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.
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."
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):
- School officials with legitimate educational interest;
- Other schools to which a student is transferring;
- Specified officials for audit or evaluation purposes;
- Appropriate parties in connection with financial aid to a student;
- Organizations conducting certain studies for or on behalf of the school
- Accrediting organizations;
- To comply with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena
- Appropriate officials in cases of health and safety emergencies; and
- 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.
AUD practices the standard of developing and implementing effective management systems that ensure
integrity, confidentiality, security and accurate interpretation of institutional records. As such, AUD has implemented
policies and procedures to protect the security of student records in our electronic database, created adequate back up
procedures, and updated procedures for approving grade changes. The integrity and confidentiality of student record
information continues to be one of the highest priorities of the University.
AUD upholds the commitment to respect and protect the privacy of student information according to
AUD policy and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974.
Policy on Academic Record Retention and Storage
AUD's Policy on Academic Record Retention and Storage is available for viewing in either the office of the Director of
Institutional Effectiveness or the office of the Registrar. This Policy, last reviewed and modified in September 2007,
insures proper protection and longevity of academic records.
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