Restricting Gmail Accounts on Student Chromebooks

August 12th, 2026

Beginning Monday, August 17, high school students will no longer be able to add or access personal Google/Gmail accounts to Chrome on their HCPSS-assigned Chromebooks, a restriction that is already in place for elementary and middle school student devices. Parents/guardians are asked to use the information below to help communicate this change to your student(s) and help them understand how it may impact them.

This restriction will help prevent students from bypassing the Chromebook content filter. Students will continue to have access to their HCPSS email account. While personal accounts are not required by HCPSS, some students prefer to use them in some instances that may be school-related but continued access is required after they are no longer enrolled. For example, College Board accounts are used beyond graduation to access SAT and AP scores, and many students create these accounts using their personal email accounts.

Students should consider how and when they use their personal Google/Gmail accounts and if this new restriction will cause a disruption substantial enough that they should use a different email provider. This new setting will restrict their ability to read or send emails, retrieve password reset emails and access personal Google Drive files using their personal Google/Gmails accounts on their school-issued device. They can continue to create and access other personal email accounts on their Chromebooks, such those provided by Microsoft, Yahoo, Apple and others, and can continue to access their personal Google/Gmail accounts on personal technology devices.

Explore the HCPSS website to learn more about HCPSS technology and gain information on how the school system is supporting students to use technology responsibly.