Link: Notice
If you would like to send a comment to the US Dept. of Education on the proposed changes you must do so by May 8, 2008.
The Department of Education is proposing changes to FERPA regulations found at 34 CFR 99. The proposed changes will impact how schools deal with student records.
Some of the proposed changes are:
• Amending the definition of "student" to include those attending the school through electronic means.
• A school may not designate a student's Social Security number or student ID as directory information.
• A unique electronic identifier disclosed as directory information may be used to provide access to the student's education records, but only when combined with other factors known only to the authorized user.
• Amending the definition of "disclosure" to exclude the release or return of an education record, or personally identifiable information from an education record to the party identified as the party that provided or created the record.
• Amending the term "education records" to exclude records that are created or received by a school after the student is no longer in attendance and are not directly related to the student's attendance as a student.
• Amending the list of personal identifiers.
• "State auditor" would be added to the list of entities with authority to have access to education records in connection with an audit of Federal or State supported education programs. The DOE is also requesting input as to whether local auditors should be included in this definition.
• Clarifying that even after a student has become an "eligible student," a school may disclose education records to the student's parents, without consent of the student, if the student is a dependent for Federal income tax purposes.
• Expanding the entities records can be disclosed to without consent by adding contractors, consultants, volunteers, and other outside parties to whom the school has outsourced institutional services or functions that it would otherwise use employees to perform. The outside party must be under the direct control of the school.
• Requiring schools to use reasonable methods to ensure that teachers and other school officials obtain access to only those education records in which they have a legitimate educational interest.
• Providing that a school can disclose education records to another institution even after the student has enrolled, not just if the student seeks or intends to enroll.
• Schools that disclose education records without consent must enter into a written agreement with the recipient that specifies the purposes of the study and contain restrictions on re-disclosure and destruction.
• A new exception to the consent requirements is being added to permit a school to disclose information that the school received under a State community notification program about a student who is required to register as a sex offender in the state.
• Schools must continue to honor opt out requests made while a student was enrolled at the school.
• Changes are being made to the FERPA complaint and enforcement process.
