FERPA
was never intended to provide a process to be used to question
substantive judgments that are correctly recorded. The rights of
challenge are not intended to allow an eligible parent or student to
contest, as an example, a grade in a course because it is believed a
higher grade should have been assigned. However, in the event an
eligible parent or student believes education records contain inaccurate
or misleading information, or are otherwise in violation of a student’s
privacy, a request for amendment may be made.
In the
event an eligible parent or student believes that an amendment is
appropriate, he/she should place such request, in writing, to one of the
following university officials (registrar, dean of undergraduate
studies, dean of graduate studies or dean of students), clearly
identifying the specific part of the record he/she believes needs to be
changed, and specifying the reason(s) it is inaccurate, misleading or
otherwise in violation of his/her privacy.
In the
event the university official determines that no amendment needs to be
made to the records, as requested, an eligible parent or student will be
notified, in writing, of the decision and advised of the right to a
hearing before an ad hoc committee. The committee will submit a
recommendation to the provost/vice president for student services,
depending upon the particular type of record being challenged.
An
eligible parent or student’s request for hearing must be submitted, in
writing, to the provost or vice president for student services within
ten (10) working days from the date the eligible parent or student was
notified that his/her request for amendment was denied.
Membership
of the ad hoc committee will be as follows: a non-voting, except in the
case of a tie, chair selected from the membership of the committee; four
(4) faculty members, two (2) tenured or tenure-track faculty selected by
the Faculty Senate; two (2) non-tenure-track faculty selected by the
Non-Tenure-Track Faculty Senate; one (1) managerial staff member
selected by the Staff Senate; and two (2) students, one (1)
undergraduate and one (1) graduate student selected by the Student
Government Association.
The
procedures attendant to a hearing before the ad hoc committee for
consideration of challenges to education records are as follows:
1. A
copy of the request for hearing and charge of responsibility will be
given to the committee by the provost/vice president for student
services. A copy will also be forwarded to the university official and
eligible parent or student.
2. A
hearing will be scheduled within ten (10) working days from the date
the request is filed by the eligible parent or student. The eligible
parent or student and university official(s) denying the request for
amendment, will be informed, in writing, of the date, place, and time
of the hearing.
3.
Four (4) members must be present to constitute a quorum for the
transaction of business. Decisions must be reached by a majority of
the members present. The chair may cast a deciding vote in the event
of a tie. The number of yes, no, and abstention votes will be recorded
without designating the person who cast each vote.
4.
After the committee considers the matters referred to it by the
provost or vice president for student services, the eligible parent or
student and the university official(s) will have the right to present
witnesses and documentary evidence. Any and all oral testimony and
such documentary evidence as is necessary to make a proper
determination will be accepted by the committee. The chair may rule on
the admissibility of evidence and on the relevance of questions.
Responsibility for questioning witnesses, securing evidence, and
determining the order of proof will be vested in the committee.
5.
Strict judicial rules of evidence will not be applied. The members are
to receive all evidence felt to be relevant and material to the issue.
The eligible parent or student and the university official(s) will
have the right to be present any time testimony is presented and to
secure copies of all evidence considered.
6.
The eligible parent or student and university official(s) may be
assisted and/or represented by an individual of his/her choosing, such
assistance may be provided by an attorney at his/her own expense. The
university legal counsel may be present.
7.
The committee will have five (5) working days from the date of the
final hearing to forward a recommendation to the provost/vice
president for final decision. A final decision will be rendered within
ten (10) working days after receipt of the committee’s
recommendation.
8. A
written record of the minutes of the proceedings and the
recommendation of the committee will be made available to the eligible
parent or student and university official(s).
9. In
the event the provost/vice president for student services determines
that the information in the education records is not accurate,
misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights of the
student, the eligible parent or student will be provided an
opportunity to place a statement in the education record commenting on
the contested information, or a statement setting forth why he/she
disagrees with the decision of the university, or both.
10.
In the event the university places a statement in the education
records of a student that the records did not contain inaccurate or
misleading information, or that the records did not violate the
privacy rights of the student, the university will maintain the
eligible parent or student’s statement contesting the decision in
the record and upon disclosure of the education records to an
authorized individual, the university will include the statement
submitted by the eligible parent or student.
11.
The time-frames may be adjusted when the university is not open for
instruction or upon extraordinary circumstances, upon approval of the
provost/vice president for student service.
In general, the
University does not disclose personally identifiable information
contained in a student’s education records unless the student provides
written permission for disclosure. FERPA does permit the University,
however, to disclose record information without the student’s consent
to the following parties:
1.
To university officials who have legitimate educational interests. A
university official is a person employed by the University in an
administrative, supervisory, 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 (such as an
attorney, auditor, or collection agent); 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 university
official in performing his or her tasks. A university official has a
legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an
educational record in order to fulfill his or her professional
responsibility.
2.
To other college or university officials of another school in which a
student seeks or intends to enroll.
3.
To certain governmental officials in order to carry out lawful
functions.
4.
To appropriate parties in connection with financial aid to the student.
5.
To organizations conducting studies concerning predictive tests, student
aid programs, and improving instruction.
6.
To accrediting organizations.
7.
To parents of dependent students.
8.
To parents of entering freshmen under the age of 21 who violate the
university’s alcohol or drug policies. (Non-academic information.)
9.
To individuals who obtain lawful court orders or subpoenas.
10.
To appropriate persons when necessary to protect the health or safety of
students or other persons.
11.
To State or local authorities to whom disclosure was required by state
laws adopted before and after November 19, 1974 in very limited
circumstances.
The student’s
name, university residence, home address, and telephone number are
routinely published in the UCA Students, Faculty and Staff Directory
that is available to all members of the university community, and may be
available to members of the general public.
Students who do not
wish the University to disclose "directory" information about
them and/or publish information in the UCA Students, Faculty and
Staff Directory should notify the Office of the Registrar, in
writing, no later than ten (10) calendar days from the first official
class day of the University. Students may request the non-release of
"directory" information at any time; however, requests
submitted after the published deadline may not be guaranteed exclusion
from publication in the UCA Students, Faculty and Staff Directory.
