Profile access (and so the Contact card, too) is upstream from the Directory, so while this Directory Idea is closed, Ideas requesting additional name control more generally remain open. Those areas aren't forgotten, they just aren't encompassed by this narrower request.

There is no plan in 2026 to add legal first name. Many have already voted for that, but if you haven't, please search "track legal names" from here: https://community.blackbaud.com/categories/-blackbaud-k-12-solutions-ideas

The directory's User name format setting does allow for the first name not to be visible within the directory's main display, but users can still see the first name if they go to a person's contact card (Options > Contact Card). There is not a privacy setting for the first name or last name fields.

Great! Any progress on adding "Legal First Name" as a separate field to BEM?

Now that Directories reference User name format, Preferred name can be displayed instead of First name (when preferred name is populated)!

Yes! This is very important. Please help!

Yet another reason we need a separate "Legal First Name" field.

This continues to be imperative to us honors the humanity and identify of all of our students.

So glad to see Blackbaud taking this seriously.

This is crucial if we want to be an inclusive community. Please consider allowing platform managers the ability to hide first names.

This is key. If you allowed the student the ability to hide their first name in the directory under privacy settings it could solve that problem. Right now, hiding the first name to default to the preferred name is not available as an option.