FERPA

                                           FERPA Information for Reports

 FERPA or the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (1974) imposes on any school, college or university that receives federal funds, restrictions over the release of student records.  Since this includes Arkansas State University, the university has adopted rules that comply with FERPA. 

FERPA protects a student=s educational record, regardless of how the record is maintained and who maintains it.  An education record consists of paper as well as electronic data.  Besides grades, it typically includes test scores, comments, evaluations and similar assessments about a student, maintained by an instructor, counselor or any other school official. 

FERPA prohibits any person connected with the institution, including administrators and faculty from improperly disclosing student information.  At institutions of higher education, students may authorize the release of their educational records, but only the student has the exclusive right to decide whether or not to authorize the release.  There are some circumstances where educational records may be released without the student=s permission.  For instance, records may be disclosed to other school officials, including teachers, within the institutions, whom the institution has determined to have legitimate educational interests. 

 The U.S. Department of Education is responsible for enforcing FERPA and has created a detailed complaint procedure for those who feel an institution has violated their FERPA rights.  It is important then for anyone with access to students= educational records, to use care when sharing such records.  To ensure that student records are not accessible to other students or unauthorized individuals, instructors and other school officials should exercise caution in the way student records are maintained.