Frequently Asked Questions

Access to certain student information remains the legal responsibility of the applicable school or district, which is required to comply with FERPA and its applicable regulations. One of FERPA’s core tenets is the protection of the privacy of personally identifiable information (PII) in students’ education records. Gaggle takes the privacy of student data very seriously. It is Gaggle’s policy to comply with all applicable state and federal laws, including FERPA, when we have access to student data. We work in partnership with our educational institutions and agencies to diligently safeguard the personal information of students.

Gaggle only uses PII from students’ education records to enable the use of Gaggle solutions. Unless a school official expressly instructs otherwise, we will not share or reuse PII from education records for any other purpose. For more details about Gaggle and FERPA, consult the Gaggle Student & Staff Data Privacy Notice.

There are a handful of exceptions to FERPA to allow school districts to share personal data without parental consent, commonly referred to as the “school officials” exception. Essentially, this allows school districts to share data with an outside party if the outside party (1) performs a service or function for which the school would otherwise use employees; (2) is under the direct control of the school district with respect to the use and maintenance of school records; and (3) complies with FERPA’s requirements regarding the use and disclosure of personal student information.

Gaggle Safety Management works exclusively with communication and collaboration tools that schools provide to their students. However, we often find that students use their school-provided email accounts to sign up for social networks. When this happens, email alerts or notifications from that specific social network account will become part of Gaggle Safety Management.

Since 1998, we’ve been working with schools and districts of all sizes to understand their needs, budgets, and challenges. In addition, federal, state, and local governments distribute billions of dollars in targeted assistance to schools each year to help cover the costs of innovative technology—all you need to do is apply. Gaggle also participates in more than a dozen contract vehicles to assist entities in the purchase of our solutions. For more information about available contract vehicles, please contact us at sales@gaggle.net or call us at (800) 288-7750.

Gaggle Safety Management truly is a one-of-a-kind solution that shouldn’t be mistaken for a less expensive or free alternative. We understand that no two school districts are alike, so our per-student pricing is based on your specific requirements as well as the size of your student population. Pricing for other Gaggle solutions also can be customized to suit the needs of your school or district.

Perhaps a better question to ask is, “How much will it cost your school or district if you don't use Gaggle Safety Management?”

We strive to provide quick and responsive personal attention to customer questions and needs. A highly experienced, award-winning team of customer service representatives is available to assist you via phone, email, and live chat. Call us at (800) 288-7750, email support@gaggle.net, or chat instantly with us from any web page on Gaggle.net (look at the bottom-right corner of this page).

There is no trial version of any Gaggle K-12 solution. However, for those interested in Gaggle Safety Management, you can choose to have us perform an audit of your existing school-provided accounts. Contact us to learn more.

A web filter is software designed to restrict or control the online content that a user is allowed to access. The intention is to keep someone or something out of an unhealthy area. We’re more concerned with how students engage than with what they engage. Our goal is to provide early warning detection of harmful situations and to help you decide where to direct resources to address digital citizenship, bullying prevention, and mental health issues.

Contact us for a solutions demo, call (800) 288-7750, or send an email to sales@gaggle.net. We have a team of sales professionals located throughout the country who stand ready to assist you. To purchase any Gaggle K-12 solution, contact the representative who covers your state, call us at (800) 288-7750, or send an email to sales@gaggle.net and we’ll put you in touch with the right person.

The school district case studies on our website are a great place to start. We can also put you directly in touch with a school or district administrator if you would like to ask them some questions.

We can answer this question two ways. Short answer: No. Longer answer: While we don’t support social networks or the accounts that you provide to your children, Gaggle Safety Management works at home, at school, on vacation, and on any device—as long as your children are using their school-provided Google Workspace for Education, Microsoft 365, or Canvas LMS accounts.

We’re parents, too. We believe that all kids are good, but good kids can make poor decisions. If they make bad choices and we can help schools identify those students—kids who are hurt or are sad, but might be afraid or don't know how to ask for help—then we can all sleep better knowing that our children are safe.

Most educators and attorneys will tell you that when your child is using school-provided technology, there should be no expectation of privacy. In fact, your child’s school is legally required by federal law (Children's Internet Protection Act) to protect children from accessing obscene or harmful content over the internet.

Thank you! We think it’s a great place to work, too. You can learn more about Gaggle and any open positions by visiting our Careers page.