Teacher Privacy
Sharing videos of classroom teaching requires feeling safe and secure when using the technology.
Your privacy and security are not just our promise, they’re our practice. Edthena is FERPA compliant, COPPA compliant, a signatory of the Student Privacy Pledge, and a recipient of the top privacy evaluation tier from Common Sense Media. In addition, Edthena is a founding member of the EdSafe AI Alliance Industry Council, supporting the safe, accountable, fair, and effective use of AI in education.
Here are a few of our main privacy features:
Everything defaults to private
When you upload a video, no one will see it. Everything is stored in your personal library until you do the sharing.
Unshare videos at any time
Remove others’ access to your videos with a few clicks. It’s possible to completely delete videos, too.
Know exactly who can see your videos
Only members of your group can see your video conversations. All members of a group are visible to you.
Downloading & re-sharing is locked
No one will be able to download or re-share your videos. You must give special permission.
No organization superusers
The only way an administrator will see your videos is by participating in your group. This ensures private conversations remain private.
Personalized reports for you to share
Want to show your professional learning in another context? You can generate reports to represent your efforts without needing to share the videos.
Teacher Privacy
Sharing videos of classroom teaching requires feeling safe and secure when using the technology.
Your privacy and security are not just our promise, they’re our practice. Edthena is FERPA compliant, COPPA compliant, a signatory of the Student Privacy Pledge, and a recipient of the top privacy evaluation tier from Common Sense Media. In addition, Edthena is a founding member of the EdSafe AI Alliance Industry Council, supporting the safe, accountable, fair, and effective use of AI in education.
Here are a few of our main privacy features:
Everything defaults to private
When you upload a video, no one will see it. Everything is stored in your personal library until you do the sharing.
Unshare videos at any time
Remove others’ access to your videos with a few clicks. It’s possible to completely delete videos, too.
Know exactly who can see your videos
Only members of your group can see your video conversations. All members of a group are visible to you.
Downloading & re-sharing is locked
No one will be able to download or re-share your videos. You must give special permission.
No organization superusers
The only way an administrator will see your videos is by participating in your group. This ensures private conversations remain private.
Personalized reports for you to share
Want to show your professional learning in another context? You can generate reports to represent your efforts without needing to share the videos.
The AI models we use
Edthena uses a combination of AI models we host and control ourselves and foundation models from providers such as Google, Anthropic, and OpenAI. Our access to foundation models is governed by enterprise agreements.
Your data is not used to train foundation models
None of your videos, reflections, or content is used in a way that would allow a foundation large language model (LLM) provider to train on your data. Your private information is never exposed to other customers or to anyone outside your authorized accounts.
Where your data lives
Your data is stored on secure cloud infrastructure in the United States. It is encrypted in transit and encrypted at rest.
You stay in control
The same privacy principles that have always governed Edthena apply to our AI features. Everything you upload defaults to private. AI-generated feedback and insights are visible only to you unless you choose to share them.
AI and Your Data
Edthena platforms use AI to support teacher growth: personalized coaching conversations, faster observation feedback, and insights from classroom video.
Here’s how we handle your data when AI is involved. For details specific to Observation Copilot, see the Observation Copilot security page.
AI and Your Data
Edthena platforms use AI to support teacher growth: personalized coaching conversations, faster observation feedback, and insights from classroom video.
Here’s how we handle your data when AI is involved. For details specific to Observation Copilot, see the Observation Copilot security page.
The AI models we use
Edthena uses a combination of AI models we host and control ourselves and foundation models from providers such as Google, Anthropic, and OpenAI. Our access to foundation models is governed by enterprise agreements.
Your data is not used to train foundation models
None of your videos, reflections, or content is used in a way that would allow a foundation large language model (LLM) provider to train on your data. Your private information is never exposed to other customers or to anyone outside your authorized accounts.
Where your data lives
Your data is stored on secure cloud infrastructure in the United States. It is encrypted in transit and encrypted at rest.
You stay in control
The same privacy principles that have always governed Edthena apply to our AI features. Everything you upload defaults to private. AI-generated feedback and insights are visible only to you unless you choose to share them.
