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Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C.
§ 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99) is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student
education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an
applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education.
FERPA gives parents certain rights with respect to their
children's education records. These rights transfer to the student when he or
she reaches the age of 18 or attends a school beyond the high school level.
Students to whom the rights have transferred are "eligible students."
• Parents
or eligible students have the right to inspect and review the student's
education records maintained by the school. Schools are not required to provide
copies of records unless, for reasons such as great distance, it is impossible
for parents or eligible students to review the records. Schools may charge a fee
for copies.
• Parents
or eligible students have the right to request that a school correct records
which they believe to be inaccurate or misleading. If the school decides not to
amend the record, the parent or eligible student then has the right to a formal
hearing. After the hearing, if the school still decides not to amend the record,
the parent or eligible student has the right to place a statement with the
record setting forth his or her view about the contested information.
• Generally,
schools must have written permission from the parent or eligible student in
order to release any information from a student's education record. However,
FERPA allows schools to disclose those records, without consent, to the
following parties or under the following conditions (34 CFR § 99.31):
o School
officials with legitimate educational interest;
o Other
schools to which a student is transferring;
o Specified
officials for audit or evaluation purposes;
o Appropriate
parties in connection with financial aid to a student;
o Organizations
conducting certain studies for or on behalf of the school;
o Accrediting
organizations;
o To
comply with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena;
o Appropriate
officials in cases of health and safety emergencies; and
o State
and local authorities, within a juvenile justice system, pursuant to specific
State law.
Schools may disclose, without consent, "directory"
information such as a student's name, address, telephone number, date and place
of birth, honors and awards, and dates of attendance. However, schools must tell
parents and eligible students about directory information and allow parents and
eligible students a reasonable amount of time to request that the school not
disclose directory information about them. Schools must notify parents and
eligible students annually of their rights under FERPA. The actual means of
notification (special letter, inclusion in a PTA bulletin, student handbook, or
newspaper article) is left to the discretion of each school.
For additional information or technical assistance, you may call
(202) 260-3887 (voice). Individuals who use TDD may call the Federal Information
Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339.
Or you may contact us at the following address:
Family Policy Compliance Office
U.S.
Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington
,
D.C.
20202-5920
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