ES4600 - Compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act

1. Institutional Regulations
   
   The College will comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) as mandated by the U.S. Congress, as it pertains to student records.
    
2. Procedure
   1. A student has the right to inspect and review his/her educational records. The Student Records Office at DMACC has been designated by the institution to coordinate the inspection and review of such records. A student must submit a written request to the Student Records Offices. Only records covered by the Act will be made available within 45 days of the receipt of the written request. Educational records do not include:
      1. records of instructional, administrative, and educational personnel which are the sole possession of the maker and are not accessible or revealed to any individual except a temporary substitute
      2. records of the Security Office
      3. student health records
      4. employment records
      5. alumni records
         
         Health records, however, may be reviewed by physicians of the student’s choosing.
          
   2. A student has the right to request and receive a response that explains or interprets his/her educational records.
   3. Students may not inspect and review the following as outlined by the Act:
      1. financial information submitted by their parents
      2. confidential letters and recommendations associated with admissions, employment or job placement, or honors to which they have waived their rights of inspection and review
      3. education records containing information about more than one student, in which case DMACC will permit access only to that part of the record which pertains to the inquiring student
      4. confidential letters and recommendations placed in students’ files prior to January 1, 1975, provided those letters were collected under established policies of confidentiality and were used only for the purposes for which they were collected.
   4. Students who believe that their educational records contain information that is inaccurate, is misleading, or is otherwise in violation of their privacy or other rights may discuss their problems informally with the Registrar. The Registrar may agree to amend appropriate records. If not, the student will be notified within a reasonable period of time that the records will not be amended and will be informed by the Registrar of his/her right to a formal hearing.
      1. Requests for a formal hearing must be made in writing to the Vice President, Enrollment Services & Student Success, who, within a reasonable period of time after receiving such written requests, will inform the student of the date, place, and time of the hearing. Students may present evidence relevant to the issues raised and may be assisted or represented at the hearing by one or more persons of their choice, including attorneys at the student’s expense. The hearing panels, which will adjudicate such challenges, will contain five members from the staff of DMACC appointed by the Vice President, Enrollment Services & Student Success who will insure that the panel members have no vested interest in the outcome of the hearing.
      2. Decisions of the hearing panels will be final, will be based solely on the evidence presented at the hearing, will consist of written statements summarizing the evidence and stating the reasons for the decisions, and will be delivered in writing to all parties concerned. If the decision is in favor of the student, the education records will be corrected or amended in accordance with the decision of the hearing panel. If the decision is unsatisfactory to the student, the student may place with the education records statements commenting on the information in the records or statements setting forth any reasons for disagreeing with the decision of the hearing panel. The statements will be placed in the education records and released whenever the records in question are disclosed.
      3. A student who believes that the adjudication of his/her challenge was unfair, or not in keeping with the provisions of the Act, may request in writing assistance from the President of DMACC.
      4. Students who believe their rights have been abridged may file complaints with the: Family Policy Compliance Office, U.S. Dept. of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20202-5901, concerning the alleged failure of DMACC to comply with the Act.
   5. A student who wishes to have information about his/her educational record released or exchanged may 1) sign an Authorization for Release/Exchange of Information Form in the Student Record Office; 2) sign a comparable form, which may be provided in certain circumstances by the appropriate DMACC employee.
   6. At its discretion, DMACC may release Directory Information in accordance with provisions of the Act. DMACC considers the following items to be Directory Information:
      1. student name
      2. address
      3. date and place of birth
      4. major field of study
      5. dates of attendance
      6. degrees and awards received
      7. previous educational agencies or institutions attended by the student
      8. participation in officially recognized activities and sports
      9. weight and height of members of athletic teams
      10. DMACC email address
      11. photograph (DMACC Student ID Card)
          
          Students may withhold Directory Information by notifying the Student Records Office in writing within the first two calendar weeks of any semester. (See Notification of Retention of Directory Information Form ES4600.) Requests for non-disclosure will be honored by the institution for only one calendar year after the date of the written request; therefore, authorization to withhold Directory Information must be filed annually in the Student Records Office.
           
   7. College officials who have access to student records in the course of performing their professional responsibilities shall not be permitted to release the record to persons outside the College, unless authorized in writing by the student or unless one of the following exceptions applies:
      1. Records may be shared with school officials with “legitimate educational interests” defined as needing access to an educational record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibilities. A school official is a person employed by the College in an administrative, supervisory, academic or research, or support staff position (including security personnel and the campus nurse); a person or company with whom the College has contracted (such as an attorney, auditor, or collection agent); a person serving on the Board of Directors; members of an external accreditation committee; an employee at a high school where a DMACC student is also currently enrolled; an employee of a state/federal approving agency (including, but not limited to Department of Homeland Security and Student and Exchange Visitor Information System [SEVIS]); or a student serving on an official committee, such as the Petition for Policy Waiver Committee, College Review Board or College Judicial Heading Board, or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks;
      2. Other schools to which a student is transferring;
      3. Appropriate parties in connection with financial aid to a student;
      4. Organizations conducting certain studies for or on behalf of the school;
      5. To comply with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena;
      6. Appropriate officials and/or student’s emergency contact in cases of health and safety emergencies.  

         FERPA allows DMACC school officials to 1) access a student’s education record if they have a legitimate educational interest and 2) share a student’s education record information with other DMACC school officials who have a legitimate educational interest. This does not constitute authorization for that person to transmit, share, or disclose any of that information to third parties.

         Authorized users of restricted data may access said data only to fulfill the job duties for which authorization was granted. An authorized user may not access restricted data for personal use.

   8. DMACC will maintain a record of access to student’s education records. This record is accessible only to the student and the staff in the Student Records Office or as provided for in the Act. The record of access to educational records will not include references to personnel at DMACC or others who have a legitimate educational interest.
   9. A student may request and receive copies of all or part of his/her educational records, with certain exceptions. For example, a student may not receive a copy of academic records for which a financial “hold” exists or a copy of a transcript from another institution. There will be a fee of $.10 per sheet for records that are copied.

May 10, 2022 - Cross-referenced to Policy SA509.

September 14, 2022 - Changed title of DMACC individual in D.3.

Related Form: ES4600-Request-for-Educational-Records-Investigation-Form-20191001   

ES4600-Retention-of-Directory-Information-Fillable-Form-20231003   

ES4600 - Consent to Release Student Information 11152024