- University shall not require any student to waive access rights. A party from whom a recommendation is sought may require such a waiver. A student who has signed a waiver shall be notified by the University of the names of parties providing confidential letters and statements of recommendation. Confidential letters and statements of recommendation shall be used only for the purpose for which they were solicited.
- Records that personally identify other students even if the student also is personally identified. In such a case, the student shall simply be informed of the specific information about the student that is contained in the record.
D. Reasonable requests by a student for an explanation or interpretation of records shall be granted.
III. The Right to Seek to Amend Education Records
A. FERPA gives a student the right to request the amendment of the student’s education records that the student believes are inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the student’s privacy rights under FERPA. The right to request the amendment of education records does not include a right to question substantive educational judgments that have been correctly recorded. Disputes between the University and the student concerning the content of a student’s education record should be resolved informally, if possible.
B. A student who wishes to ask the University to amend a record should write the University official responsible for the record, clearly identify the part of the record the student wants changed, and specify why it should be changed. The University official in charge of the office or department to which the challenge is submitted shall mark the date of the request on the front page of the request.
C. If the University decides not to amend the record as requested, within ten (10) days of the receipt of the student’s request, the University will notify the student in writing of the decision and the student’s right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. The written notification to the student shall be reasonably in advance of the hearing and shall notify the student about:
- When the hearing will be conducted (no later than 30 days from the date on which notification is given or mailed to the student);
- Where the hearing will be conducted; and
- Who will conduct the hearing (the official in charge of the office or department or his or her designee may act as hearing examiner).
D. A hearing on a student’s request to amend the student’s education record shall include the following procedures:
- The hearing examiner should not have a direct interest in the outcome of the hearing.
- The student may, at his or her own expense, be assisted or represented by one or more individuals of his or her own choice, including an attorney.
- The student shall be provided with a full and fair opportunity to present relevant evidence in support of the challenge including any records, testimony of witnesses, or other evidence which the student reasonably believes to support the challenge. Material which is redundant or immaterial need not be accepted or considered as evidence. The hearing examiner may require that voluminous material be summarized if the examiner deems such action appropriate.
- The hearing examiner may request the presence of witnesses at the hearing in addition to those called by the student. The student shall be made aware of and have an opportunity to rebut any evidence considered by the hearing examiner which would serve to disprove the student’s challenge.
- Within thirty (30) days of the conclusion of the hearing, the hearing examiner shall make his or her decision in writing. In reaching a decision, the hearing examiner shall consider only the evidence presented at the hearing and must include in a summary of the evidence and the reasons for the decision in the written decision.
- A record of the hearing shall be maintained in the office or department to which the challenge was submitted which notes all particulars of the challenge including date received, date of hearing, name of hearing examiner, names of witnesses, decision reached, and the date on which notification of decision was sent. The record shall include a copy of the challenge, the decision, and any written or other tangible evidence submitted.
E. If, as a result of a hearing, the University decides that the information in the education record is not inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights of the student, the University shall inform the student of the right to place a statement in the record commenting on the contested information in the record and stating why he or she disagrees with the decision of the University.
IV. Release of Records to Third Parties
A. The University will not disclose personally identifiable information from a student’s education records without the prior written consent of the student, except as authorized by FERPA. FERPA authorizes the University to disclose personally identifiable information from a student’s education records without the prior written consent of the student when the disclosure is:
- To school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school 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 as its agent to act or provide a service instead of using University employees or officials (such as an attorney, auditor, consultant, volunteer, or collection agent), the person is under the direct control of the University, and the person is subject to the same conditions governing the use and redisclosure of education records that apply to other school officials ; a person serving on the Board of Trustees; a student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another school official in
