FERPA Information

The right to inspect and review the student's education records within 45 days after the day Ferris State University receives a request for access. A student should submit to the Registrar, Dean, Head of academic department or other appropriate official a written request that identifies the record( s) the student wishes to inspect. The school official will make arrangements for access and notify the student of the time and place where the records may be inspected. If the school does not maintain the records official to who the request was submitted, that official shall advise the student of the correct official to whom the request should be addressed.

The right to request the amendment of the student's education records that the student believes is inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the student's privacy rights under FERPA. A student who wishes to ask the school to amend a record should write the school official responsible for the record, clearly identify the part of the record the student wants changed, and specify why it should be changed.
If the school decides not to amend the record as requested, the school will notify the student in writing of the decision and the student's right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to the student when notified of the right to a hearing.

The right to provide written consent before the university discloses personally identifiable information from the student's education records, except to the extent that FERP A authorizes disclosure without consent.

Personally Identifiable Information as defined for Ferris State University includes but is not limited to: 

• Academic Status
• Campus Wide ID
• Date of Birth
• Gender/Race
• Grades/GPA 
• Nationality
• Photograph
• Residency Status
• Student's Class Schedule
• Student Social Security Number
• Test Scores
• UI Code

The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education. Concerning alleged failures by Ferris State University to comply with the requirements of FERPA. The name and address of the office that administers FERPA is:

Family Policy Compliance Office
U. S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20202-5901

Additional information can be found on the U.S. Department of Education: Protecting Student Privacy page.

Directory Level Information for Ferris State University is defined as: 

• Academic College
• Academic Program/Major
• Addresses
• Admit Status ( e.g. accepted)
• Athletic Participation
• Class level ( e.g., Freshmen)
• Dates of Attendance
• Degrees/Honors/ Awards Received
• Email Address
• Enrollment Status (Full/ Part-time)
• Name
• Phone
• Previous School attended 

The school discloses education records without a student's prior written consent under the FERP A exception for disclosure to school officials with legitimate education interest. A school official is 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 as its agent to provide a service instead of using University employees or officials (such as an attorney, auditor, collection agent, contract employee, or a clinical/internship facility); 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. Upon request, the University discloses education records without consent to officials of another school in which a student seeks or intends to enroll so long as the disclosure is for purposes related to the student's enrollment or transfer. 

Except for disclosures to school officials, disclosures related to some judicial orders or lawfully issued subpoenas, disclosures of directory level information, and disclosures to the student, §99.32 of FERPA regulations requires the intuition to record the disclosure. Eligible students have a right to inspect and review the record of disclosures. A postsecondary institution may disclose personally identifiable information from the education records without obtaining prior written consent of the student:

• To other school officials, including teachers, within Ferris State University who are determined to have legitimate educational interests. This includes contractors, consultants, volunteers, or other parties to who the school has outsources institutional services of functions provided that the conditions are listed in §99.31 (a) (I)(i)(B) - (a)(I)(i)(B)(2) are met. (§99.31 (a)(I))
• To school officials of another school where the students seeks or intents to enroll, or where the student is already enrolled if the disclosure is for purposes related to the student's enrollment or transfer, subject to the requirements of §99.34 (§99.3l(a)(2))

• To authorized representatives of the U.S. Comptroller General, the U.S. Attorney General, the U.S. Secretary of Education, or State and local educations authorities such as a State postsecondary authority that is responsible for supervising the university's State­supported education programs. Disclosures under this provision may be made, subject to the requirements of §99.35 in connection with an audit or evaluation of Federal-or State-supported educations programs or for requirements that relate to those programs. These entities may make further disclosures of personally identifiable information to outside entities that are designated by them as their authorized representatives to conduct any audit, evaluation, or enforcement or compliance activity on their behalf (§99.31 (a)(3) and §99.35)

• In connection with financial aid for which the student has applied or which the student has received if the information is necessary to determine eligible for the aid, determine the amount of aid, determine the conditions of aid, or enforce the terms and conditions of aid. (§99.3l(a)(4))

• To organizations conduction studies for, or on behalf of the school, in order to: (a) develop, validate or administer predictive tests; (b) administer student aid programs; or (c) improve instruction. (§99.3l(a)(6))

• To parents of eligible student if the student is a dependent for IRS tax purposes. (§99 .31
  (a) (8))

• To comply with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena (§99.31 (a) (9))
• To appropriate officials in connection with a health or safety emergency subject to §99 .36
  (§ 99.31 (a) (10))
• Information the school has designated as director information under §99.37 (§99.31 (a) (II)
• To a victim of an alleged perpetrator of a crime of violence or a non-forcible sex offense, subject to the requirements of §99.39. The disclosure may only include the final results of the disciplinary proceeding with respect to that alleged crime or offense, regardless of the findings. (§99.31 (a) (13))
• To the general public, the final results of a disciplinary proceeding, subject to the requirements of §99.39, if the school determines the student has committed a violation of the school's rules or policies with respect to the allegation made again him or her.
  (§ 99.31 (a) (14))
• To parents of a student regarding the student's violation of any Federal, State, or local law, or any rile of policy the school, governing the use or possession of alcohol or a controlled substance if the school determines the student committed a disciplinary violation and the student is under the age of 21. (§99.31 (a) (15))
• The disclosure concerns sex offenders and other individuals required to register under section 17010 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994.