Common Questions About AI and Privacy
Direct answers to the questions schools and districts ask about AI and privacy.
Are you using ChatGPT or Gemini?
We use a combination of AI models we host and control ourselves and foundation models from providers such as Google, Anthropic, and OpenAI. Our access to these models is governed by enterprise agreements, which carry stronger data protections than consumer AI products and ensure that your data is not used to train their models.
Is our data being used to train AI models?
No. None of your videos, reflections, or content is used in a way that would allow a foundation LLM provider to train on your data, and your private information is never exposed to anyone outside your authorized accounts.
Where is our data stored, and who can see it?
Your data is stored on secure cloud infrastructure in the United States, encrypted in transit and at rest. Everything you upload defaults to private. There are no organization superusers, so the only way anyone sees your content is if you share it.
What about students who appear in classroom videos?
Edthena platforms are built for teacher development, and we do not collect information directly from students. Classroom video uploaded by a teacher may include students. We treat that content as highly confidential Student Data: it is owned and controlled by your district, used only for authorized educational purposes, never used for advertising, and not used to train foundation models. We are FERPA and COPPA compliant. Consent for classroom recording is managed by your district under its existing policies, as with any classroom video program. For more detail, see our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
How do you address accuracy and bias in AI feedback?
Our platforms are built so that AI suggests and the teacher decides. AI-generated feedback supports reflection; it is not an evaluation tool, and teachers control what gets shared. We are actively exploring these questions as part of our research partnership with the University of Virginia, funded by the Gates Foundation, and as a founding member of the EdSafe AI Alliance Industry Council we are committed to the safe, accountable, fair, and effective use of AI in education.
Can you support our district’s compliance review?
Yes. We can complete vendor security questionnaires and provide data-sharing agreements or additional security documentation on request. Contact us and we will work with your legal and IT teams.
Common Questions About AI and Privacy
Direct answers to the questions schools and districts ask about AI and privacy.
Are you using ChatGPT or Gemini?
We use a combination of AI models we host and control ourselves and foundation models from providers such as Google, Anthropic, and OpenAI. Our access to these models is governed by enterprise agreements, which carry stronger data protections than consumer AI products and ensure that your data is not used to train their models.
Is our data being used to train AI models?
No. None of your videos, reflections, or content is used in a way that would allow a foundation LLM provider to train on your data, and your private information is never exposed to anyone outside your authorized accounts.
Where is our data stored, and who can see it?
Your data is stored on secure cloud infrastructure in the United States, encrypted in transit and at rest. Everything you upload defaults to private. There are no organization superusers, so the only way anyone sees your content is if you share it.
What about students who appear in classroom videos?
Edthena platforms are built for teacher development, and we do not collect information directly from students. Classroom video uploaded by a teacher may include students. We treat that content as highly confidential Student Data: it is owned and controlled by your district, used only for authorized educational purposes, never used for advertising, and not used to train foundation models. We are FERPA and COPPA compliant. Consent for classroom recording is managed by your district under its existing policies, as with any classroom video program. For more detail, see our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
How do you address accuracy and bias in AI feedback?
Our platforms are built so that AI suggests and the teacher decides. AI-generated feedback supports reflection; it is not an evaluation tool, and teachers control what gets shared. We are actively exploring these questions as part of our research partnership with the University of Virginia, funded by the Gates Foundation, and as a founding member of the EdSafe AI Alliance Industry Council we are committed to the safe, accountable, fair, and effective use of AI in education.
Can you support our district’s compliance review?
Yes. We can complete vendor security questionnaires and provide data-sharing agreements or additional security documentation on request. Contact us and we will work with your legal and IT teams.
Technical Security You Can Count On
As a company we understand the sensitive nature of the information we gather and the priority for ensuring access only to intended and authorized individuals.
Modern architecture
Video is transferred directly to servers via our client-side application. Other data are captured directly via our web Interface.
Underlying our application is a cloud-based storage and computing architecture which has been designed and is managed in alignment with regulations, standards, and best-practices including soc1/ssae 16/isae 3402, soc 2, soc 3, pci dss level 1, iso 27001, fedramp, diacap, and fisma. We can request and obtain third-party auditor certifications which attest to the design and operating effectiveness of the cloud-based environment.
