell, rent, or share your phone number with third parties, and we never use it to send anything unrelated to your own PFA — no ads, no outside marketing. You can turn text messages off at any time from your Account page, or by replying STOP to any message (standard carrier opt-out); reply HELP for help. Message and data rates may apply from your mobile carrier, and message frequency varies with how active your PFA is — it isn't a fixed number of texts per month.

Your rights

Members may review and correct their information on their account page, withdraw consents at any time, and request account deletion through their PFA board. Each school's PFA controls its own data and can export it in full.

This page describes product capabilities and design intent; it is not legal advice. PFAs should have their counsel confirm compliance for their specific school and state.