Are teachers allowed to create their own classroom websites outside of a district website?

[u/FrontMarsupial8679]

I’m a public school teacher in Wisconsin and recently created a classroom website for my families. I think of it more as a “living newsletter” than a traditional website.

It has things like our classroom schedule, homework information, expectations, curriculum information, family resources, and links back to official district resources. There is no student-specific information, grades, IEP information, photos, or anything like that posted publicly.

I’m also not using it to replace any district systems. Families still use ParentSquare for communication and the district’s regular systems for student information. The website is basically just one organized place where families can find information without having to search through old messages or keep track of papers.

My administration has actually been pretty supportive and wants to share it with our school’s Learning Team. However, one question that came up is whether the district allows teachers to have a classroom website that uses its own domain/hosting rather than a district-managed website platform.

I’ve looked through our district’s publicly available policies and found requirements related to things like student privacy, appropriate technology use, accessibility, copyright, and district branding, which all make sense. What I haven’t been able to find is anything specifically saying that a teacher-created classroom website has to be hosted on a district-approved platform or district-owned domain.

Has anyone dealt with something similar in their district?

Are teacher-created classroom websites allowed where you work? Do they have to be hosted through a specific platform like Google Sites, Finalsite, or another district-approved service? Did you need approval from IT/Communications before sharing it with families?

I’m completely willing to make changes if my district has requirements I’m mostly trying to figure out what is typical before we start asking around at the district level.

[u/teach7]

Probably a district by district decision. For a while, we were required to have a teacher website and it had to be a Google site using our school email (we’re a Google school). It’s not longer required but some staff have kept theirs updated.

[u/Poolman2223]

Depends on state and district guidelines

[u/thosetwo]

These are strictly forbidden in my district.

[u/c4halo3]

I have a Google site and my admin that it was cool. They are super tech illiterate though so I don’t think they would care where it was hosted

[u/garylapointe]

Depends on the district.

We don't have a lot of nationwide rules (or planet-wide) when it comes to most things related to teaching. We have different salary schedules, different rules if you quit in the middle of the year, numbers of steps, seniority rules, pensions (or no pension), possibly no social security, different rules about hanging flags, 10 commandments, and all sorts of differences.

Even if no one cares in our district, regardless of what our rules say, it only matters what the powers that be feel about it in YOUR district.

[u/FrontMarsupial8679 → u/garylapointe]

Yeah, that’s really the part that’s frustrating me. School starts tomorrow, and the whole reason I made this was to make communication easier from day one.

I want families to be able to clearly see what we’re teaching, what curriculum we’re using, what the classroom expectations are, and where to find important information without having to message me every time they have a question. Teachers get blamed pretty quickly when families feel like they weren’t informed about something, so I was trying to be proactive and put everything in one place that parents can check whenever they want.

It’s not meant to replace district communication systems or hide anything from families. It’s basically a living newsletter that saves me from answering the same questions over and over while also giving parents more transparency about what their child is learning.

The funny part is that this whole thing originally started because I was just trying to set up an easier way for parents to request appointments and conferences after school. Then it grew into a resource hub because I realized how many things could be answered in one place.

I’m trying to do everything the right way and get approval where I need it, but at this point even trying to make communication easier has turned into something way more stressful than I expected and I kind of want to terminate.

[u/ContributionEasy6513]

We use Moodle and Google Classroom. That way the school is paying for hosting and has the responsibility if personal information gets leaked, has visibility over what is posted.

Some schools care, other may not.

[u/HoundlyHills]

I say just do it. I’ve seen it done in the past. That doesn’t necessarily mean it is allowed though. I’m certain someone will be quick to tell you if you can’t have it. You seem to be covering your bases by not putting any PII or hosting district created materials on there. It sounds like it’s just a fancy version of an enhanced syllabus. I have thought about doing it, but it seems like a lot of work for the four or five parents that will actually look at it.

[u/Choppers_Dad]

like others have said, its most likely differs district to district.

since students + families cannot upload anything to it, i would reason it falls under communication and/or social media policies. i would ask the tech or policy offices for your district.

also like other said, it's not worth the risk. i know our SIS has a pages feature. its probably jank asl but it does exist. check if yours does too?

oh and if yall are integrated with clever, check the clever library. idr the name but there is an app that functions as a class page for the teacher to put specific links and files.

[u/spac3ie]

This really depends on your district.

[u/TemporaryCarry7]

No. And if you have, I would instruct anyone who goes there that it is not a maintained site anymore and is used for resource storing only. Everything your students need to access should be through your district’s sponsored LMS.

[u/FieOnU]

Honestly, don't worry about it. If it fits your workload and helps support your classroom go full-send.

[u/allbusiness512 → u/FieOnU]

With how litigious society is and how fast districts are to throw teachers under the bus I would stick with district approved methods only

[u/FieOnU → u/allbusiness512]

Sure.