Quickstart

Get started with k12mcp

Set up your first compliance audit in under 5 minutes.

Before you start

1A k12mcp account with credits — free accounts start with 10 credits, enough to run a FERPA scan.
2An AI assistant that supports MCP — Claude with a Pro or Team plan, or any MCP-compatible client. k12mcp tools run inside your AI's context window, so each scan also consumes tokens from your existing AI subscription. Token usage is billed separately by your AI provider.

Create an account

Go to k12mcp.vercel.app, enter your email, and click Register. We'll send you a magic link — click it in your inbox to confirm your account and reveal your API key.

Your API key appears exactly once. Copy it immediately from the confirmation page. It cannot be recovered. If you lose it, use Forgot key to generate a new one (which invalidates the old one).

Your account starts with 10 free credits — enough for a FERPA scan on your schema.

Or register via the API

curl -X POST https://k12mcp-production.up.railway.app/auth/register \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"email":"you@example.com"}'

Expected response:

{
  "ok": true,
  "message": "Account created. Check your inbox for your magic link."
}

What is MCP?

MCP (Model Context Protocol) is a standard that lets AI editors like Claude connect to external tools and data sources. k12mcp is an MCP server — once configured, your AI assistant can call compliance tools directly while you're working in your editor. No copy-pasting schemas into chat; Claude queries the server automatically.

Add k12mcp to your editor

Option A — One command

Recommended

claude mcp add --transport http k12mcp https://k12mcp-production.up.railway.app/mcp

Then type /mcp in any Claude Code session to complete the OAuth login — you'll see a form asking for your k12mcp API key.

Option B — Manual .mcp.jsonFor teams sharing the config

.mcp.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "k12mcp": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://k12mcp-production.up.railway.app/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer ${K12MCP_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}

export K12MCP_API_KEY=your_api_key_here

Add the export to your .zshrc or .bashrc to persist it. Safe to commit .mcp.json — the key is in your environment, not the file.

Run your first audit

Free accounts come with 10 credits — enough to run a FERPA audit. Try one of these in Claude:

Direct command

10 credits

/k12mcp:ferpa

Scans your codebase and classifies data fields under FERPA. Identifies education records and required DPA provisions.

Or ask naturally

10 credits

Claude will call the FERPA tool automatically when you ask questions like:

Scan my database schema and run /k12mcp:ferpa to see what data fields require FERPA protection.

Run a check

Once connected, six commands are available directly in Claude. Each runs exactly one compliance check — you control what you spend.

/k12mcp:ferpa

10 credits

Scan your codebase and classify data fields under FERPA. Identifies education records and required DPA provisions.

/k12mcp:coppa

10 credits

Determine whether COPPA applies to your product, is deferred to the school, or does not apply.

/k12mcp:sis

10 credits

Look up which rostering protocols a specific SIS platform supports (PowerSchool, Infinite Campus, Skyward, Aeries, etc.).

/k12mcp:state-privacy

20 credits

Get vendor obligations and product-category gotchas for a specific US state. You'll be asked for a state code — e.g. CA for California, TX for Texas.

/k12mcp:dpa

20 credits

Gap analysis of your data handling practices against SDPC baseline DPA clauses.

/k12mcp:rostering

25 credits

Integration options and compatibility notes for a given SIS platform.

/k12mcp:procurement

25 credits

Recommended procurement pathway for a given state and product type.