Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
That schools must who receive federal financial assistance must:
All records, files, documents, and other materials that personally identifiable information directly related to a student and that are maintained by the school district or by a person acting for the district.
Schools need parental consent if a third party wants to look at educational records, but there are exceptions:
- Establish written policies regarding student records and inform parents of their rights under FERPA annually.
- Parents are guaranteed access to their children's educational records.
- Parents have the right to challenge the accuracy of the records.
- Disclosure of these records to third parties without parental consent is prohibited.
- Parents may file complaints under FERPA regarding a school's failure to comply with the law.
All records, files, documents, and other materials that personally identifiable information directly related to a student and that are maintained by the school district or by a person acting for the district.
- Individualized Education Programs
- Test forms, providing that the school district retains personally identifiable test forms.
- School evaluations, medical evaluations, and any other documents related to student's educational performance.
- Recordings of IEP meetings.
- Transcripts of due process hearings.
- Complaints filed with the educational agency.
- Correspondence and investigative findings regarding the complaint if they have personally identifiable information.
- Parents and students 18 years of age can look at their educational records.
- Schools must explain and interpret the records if they are asked to do so.
- Schools must comply to a parents request to inspect educational records within 45 days.
Schools need parental consent if a third party wants to look at educational records, but there are exceptions:
- School personnel with legitimate educational interest.
- Officials representing schools to which the student has just applied.
- Persons responsible for determining eligibility for financial aid.
- Judicial orders to release.
- Emergency situations where the child's health is at risk.
- If parents think the their child's records misleading or are incorrect they may request that the school amend the records.
- The school may deny this request.
- Then the parents may request a due process hearing.
- If the hearing officer finds that the educational records are not accurate, that information must be removed from the file.
- When local education agencies do not need the records it must notify the parents of their intent to destroy the records.
- Parents may request for copies or to destroy the records.
- LEA may keep a permanent record of basic information on the student.
- Schools are in violation when they deny parents their rights to inspect educational records.
- If a school violates FERPA, the United States Department of Education may terminate federal aid to the district.