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ARTICLE
Biometrics in Schools: What Parents Need to Know
Explore the facts, benefits, and privacy protections behind student biometric identification.
Reading Time: 5 minutes
Welcome Moms and Dads!
Ready to learn more about identiMetrics and don’t know where to start? Feeling a little confused and bit nervous about your child using finger scanning technology at school? You’re at the right place!
At identiMetrics, we’re Moms and Dads, too and we take all this biometric stuff very seriously. We’ve been providing finger scanning solutions to K12 schools for over 20 years and have lots of information to share with you.
So, take a deep breath, grab that mug of coffee and we’ll walk you through information and resources to answer most of the questions you and your family may have.
Before we go any further, here are the Top #3 Important Things you need to know.
Important Thing #1
Being part of the system is COMPLETELY VOLUNTARY. You may OPT OUT if you don’t want your child to participate.
Important Thing #2
There are no fingerprints or images of fingerprints taken. ZERO.
Important Thing #3
identiMetrics does NOT host or have access to any district data. It’s all located behind the district’s firewall with all the security protections currently in place for all their data and records.
Are you ready to dive in? LET’S GO!
Why would a school district use finger scanning anyway?
One of the things we ALL have in common is that we all were once students since we all went to school. But that doesn’t mean that we know the complexities of running a school or a school district.
In our current world, school administrators are faced with a myriad of problems never encountered in previous decades. Accurate and auditable attendance and reporting is vital in not only securing, but also maintaining, essential governmental funding.
Security has become a significant concern. It is now crucial that school administrators know who is in their schools and where your child is at all times. Accurate identification of students is now critical in all aspects of the day-to-day management and administration of our schools.
By utilizing finger scanning biometrics for identification and security, the problems and costs associated with the current expensive or inaccurate methods of identification are avoided. Finger scanning biometrics is the missing component that provides the irrefutable accuracy that has long been needed in our schools.
School administrators can take control of their student ID management and focus more on what they do best – providing an engaging environment for educating children and operating superb programs that they need and deserve.
How does finger scanning work?
When the identiMetrics software scans the finger for identification, the software creates a template of the unique points on the finger. It does NOT store a copy of the fingerprints. The template is converted to a unique number and encrypted using a proprietary encryption. Please note that the template is an encrypted numerical template and NOT a biometric template.
This numerical template is stored in the district’s database, behind the district’s firewall and with the same high level of security of all the district’s data and records. When your child graduates or is no longer enrolled in the school system, the templates are deleted. At no time is a fingerprint image stored.
The numerical template is only associated with your child’s name (first name, last name, middle initial – if they have one), student ID number, grade and school. That’s it! And, the numerical templates can only be used to identify students who are enrolled in the identiMetrics system. They won’t work anywhere else with any other software.
What about my child’s privacy?
identiMetrics was developed specifically for the needs and requirements of the K12 education community. Hence, student privacy and security are “baked” into the design. What measures are in place to ensure proper use and protection of biometric data?
Let’s take a deeper dive into the Top #5 Most Common Concerns about privacy and security folks have with the identiMetrics finger scanning ID system.
Concern #1
Where is the data located and how is it secured?
The data is located behind the school district’s firewall with all of the protections you have in place for ALL of your data.
Concern #2
Who has access to the data?
The only people who have access to the data are employees of the school district who have the appropriate permissions to access the data.
Concern #3
How is the data being used?
The data is only being used to identify students in your schools who have enrolled in the identiMetrics system.
Concern #4
What are you doing with the fingerprint?
There are no images of the fingerprint. ZERO. identiMetrics only retains an encrypted string of numbers – the template.
Concern #5
What kind of data are you collecting?
The template is associated with the student’s first name, last name, middle initial (if they have one), student number, grade and school. That’s it!
Won’t finger scanners spread germs?
Finger scanners are a safe and hygienic solution for children to use in schools. According to a Purdue University study, a person is not any more likely to become ill from touching a biometric device than from a plain, old-fashioned doorknob.
Not only is finger scanning biometrics simple, easy and fast, it also provides the additional value of efficiency, accountability and, most importantly, safety.
How can spending money on a finger scanning system be cost-effective?
In a school setting, not only do they need to focus on traditional hard value Return on Investment (ROI) components like time savings, but they also need to focus on soft value ROI components like better data for reporting and decision-making, improved service and timely regulatory compliance.
For example, increasing the speed of the lunch lines and making it easier for children to eat breakfast has an immediate impact on the level of service, the district’s initiative of increasing breakfast and lunch participation, and the enjoyable eating experience for all children. That means not only having time to eat enough food to meet their nutritional needs, but also having enough time to talk, laugh and socialize with their friends.
Here’s another example. One of the goals in education is providing an enriching learning experience for your children in a welcoming and healthy school environment. That means optimizing the time for teachers to teach and your children to learn.
One way to provide more learning time for students is to expedite the time it takes to process students who are late to school so they can quickly get to class. The fastest way to get students to class is by automating the time-consuming, manual tardy process. When a student comes in late, they scan their finger, their attendance is updated, a pass is automatically printed for them and they are off to class.
Also, in the K12 environment, regulatory compliance is a requirement. Being in compliance with federal and state regulations and mandates helps to avoid a myriad of problems for the district. For example, accurate records are required to avoid the risk of a problematic audit, getting fined, avoiding a lawsuit, etc.
As you can see, ROI is much more than a traditional financial return. It encompasses gains in efficiency and effectiveness of school operations which have ripple effects that contribute to the entire organization. These are all valuable and worthwhile.
Thank you for taking the time to learn more. Do you have any additional questions or concerns? Email us at ParentInfo@identimetrics.net and we’ll be happy to help!
Remember, participation in this program is completely voluntary. You may OPT OUT if you don’t want your child to participate. Your child can simply use the current ID method. You may also OPT IN if you change your mind in the future.
It’s always Your choice!