PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Students may trash notebooks and papers at the end of the school year, but you’d never expect schools to toss confidential student files in a pile on a public sidewalk where anyone could grab them.

But that’s exactly what happened at Clayton Academy on the North Side.

An unidentified neighbor called KDKA-TV and said the school had been discarding confidential information about its students.  The principal tells KDKA’s Jon Delano, yes, some information was put out accidentally, but all the confidential information has been retrieved.

Principal Howard Bullard says he was clear to staff when they recently cleaned out material from this school designated for disruptive and challenging children.

“I gave a directive for confidential information, student records, not to be thrown out because we have to keep that here for seven years.  And, unfortunately, some of those records were mistakenly thrown out,” notes Bullard.

Tossed records included file folders on past students with names, addresses, phone numbers, personal behavioral information including foul language and inappropriate sexual behavior, student grade reports and even copies of personal medical reports.

Clayton Academy says it has retrieved the confidential material from the trash and waste haulers were there on Tuesday to haul away the rest of the material.

“We certainly apologize for any information that anyone may have, and to my knowledge no one’s information has been picked up by anyone.  And we’ve taken all the measures to make sure that we have anything confidential, that we have it and are storing it properly,” adds Bullard.

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