• To any third party designated by a Federal or State authority to evaluate a federal or - state supported education program. They may also allow access to personally identifiable information to researchers performing certain types of studies. Federal and State authorities must obtain certain use-restrictions and data security promises from the entities that they authorize to receive the information, but need not maintain direct control over such entities. In addition, in connection with Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems, State authorities , may collect, compile, permanently retain and share without consent, and they may track participation in education and other programs by linking personally identifiable information with other information they obtain from other Federal or State data sources.

To add or remove authorization to your records under FERPA, access your Student Academic Dashboard in Ferris360, click the "FERPA Authorization to Release Information" link, and complete the form.

The Office of Student Community Standards FERPA Release Form can be completed and returned to [email protected] to authorize the release of student conduct records.

We recommend all employees print a copy of the FERPA Reference Sheet.

Departments can request a review of their policies and procedures to ensure that their protocols are FERPA compliant.

Upon request, the FERPA Compliance Officer can provide additional in-person or virtual training opportunities for interested departments or units.

Interested units should contact [email protected] to schedule.

When requesting a Letter of Recommendation / Verbal Reference from faculty/staff, students should complete this form to specify which FERPA Personally Identifiable Information may be discussed in the reference process. This can include when students request a reference for admissions at another institution, scholarship applications, or employment opportunities. Utilizing this form is required when a reference includes any personally identifiable information as outlined here. References that exclusively utilize directory level information do not require utilizing this form, however, students marked confidential will still need to complete a release form as their directory level information is protected.

The form must be completed for each recipient that will receive the referral. Students can choose which type of information is released during a referral, and can choose whether or not to waive their right to review a copy of the letter or know about contents of the verbal communication. Similarly, a student can waive their right at any time to future disclosures of information, but it will not affect disclosures previously made prior to the receipt of a written revocation request.

The Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”), M.C.L. 15.231 et seq., regulates and sets requirements for the disclosure of public records by all public bodies in the state. FOIA provides that all public records of a public body are subject to disclosure unless specifically exempted by the Act. A public body may, but is not required to, withhold from disclosure those categories of public records exempt from disclosure under the Act. 

FOIA requests seeking student records may be denied based on a statutory exemption for records protected by FERPA, privacy, or other available exemptions. Please visit the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) page for additional information.

FERPA concerns must be sent to the Registrar ([email protected]). As the FERPA Compliance Officer for the University, the Registrar will investigate the incident and take appropriate action.

Please include the following information when reporting a FERPA concern:

• Original email, documentation, or information pertaining to the concern.
• Description of the incident(s) or action(s) that you believe violated FERPA.
• Identify who was involved and their names as appropriate.
• Date the violation occurred and approximate time.
• Location or modality of the incident (physical location, email, learning management system, etc).
• Additional information or documentation connected to the area of concern, including any follow-up or additional conversations that may have occurred since the incident in question.

Please Note: Completion of this process in no way implies that the reported incident does, in fact, violate FERPA. It is simply a means for individuals to report FERPA concerns for investigation.

Once the FERPA concern has been reported, the investigation / review process will begin. The individual filing the concern may be contacted for additional information or conversation and those listed as involved in the incident(s) or action(s) may also be contacted.

Once all information has been collected, the Registrar will review the FERPA Concerns to determine if a violation occurred. The investigation process may take up to 14 business days depending on the nature of the concern and number of people involved. Most concerns are investigated within 3 business days.

The following procedure will occur if it is determined that a violation has occurred

• If the FERPA violation was caused by an employee, the employee and their supervisor will be made aware of the violation. Resources and best-practices to prevent future incidents will be shared. The Dean or V.P. for the employee's unit will also be notified.
• If the FERPA violation was the result of an email being sent to the wrong inbox on the Ferris email server, IT will be contacted to destroy the email to prevent inappropriate access of FERPA protected records.
• If the FERPA violation occurred as the result of a different procedural issue, the University will determine how to prevent future violations by identifying alternative processes.
• FERPA Violations resulting from third-party data breaches or data attained by a third-party will result in consultation with McKessey House. McKessey House may be contacted be consultation in other FERPA related matters or violations as necessary.
• The Registrar's Office will maintain a log of FERPA Violations, and make recordation on student records impacted by FERPA violations.
• Students impacted by a FERPA violation will receive ane mail notifying them of the nature of the violation, when it occurred, what information was compromised, the action the University took to address the violation, and their rights to file a complaint.
• Additional action may be taken as deemed appropriate due to the nature of the concern or violation.