D. Buckley Amendment - Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
Purpose and Scope
1.01 This letter contains the University's policy and procedures relative to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), known as the “Buckley Amendment.”
Policy
2.01 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that current and former students and parents of students, where appropriate, have the right to review educational records maintained about them by the institution, except for material to which the student has waived right of access or for material specifically determined to be confidential by law. Rights afforded to “students” in this letter may also be claimed by parents and/or legal guardians who are assigned such rights by law - i.e., who claim the student as a dependent for federal income tax purposes. Students shall be informed of their rights each year.
2.02 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that information contained in educational records is confidential but may be reviewed by “school officials” who have a “legitimate educational interest” in the student without prior consent of the student. “School official” is defined as an individual currently serving as a member of the Oklahoma State University Board of Regents or classified as faculty, administrative, or professional and staff such school officials supervise. “Legitimate educational interests” is defined as an interest which results from the duties officially assigned to a school official and which are related to such a school official's responsibility for facilitating the student's development. School officials may have legitimate educational interests both in students who are currently enrolled and in those no longer enrolled.
2.03 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that Directory Information may be released without prior consent of the student unless the student formally requests that such information be kept confidential. Such requests for confidentiality of directory information remain in effect only for one year at a time, i.e., the request must be renewed each year and applies to all categories of directory information, i.e., students may not specify that only some of the items be kept confidential.
2.04 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that a student may be provided with copies of all or a part of his or her own educational record, although the University reserves the right both to charge for this service and to suspend such rights to copies in those cases in which the student has an outstanding obligation to the institution. Such a “hold” on the records will be removed when the obligation is legally and morally satisfied.
2.05 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that requests from off-campus parties for information from educational records shall be handled through three central offices: a) the Office of the Registrar for academic records; b) the Office of Student Judicial Affairs for disciplinary records; and c) the appropriate Placement Office for employment/placement records. A student or former student, however, may request any school official to release personally identifiable information.
2.06 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that a record of non-routine disclosure of personally identifiable information—i.e., disclosure to persons other than school officials who have a legitimate educational interest in the students (see 2.02 above)—shall be maintained in such student's file, and such a record may be reviewed by the student.
2.07 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that a student may challenge the content of the educational record if such records are believed to be inaccurate, misleading, or in violation of the privacy or other rights of the student.
Procedure
3.01 Each year, the Registrar shall publicly notify students of their right to review their own educational records, and students seeking access to their own educational records should present themselves to the appropriate central office (see Section 2.05 above) and make their request to a member of the office staff. Positive identification will be expected.
a. The staff member will satisfy himself or herself that the student is the student to whom the records pertain.
b. The staff member will review the educational record file and remove any material to which the student does not have the right of access.
The staff member may request that the student make an appointment to review the record, with such appointment being within the legal maximum period of forty-five days (45) days. No reason for the delay needs to be given.
c. The student shall review the record in the Office under the supervision of the office staff, and under no circumstances shall the student remove or alter any part of the record.
3.02 “Directory Information” consists of the following information and is subject to change provided the change is effective only in the subsequent year (i.e., fall term) and provided the change(s) is/are appropriately publicized.
a. student's name, local and permanent address
b. telephone number and electronic (e-mail) address assigned/provided by the institution or provided to the University by the student
c. date and place of birth
d. major field of study
e. weight and height of student participating in officially recognized sports
f. dates of attendance at Oklahoma State University
g. degrees, honors, and awards granted or received
h. academic classification such as freshman, sophomore, junior, senior, etc.
i. sex
j. educational institutions previously attended
k. degree(s) held, date(s) granted, and institution(s) granting such degree(s)
l. dissertation or thesis title
m. advisor and/or thesis advisor
n. participation in officially recognized organizations, activities, and sports
Students who want directory information kept confidential shall complete the form designated for that action, doing so in the Office of the Registrar on or before the date established by and publicized by that Office.
3.03 Faculty who wish to post grades as a convenience to students may do so only with the prior written consent of each student. It is suggested that faculty who wish to post grades circulate a paper in class which states that (a) students who sign the paper give permission to the specific faculty member in the specific course to post examination and/or quiz grades, and (b) such postings will not list students in any personally identifiable manner. In posting grades, faculty may not use student names, student ID numbers, or student Social Security numbers. Such information represents “personally identifiable information,” the use of which in managing educational record data is restricted under the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Posting grades by other codes such as the last four digits of the student's ID number, a number or code randomly assigned to the student, a code provided by the student, or some other system to which the student agrees is permissible. Code words or randomly assigned numbers known only by the individual student and faculty member are the most secure and are in keeping with FERPA guidelines. (If the code used is the last four digits of the student's ID number, the list should not be organized in alphabetical order.) Plans for posting grades should be clearly specified in the course syllabus, students should be given the opportunity to object to the posting mechanism, and such objections should be honored through the provision of alternate codes or grade notification procedures.
3.04 A student who wants a copy of information contained in the educational record shall make such request in writing to the official responsible for maintaining the record. The request shall clearly identify what material is to be copied. Fees for copies are as follows: Copies of transcripts shall be provided at the rate established by the Registrar for all such requests; copies of other records shall be provided at a per page rate equal to that established for photocopy machines housed in the University Library.
3.05 When personally identifiable information is released from the educational record to individuals or parties (other than those for whom record keeping requirements are not mandated), a record shall be kept of who requested the material, why the request was made, and what material—if any—was made available. In those cases where a student or a former student requests a school official (See Section 2.05) to release personally identifiable information, the student shall provide written authorization, e.g., attachment 1 or appropriate forms.
3.06 When a student challenges the content of the educational record, the following steps will be used:
a) The student will submit a written request to the official responsible for maintaining the record, with such request specifying the content being challenged, the grounds for the challenge, and the exact action being sought.
b) Within one month—i.e., twenty-two working days—of the request, the official shall provide a written response. If the official grants the request, the change(s) will be made. If the request is denied, the letter will explain why and will inform the student that he or she may add an explanation to the record and/or appeal the official's decision. If the student adds an explanation to the record, the explanation will accompany the part of the record to which the explanation pertains whenever that part of the record is released.
c) An appeal may be filed with the Residence and Records Appeal Board by submitting a written request to the Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President, with a copy of the original letter and the official's response being attached. The Board will arrange a hearing with the student within one month at a mutually agreeable time and place. In the event that the student is accompanied by legal counsel, the Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President must be notified of the fact at least three working days prior to the hearing. After the Board hears the evidence and deliberates, it will decide and communicate its decision in writing, including reasons, to both the student and the official involved in the case.