Student Data Privacy

1. Who is responsible

The school, or the teacher who creates the chart, is the controller of the student information in it and decides what is entered and why. SeatPlanning is the processor: we store and display that information only to provide the seating-chart service, on the instructions given through your use of the service, under our Data Processing Agreement.

Where the U.S. Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) applies, we act as a school official with a legitimate educational interest, under the school's direct control as to the use and maintenance of education records, and we do not re-disclose that information except as this page describes.

2. What student information we process

A seating chart needs only a name or label for each seat. That is all we ask for. Whatever you type into a seat or a guest field (usually a student's first and last name) is stored with the chart.

We recommend entering first names, initials or nicknames rather than full names. Please do not enter grades, health, disciplinary, special-educational-needs or other sensitive information about students. The service is not designed to hold it.

3. What we never do with student information

• We do not sell or rent student information.
• We do not use it for advertising, including targeted or behavioural advertising.
• We do not build profiles of students, and we do not use student information for any purpose other than providing the seating chart to the school or teacher.
• We do not use student information to train AI models, and we do not send student names to any AI provider. The only classroom content that reaches an AI provider is a floor-plan photo or file that you choose to import, which is analysed to detect tables and desks.
• We do not contact students.

4. Who can see it

Charts are private by default and visible only to the account holder and anyone they invite to collaborate. If you turn on public viewing or share an invite link, anyone holding that link can see the names on the chart. For a class, we recommend keeping the chart private, protecting a shared chart with a password, or using first names or initials only.

Our sub-processors (hosting, database, email delivery and similar providers) process data only to run the service. They are listed in our Privacy Policy and are bound by data-protection terms.

5. Where it is stored and how it is protected

Chart data, including student names, is stored in our primary database in the European Union. Data is encrypted in transit, and row-level security on every database table restricts access to the account holder and their collaborators, and our staff access it only when needed to provide support you ask for or to keep the service secure. Where a provider processes data outside the EEA, transfers are protected as described in our Privacy Policy.

If we become aware of a security incident affecting student information, we will notify the affected account holder without undue delay, so the school can meet its own notification duties.

6. Keeping and deleting student information

We keep student information for as long as the chart exists. You can delete a single student, a whole chart or your entire account at any time, and the student information goes with it. Deletion takes effect in the live service straight away.

You can export your charts from your account settings, for example at the end of a school year, before deleting them.

7. Requests from parents and students

Requests from a parent, guardian or student to see, correct or delete student information should go to the school, because the school controls that information. If such a request reaches us, we will pass it to the school or help the school answer it.

8. Children's privacy

SeatPlanning is not directed at children, and children cannot create accounts. When an educator enters student names, they do so on behalf of the school, which is responsible for any notice or consent required under laws such as the GDPR, the U.S. Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) or state student-privacy laws. We process that information only for the school's educational purpose.

9. Agreements for schools and districts

Schools and districts that need a signed data privacy agreement, such as a state or national student data privacy agreement or a countersigned copy of our Data Processing Agreement, can contact us at contact@seatplanning.com. We will review your agreement and tell you which terms we can accept.

10. Changes and contact

If we make a material change to how we handle student information, we will update this page and notify account holders before it takes effect. We will not use student information collected under this page in a materially different way without the school's consent.

Questions about student data: contact@seatplanning.com. Company details are in our Imprint.