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Academics
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Academics
Office of The Registrar
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
of 1974
FERPA POLICY STATEMENT
Student Review Of Official Records
A. TYPE AND LOCATION OF EDUCATION RECORDS; OFFICERS RESPONSIBLE
1. The principal education record for every current
student and for those students who have either graduated within three
years or withdrawn from the College within three years is kept at the
Office of the Registrar. The Registrar or his representative is responsible
for these records.
2. For the purposes of defining an education record, the College also
recognizes the following types of administrative records as educational
and, hence, protected by the provisions of FERPA.
a. Student Financial Records (Officer responsible: Assistant Controller/Bursar)
b. Admission Records [prior to transmitting files to the Registrar's
office] (Officer responsible: Vice President for Enrollment Management)
c. Financial Aid Records (Officer responsible: Director of Financial
Aid)
d. Records Pertaining to Student Athletes: (Officer responsible:
Director of Athletics)
e. Student Health Records (Officer responsible: Director of Health
Services)
f. Cumulative Academic Records [former students; over three years
after graduation or after three years from the year of withdrawal]
(Officer responsible: Registrar)
g. Disciplinary Records [Academic] (Officer responsible: Vice President
for Academic Affairs)
h. Archived Disciplinary Records [Academic] (Officer responsible:
College Archivist)
i. Disciplinary Records [Non-Academic and those records which are
not "law enforcement unit records"] (Officer responsible:
Director of Student Development)
j. Division Records (Officer Responsible: Division Dean)
k. Faculty Records Pertaining to Students: (Officer responsible:
Designated Faculty Advisor)
l. Records Pertaining to Student Academic Advisement: (Officer
responsible: Designated Faculty Advisor)
m. Learning Assistance Center Student Records (Officer responsible:
(Director: Academic Resource Center)
n. Student Affairs Student Records (Officer responsible: Vice President
for Student Affairs)
B. INSPECTION AND REVIEW OF RECORDS
1. Any student may inspect and review his/her educational
records upon written request to the person in charge of the records,
as listed above. If the written request is directed to any person
other than the Registrar, a copy of that request must also be forwarded
to the Registrar for inclusion in the student's academic record.
That person is expected to comply as soon as possible; this must be
done not later than 45 days after the request has been made and received.
2. The student has the right to review and inspect all the
documents in his/her record except:
a. Confidential evaluations and letters of recommendation
filed before January 1, 1975;
b. Evaluations and recommendations after that date if the
student has waived his/her right to see them;
c. Financial records and statements of the student's parents;
and,
d. Those documents classified by the law as non-educational.
3. If, after inspecting and reviewing his/her records, the
student has any question about them, he/she may request an oral or
written explanation and interpretation of them.
4. The student may also secure a copy of every document in
the record which is open to him/her. These copies will be made by
the Registrar or other designated officer under the same terms, conditions,
and charges as for a copy of a transcript, i.e., $5.00 for each request
(normatively completed within 5 working days of request). Copies,
however, will not be supplied if the student has an overdue debt owed
the College.
5. The student has a right to file a complaint with the United
States Department of Education over alleged failures by the College
to comply with the requirements of FERPA; and
6. The student also has a right to obtain a copy of this policy.
1. If, after inspecting and reviewing his/her records, the
student believes that any information contained in them is inaccurate
or misleading or violates his/her privacy or other rights, he/she
may request, in writing to the Registrar, that the officer
who is responsible for maintaining those records amend them. A copy
of the request will be included in the student's file and in the record
of inspection requests maintained by the Office of the Registrar.
2. That officer, in consultation with the Registrar, must
reach a decision and inform the student of this decision in writing
within a reasonable period of time after receipt of the request. A
copy of this decision must also be forwarded to the Registrar for
inclusion in the student's permanent academic record.
3. If the officer refuses to amend the record in accordance
with the student's request, the student has the right to a hearing.
4. This hearing will be conducted by a committee appointed
by the Vice President for Academic Affairs and will consist of persons
who do not have a direct interest in the outcome of the hearing.
5. The hearing will be held within a reasonable period of
time after the student has made the request. The Vice President for
Academic Affairs will provide the student with the date, place, and
time of the hearing, reasonably in advance of the hearing.
6. The student will be afforded a full and fair opportunity
to present evidence relevant to the issue raised, and may be assisted
or represented by individuals of his/her own choice at his/her own
expense, including an attorney. The hearing shall be presided over
by an official of the College who shall not have a direct interest
in the outcome of the hearing. The College may, in its discretion,
decide to have counsel present to assist the presiding officials.
7. The committee will make its decision in writing within
a reasonable time period after the conclusion of its hearing.
8. The decision of the committee will be based solely upon
the evidence presented at the hearing and will consist of a written
statement given to all parties concerned, summarizing the evidence
and stating the reasons for the decision.
