New Mexico education officials are moving forward with a student data privacy proposal governing how classroom technology vendors handle children's information. Under the proposed rule, companies can use student data to train and develop artificial intelligence if they have contractual approval. At the same time, the state ruled that voice recordings from reading apps do not constitute protected "biometric voiceprints," which has started new debates over student privacy.
What Happened
According to a report by the Organ Mountain News, the New Mexico Public Education Department (PED) has drafted rule 6.11.3 NMAC. The rule does not establish a blanket ban on tech companies using student data to train AI. Instead, companies can use this information if the training directly supports the contracted educational service and their contract explicitly authorizes it. These rules will not apply retroactively, so existing contracts are exempt. The proposal is open for public comment through late November, and the effective date is April 1, 2027.
The state also clarified that voice recordings collected through Amira Learning, a reading assessment program, do not qualify as biometric voiceprints. Under federal guidelines, a biometric record must consist of measurable biological or behavioral characteristics used to identify a specific individual automatically. The PED stated that because the platform does not process voices to uniquely identify individual students, the recordings do not fall under this legal definition.
The Bigger Picture
New Mexico's approach is different from other states. For example, California recently passed Assembly Bill 1159, which bans tech companies from using student data to train generative AI models. The California law also closed loopholes for broad consumer platforms, targeting any vendor with actual knowledge that its service is used for school purposes.
Local school districts are already handling parental pushback directly. In Albuquerque Public Schools, New Mexico's largest district, administrators modified their contract with Amira after parents raised concerns about voice data. The district secured the deletion of past student voice recordings and set a 48-hour retention limit on new assessments. Meanwhile, 15 other New Mexico school districts opted out of using the AI program entirely and chose traditional paper assessments.
As we previously reported, classroom technology creates digital security challenges that districts must manage to protect students.
What This Means for Families
For parents and educators, the state's ruling means a child's recorded speech does not have the same legal protection as a fingerprint or iris scan. Still, these recordings contain personally identifiable information (PII) if they are linked to a student's profile. They remain subject to standard privacy protections under federal laws like FERPA.
If New Mexico's rule takes effect, future school contracts can allow companies to use student data for machine learning algorithms. While this might improve educational software, it expands students' digital footprints and stores their input on private corporate servers.
What You Can Do
To protect student privacy, parents can ask school administrations if digital contracts allow third-party vendors to use student data for AI training. You can check if your school provides paper-and-pencil alternatives to AI-driven assessments, just as several districts in New Mexico did. New Mexico residents can also submit official public comments on rule 6.11.3 NMAC before the comment period closes on November 20. Finally, ask your district if they enforce automatic deletion policies for classroom recordings and assessment data.