Lehighton Area School District issued a statement Thursday morning about exposure of confidential employee and student information obtained through a 2024 court order on a right-to-know request made by a now seated board member.

“The Lehighton Area School District is issuing this statement to inform the public, its employees, and the families it serves of an apparent breach of confidential personal information, including Social Security numbers of current and former employees and protected student information,” the district said in a release.

The district said it became aware Wednesday that personal information pertaining to current and former district employees and students had been posted on an independently operated website not affiliated with the district.

The posted materials appear to include, among other sensitive data, employee Social Security numbers and confidential student information protected under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act and other applicable federal and state privacy laws. “The district did not authorize the public posting of this information and does not control, endorse, or participate in the operation of the website on which it appears,” the district said.

“The disclosure of these records originated from the District’s compliance with a court order issued by the Carbon County Court of Common Pleas in December 2024. That order directed the District to produce certain Right-to-Know Law records in unredacted form, as mandated by Pennsylvania’s Office of Open Records pursuant to the Commonwealth’s Right-to-Know Law, 65 P.S. § 67.101 et seq., to Mr. David Bradley, a current appointed member of the Lehighton Area School Board.”

The district said the production of these records was compelled by judicial mandate and was not a voluntary disclosure. While the court order required production of the unredacted records to Mr. Bradley in his capacity as the requester, it did not authorize or direct the further dissemination of those records by Mr. Bradley to the general public, nor did it relieve any party of obligations under applicable privacy laws, including FERPA and the Pennsylvania Breach of Personal Information Notification Act, 73 P.S. § 2303.”

The school board meets tonight at 7 in the district administration board room.