Is your school still maintaining a fireproof safe with paper copies of your transcripts? Or perhaps you are storing them as PDF files in a digital location somewhere. Maybe you still have paper transcripts for older graduates and digital copies since you started using computer software.
Whatever the case, maintaining transcripts confidentially and securely is one of the most important aspects of operating a school. In fact, many states require that you keep student transcripts in perpetuity for every student, so knowing where they are, who can access them, and how they’re protected from loss is important.
Some questions to ask about managing transcripts at your school include:
- What’s your digital strategy? Are you going to digitize all transcripts, maintain paper copies all transcripts, or maintain a hybrid scenario?
- What’s your backup plan? You should always maintain at least two copies, preferably three, of each transcript, one on-site and one off. For digital, that means two different cloud providers or a cloud and an on-campus copy. For paper, one paper copy on-site and another off-site. Hybrid solutions would need both backup options.
- What’s your security plan? Define who has access to view and distribute transcripts. Implement security measures to ensure this, whether password-protected file shares for digital or locked cabinets or rooms for paper.
- If you’re generating transcripts from an SIS or other digital platform, limit who has the ability to view, edit and print these. Define a policy. Also consider whether you want parents and students to have access to view their unofficial transcript in a portal.
- Consider your digital partners for transcripts. Any companies you partner with that handle transcripts may have access to student grades, so make sure you read their fine print about security and privacy.
- Never send transcripts via email. Consider grades like social security numbers and only share them securely via an approved portal or FTP upload, or official mail. Email is insecure and can be hacked fairly easily or forwarded, and digital copies can easily be doctored to modify grades.
As graduation season nears and you generate those final transcripts for students, LeadershipOne Technologies is here to help you do it safely and securely. We help you define and implement best practices and polices for transcripts, plan and implement a digitizing process for older transcripts, secure your SIS and other systems, and make sure backups are in place.
Contact us today and let us get you prepared for transcript season!
