Customer Name:
Daniel Levinthal
| I am requesting completion of the FOIA request with the district’s inclusion of the following: 1. The google doc referenced and attached to Ms. Gaubatz’s November 1| 2019 email 2. The survey referenced and attached in her November 6| 2019 email 3 The survey results referenced and attached to her November 11| 2019 email. |
Response:
| In response to Ms. Levinthal’s follow up request| attached is a PDF copy of the live Google Form referenced and attached to Ms. Gaubatz’s November 1| 2019 email. This is the same Google Form that is referenced in Ms. Gaubatz’s November 6| 2019 email| and which was accessible via a live link via the responsive records previously released. In response to Ms. Levinthal’s remaining request| we have reattached Ms. Gaubatz’s email from November 11| 2019| as this email references the only survey results that were released: the names of those who completed the survey| what district they are from| and their district email address. Please kindly note that there was no attachment to this email. In regard to the remaining survey results| which were clearly not responsive to Dr. Levinthal’s initial request| please be advised it is the District’s practice to withhold survey results and related documentation as they are exempt under FOIA Section 7(1)(f)| which exempts “[p]reliminary drafts| notes| recommendations| memoranda and other records in which opinions are expressed| or policies or actions are formulated| except that a specific record or relevant portion of a record shall not be exempt when the record is publicly cited and identified by the head of the public body.” 5 ILCS 140/7(1)(f); see also 5 ILCS 140/7(1)(c); Harwood v. McDonough| 344 Ill. App. 3d 242 (1st Dist. 2003). Citing the need to encourage survey respondents to provide frank and open feedback| as well as to prevent public bodies from being discouraged to solicit such feedback| the Illinois Attorney General’s office has repeatedly found that school district survey results are covered by the exemption at Section 7(1)(f). See| e.g.| 2010 PAC 6961 (comments on school district climate survey were exempt); 2010 PAC 9980 (parent surveys regarding student athletics were exempt); 2011 PAC 11835 (results of special education parent survey were exempt); 2011 PAC 13448 (employee opinion survey results were exempt); 2011 PAC 14058 (survey comments were exempt); 2011 PAC 14928 (climate survey responses from parents were exempt); 2012 PAC 20492 (survey raw data results were exempt); 2016 PAC 44309 and 2016 PAC 44311 (survey takers’ opinions and raw data were exempt because the responses were used in the District’s decision-making process); 2017 PAC 50257 (survey raw data and comments from members of the public gathered by a school district were exempt| notwithstanding the district’s publication of general summaries of the survey information| where those specific data and comments were not publicly cited and identified); 2018 PAC 53747 (community survey raw data was exempt). |