Our data storage is designed to be recoverable in the event of disaster. Data recovery is achieved by restoring from backup any of the replicated data-stores from our cloud-based storage. Storage redundancy is automated by our data storage provider.
Access-controlled groups
By default, every video in the system can only be seen by the uploader. The only way to let others view your content is by sharing it to a group.
Group membership is controlled by the group admin. That person is clearly identified to the members of the group and is responsible for approving requests to join the group.
Verified identity
The only way to activate an Edthena account is via an email invitation generated by our platform. This ensures that each account is associated with a unique email not shared by anyone else in our system. This approach of using email invitations to verify identity is considered a best practice for other scenarios like online contract-signing services.
Single-use URL
Every time you watch a video in Edthena, your browser is making a request to our content delivery network using a single-use URL. Not only is the URL generated on the fly, but the only way to initiate the process is to be signed in as a user of our system and access the video conversation inside one of your groups.
Data encryption
All data is encrypted in transit using modern TLS (TLS 1.3) and encrypted at rest. Edthena has earned an overall A rating from Qualys SSL Labs, an independent evaluation confirming our transport security meets current industry standards. Unlike some sites which may mix secure and insecure content, our servers make sure that all data, including the comments, the pictures, and the video, are transmitted over a secure connection.
Passwordless Access
We leverage single-sign-on to ensure secure, passwordless access to our platforms.
Modern architecture
Video is transferred directly to servers via our client-side application. Other data are captured directly via our web Interface.
Underlying our application is a cloud-based storage and computing architecture which has been designed and is managed in alignment with regulations, standards, and best-practices including soc1/ssae 16/isae 3402, soc 2, soc 3, pci dss level 1, iso 27001, fedramp, diacap, and fisma. We can request and obtain third-party auditor certifications which attest to the design and operating effectiveness of the cloud-based environment.
Our data storage is designed to be recoverable in the event of disaster. Data recovery is achieved by restoring from backup any of the replicated data-stores from our cloud-based storage. Storage redundancy is automated by our data storage provider.
Access-controlled groups
By default, every video in the system can only be seen by the uploader. The only way to let others view your content is by sharing it to a group.
Group membership is controlled by the group admin. That person is clearly identified to the members of the group and is responsible for approving requests to join the group.
Verified identity
The only way to activate an Edthena account is via an email invitation generated by our platform. This ensures that each account is associated with a unique email not shared by anyone else in our system. This approach of using email invitations to verify identity is considered a best practice for other scenarios like online contract-signing services.
Single-use URL
Every time you watch a video in Edthena, your browser is making a request to our content delivery network using a single-use URL. Not only is the URL generated on the fly, but the only way to initiate the process is to be signed in as a user of our system and access the video conversation inside one of your groups.
Data encryption
All data is encrypted in transit using modern TLS (TLS 1.3) and encrypted at rest. Edthena has earned an overall A rating from Qualys SSL Labs, an independent evaluation confirming our transport security meets current industry standards. Unlike some sites which may mix secure and insecure content, our servers make sure that all data, including the comments, the pictures, and the video, are transmitted over a secure connection.
Passwordless Access
We leverage single-sign-on to ensure secure, passwordless access to our platforms.
Technical Security You Can Count On
As a company we understand the sensitive nature of the information we gather and the priority for ensuring access only to intended and authorized individuals.
We literally wrote the book on video-powered professional learning
Our Insights
WashU Research Institute Selects Edthena for AI Coaching Study
WashU’s Institute for School Partnership named Edthena its AI coaching partner in a national RPPL-funded study on AI and teacher professional learning.
Are You Trying to Replace My Coach with AI? A Direct Answer for District Leaders
AI coaching does not replace instructional coaches. It solves a different problem: most teachers get far less coaching than they need. A direct answer for district leaders on how AI Coach augments, not replaces, human coaching.
What to Fund in Fall Professional Development: Building Professional Learning That Actually Sticks
A prioritization framework for leaders planning fall PD budgets: what the research says about professional learning that transfers to classroom practice, a fund-this-not-that decision frame, and how to extend coaching capacity without adding staff.
