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Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
PURPOSE OF RIGHTS
AND PRIVACY ACT
The "Family
Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974"
(P.L. 93-380, as amended by Senate Joint Resolution 40) provides for procedures
that protect the rights of students in access to students College Records.
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DEFINITION OF
STUDENT FOR THE PURPOSE OF ACCESS TO RECORDS
Any person who is attending or has
attended SUNY Cortland and has an educational or personally identifiable
record with the Office of the Registrar or any other office listed in (see
STUDENT RECORDS)
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STUDENT RIGHTS
TO RECORDS
Students have the right to inspect
and review their educational record within 45 days of the day the university
recieves a request for access. Students should submit to the registrar,
dean, head of the academic department, or other appropriate official, written
requests that identify the record(s) they wish to inspect. The university
official will make arrangements for access and notify the student of the
time and place where the records may be inspected. If the records
are not maintained by the university official to whom the request was submitted,
that official shall advise the student of the correct official to whom
the request should be addressed.
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STUDENT RECORDS
Records over which a student may exercise
his or her rights include all records, files, documents and other materials
which are maintained by the offices listed hereafter.
a. Student Financial Aid Records
(Financial Advisement Office)
b. Credential File (Career Services
Office)
c. Transcript of Academic Record (Registrar)
d. Academic Records (School Deans and
Department Chairs)
e. College Financial Records (Bursar's
Office)
f. Student Discipline Records (Judicial
Affairs, Vice President for Student Affairs)
Exceptions: Certain records are
excluded from the student's
right of access and challenge. These records are:
a. Institutional records which are
in the sole possession of the maker, and which are not accessible to any
other person except a substitute.
b. Certain security force records which
are segregated from other student records, to which only law enforcement
personnel have access.
c. Employee records of non-student
employees.
d. Medical or para-medical records
used only for treatment purposes and not available to third parties.
e. Confidential letters and statements
of recommendation which were placed in the student's
educational records before Jan. 1, 1975, provided they are used only for
those purposes for which they were specifically intended.
f. Financial records of the student's
parents.
(Ref: 438(a)(1)(4)(B)(i); Fed. Reg. 1210
Section 99.3)
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AMENDMENT
OF EDUCATION RECORDS
Students may ask the university
to amend a record that they believe is inaccurate or misleading.
They should write the university official responsible for the record, clearly
identify the part of the record they want changed, and specify why it is
inaccurate or misleading. If the university decides not to amend
the record as requested by the student, the university will notify the
student of the decision and advise her/him of her/his 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.
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RELEASE OF
STUDENT RECORDS
Release of records to a third party
is prohibited unless student consent is given in writing and is on file
except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent.
Exceptions:
a. School officials, central administration
and other SUNY colleges who have been determined to have legitimate educational
interests, ie., necessary to fulfill her/his professional responsibility.
A school official is employed by the university in an administrative, supervisor,
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), 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 her/his tasks;
b. Officials of other schools in which
the student seeks to enroll provided the student is given a copy of the
record if he or she desires;
c. Authorized representatives of certain
state and federal agencies where such access is necessary to evaluate federally
funded programs and the collection of personally identifiable data is specifically
allowed by federal law;
d. In connection with students'
application for, or receipt of, financial aid;
e. Research organizations conducting
studies for the educational institution in relation to predictive tests,
administering student aid programs, or instruction, if the records are
destroyed when no longer needed in the research, and identification of
students or parents by persons outside the research organization is not
permitted;
f. Accrediting organizations, solely
to carry out their accrediting functions;
g. Parents of dependent students if
the students are listed as deductible dependents for income tax purposes;
h. In connection with an emergency
where release of records is necessary to protect the health or safety of
the student or others;
i. "Directory
Information"
which means a student's
name, address, e-mail address, telephone listing, date and place of birth,
major field of study, participation in officially recognized activities
and sports, weight and height of members of athletic teams, dates of attendance,
degrees and awards received, and the most recent previous educational agency
or institution attended by the student. [top]
FAILURES
BY THE STATE UNIVERSITY TO COMPLY
A complaint may be filed
with the Family Policy Compliance Office, US Department of Education, 400
Maryland Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20202-4605 concerning alleged failures
by the university to comply with the requirements of FERPA.
(20 U.S.C. 1232g (a) (5) (A))
(Ref. College Handbook, Section 460)
Endorsed by the State University of
New York Office of the University Counsel, February 12, 1999.
ANY STUDENT WHO WISHES HIS/HER DIRECTORY
INFORMATION TO BE UNLISTED MUST SUBMIT A WRITTEN REQUEST TO THE OFFICE
OF THE VICE PRESIDENT FOR STUDENT AFFAIRS -- ADVISABLY BEFORE SEPTEMBER
1. THE STUDENT'S
DIRECTORY INFORMATION WILL REMAIN UNLISTED UNTIL THE STUDENT REQUESTS OTHERWISE.[top]
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