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One
of the most common laws that the University must comply with on a
repetitive basis is the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”),
20 USC 1232g.Are you
familiar with FERPA?
To protect the privacy of students and, in some cases, their parents,
Congress enacted the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 20 USC 1232g. Compliance with
FERPA is a condition for the receipt of federal funds by educational
institutions, such as Ferris. FERPA
affords students (a) the primary right to inspect and review their own
education record; (b) the right to seek to have the records amended;
and (c) the right to prevent disclosure of information from those
records (with specific exceptions).
Education Records.
FERPA applies to education records of persons who are currently
enrolled, or have previously been enrolled at the University (FERPA
does not apply to records of applicants for admission who are denied
acceptance, or if accepted, do not attend the University).
Education records are defined as records, files, documents, and
other materials containing information directly related to a student
and maintained by the University or a party acting for the University.Examples of education records include instructional and
administrative records governing students as well as student
employment records and student judicial records.Neither the University’s Department of Public Safety law
enforcement records nor the University’s health center/counseling
center records are education records.
Right to Inspect Education Records. Upon
request, the University must give the student the opportunity to
inspect and review the student’s education records within a
reasonable time of the request but no later than 45 days after it has
received the request. If
circumstances prevent the student from exercising the right to inspect
and review the student’s education records, the University must
provide a copy of the records or make alternative arrangements for the
inspection of the records. If
a copy of the records is provided, the University may charge a
reasonable fee, as long as it does not effectively prevent the student
from exercising the right to review the records.
Challenges of Content of Education Records. If
the student believes his or her education records contain information
that is inaccurate, misleading, or in violation of the student’s
rights of privacy, FERPA requires the University to: (a) provide the
student with an opportunity to challenge and seek amendment of
education records; (b) decide the challenge within a reasonable time
and notify the student; (c) hold a hearing to allow the student to
appeal a denial of a challenge; (d) amend the education record if the
appeal is successful; and/or (e) allow the student to place a
statement in the education record if the appeal is not successful.
Directory Information. Despite privacy generally granted to education records, FERPA
does allow disclosure without consent of information defined as
“directory information” unless the student requests non-disclosure
of such directory information through the Registrar’s Office. Directory information is information that would not normally
cause harm or invasion of privacy if the information was released and
is defined at Ferris as follows:
Name, address, telephone number, class, academic college, enrollment status, major
field of study, dates of attendance, degrees and honors/awards
received, previous schools attended, and athletic participation.
Release
of Education Records. Student education records may be released with proper consent
or pursuant to one of the exceptions identified by FERPA:
Pursuant to Consent. Release
is proper where the consent: (a)
specifies the records to be released; (b) states the purpose of the
disclosure; (c) identifies the party or class of parties to whom
disclosure may be made; and (d) is signed and dated by the student.
Pursuant to FERPA Exceptions. Examples
of exceptions that allow disclosure of education records without
consent include the following:
(a) to school officials within the University who have a legitimate
educational interest. The University’s definition of a school official who has a legitimate educational interest: A person
employed by the University in an administrative, supervisory, academic
or research, or support staff position (including law enforcement unit
personnel and health staff); a person or company with whom the
University has contracted (such as an attorney, auditor, or collection
agent); a person serving on the Board of Trustees; or a student
serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance
committee, or assisting another school official in performing his or
her tasks. A school
official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs
to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her
professional responsibility.
(b) to officials of another school, school system, or institution
of postsecondary education in which the student seeks to enroll.
(c)to authorized representatives of:
(i) the
Comptroller General of the United States;
(ii)the
Secretary; or
(iii) State
and local educational authorities.
(d)to
appropriate agencies or personnel in connection with financial aid the
student has applied for or has received.
(e)to State and local officials or authorities concerning the
juvenile justice system’s ability to effectively serve a student
prior to adjudication.
(f) to organizations conducting studies for, or on behalf of,
educational agencies or institutions to:
develop,
validate, or administer predictive tests;
administer
student aid programs; or
improve
instruction.
The
study must be conducted in a manner that prevents the personal
identification of parents and students by individuals other than
individuals representing the organization conducting the study and the
information is destroyed when no longer needed for the purposes for
which the study was conducted.
(g) to accrediting organizations to carry out their accrediting
functions.
(h) to parents of a dependent student, as defined by the Internal
Revenue Code.
(i)to proper parties in order to comply with a judicial order or
lawfully issued subpoena:
the
University must make a reasonable effort to notify the student of the
order or subpoena in advance of compliance so that the student may
seek protective action, unless:
it
is a federal grand jury subpoena and the court has ordered that the
existence or the contents of the subpoena or the information furnished
in response to the subpoena not be disclosed; or
it
is any other subpoena issued for a law enforcement purpose and the
court or other issuing agency has ordered that the existence or the
contents of the subpoena or the information furnished in response to
the subpoena not be disclosed to relevant parties in connection with a health or safety
emergency, under specific circumstances.
(k) to the public generally, information considered directory
information.
(l)to an alleged victim of any crime of violence, the results of
any disciplinary proceeding conducted by an institution of
postsecondary education against the alleged perpetrator of that crime
with respect to that crime.
(m)to parents or legal guardians, information regarding a
student’s violation of any law or University policy governing the
use of our possession of alcohol or a controlled substance if the
student is under 21years of age and the University determines that the
student’s activities constitute a disciplinary violation.
Restrictions
on Use of Released Education Records.The
University may disclose information from education records pursuant to
consent or an exception on the condition that the party to whom the
information is disclosed will only use the information for the
purposes for which the disclosure was made and will not disclose the
information to any other party without the prior consent of the
student.
Failure to abide
by this requirement will result in the University prohibiting the
offending party’s future access to education records for not less
than five years (pursuant to FERPA requirements).
Records
of Release of Education Records.If
education records are released, a record of any such disclosure must
be kept with the education records for as long as the education
records are maintained (unless the release is at the request of the
student, with written consent, to other school officials, to a party
seeking directory information, or to a party receiving records under a
judicial order or subpoena and the court or other issuing agency has
ordered that its existence not be disclosed).
When a student becomes an eligible student (reaches the age of
18), the rights accorded to and consent required of parents
transfer from the parents to the student.
*Throughout this article, “student” is used but the
reader should be aware that the rights under FERPA may apply to a
parent of a student.
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