9. If, as a result of the hearing, the committee supports
the complaint of the student, the education records of the student
will be amended accordingly, and the student will be so informed.
10. If the committee decides against the student, he/she has
the right to place in his/her record a statement commenting on the
information in the record and/or stating his/her reasons for disagreeing
with the decision. This explanation will be maintained by the College
in the office of the individual designated as custodian of the record
in question as part of that education record of the student for as
long as those records are maintained; and, whenever a copy of those
records is sent to any party, the explanation will accompany it. A
copy of this statement will also be forwarded to the Registrar.
1. No office maintaining an education record of a student
will disclose any personally identifiable information from that record
to anyone other than the student without the written consent of the
student, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without
consent. Neumann College requires that every student who chooses to
have the College release copies of grades, transcripts, or any other
information relative to academic performance to either parents, guardians,
bill-payers, prospective employers, or governmental agencies, must
authorize the College to do so. Therefore, all requests either to
secure or release these types of information must be accompanied by
a written authorization which has been signed by the student. Without
such authorization, the College will not release such information.
This policy extends and applies to parents who request access and
disclosure of their child's educational records. The student's written
consent shall:
a. Specify the records that may be disclosed
b. State the purpose of the disclosure
c. Identify the party or class of parties to whom disclosure
may be made
2. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her
written consent to academic and administrative officers within the
College who have a legitimate educational interest in the information.
"Legitimate educational interest" means the demonstrated
need to know by those persons who act in the student's educational
interest. These individuals include the following persons as well
as their professional and clerical staff acting under their instruction:
the President and Vice-Presidents; the Registrar; the Assistant Controller/Bursar;
the Director of Financial Aid; the Division Deans; the Director of
the Academic Resource Center; the Director of Student Development;
the Director of Health Services; the Director of Athletics; the Director
of Campus Safety; and any other faculty member or administrator to
whom, or to whose office, the student has addressed an educational
request, application, or inquiry, for the records as needed to prepare
a reply.
3. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her
written consent to those federal and state government agencies and
officials provided by law.
4. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her
written consent to an agency to which the student has applied for
or from which he/she has received financial aid, or which has made
decisions concerning eligibility, amount, conditions, or enforcement
of terms of such aid.
5. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her
written consent to certain educational agencies and institutions,
as permitted by law.
6. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her
written consent to comply with a judicial order or subpoena.
7. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her
written consent in a health or safety emergency, as provided by law.
8. The following information related to a student is considered
DIRECTORY INFORMATION, and the College reserves the
right to disclose it to anyone inquiring without the student's consent
unless the student, within ten days of the beginning of each semester,
informs the Office of the Registrar, in writing, that any or all such
information about him/her is not to be made public without his/her
written permission: student's name, dates of attendance, classification,
program of study, previous institution(s) attended, awards, honors,
degree(s) conferred (including dates), and past and/or present participation
in officially recognized activities.
9. A record of all disclosures will be maintained in the office
of the education record with a copy of the disclosure sent to the
Office of the Registrar. This record will be subject, upon written
request by the student, to inspection and review.
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E. RIGHT OF COMPLAINT
Students who believe that Neumann College is not complying with the
requirements of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act or with
the regulations issued by the Department of Education implementing that
Act, may file complaints in writing with:
Family Policy and Regulations Office
U.S. Department of Education
Room 1087, FB-6
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20202-4605
The full text of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act as amended,
and the full text of the final regulations of the U.S. Department of
Education for the implementation of the Act, are available for inspection
at the Office of the Registrar.
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FERPA STUDENT RIGHTS
In accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
of 1974, Neumann College requires that every student who chooses
to have the College release copies of grades, transcripts, or any other
information relative to academic performance to either parents, guardians,
bill-payers, prospective employers, or governmental agencies, must authorize
the College to do so. Therefore, all requests either to secure or release
these types of information must be accompanied by a written authorization
which has been signed by the student. Without such authorization, the
College will not release such information. This policy extends and applies
to parents who request access and disclosure of their child's educational
records. A student's record is never released without written consent,
except to Neumann College faculty and staff who have demonstrated a
clear need to know. Other exceptions to the above policy include compliance
with a judicial order or an emergency involving the health or safety
of a student or other person.
Institutions are also permitted to disclose final results of a disciplinary
hearing once a decision has been made and a sanction has been imposed.
Final results are to include only name, violation committed and sanction
imposed.
In addition, Neumann College hereby designates the following categories
of student information as public or "Directory Information."
Unless specifically requested by the student within ten (10) days of
the beginning of each semester to withhold disclosure of this information,
such information may be disclosed by the institution for any purpose,
at its discretion.
Category I: Name, dates of attendance, classification, major/degree
program.
Category II: Previous institution(s) attended, awards, honors,
degree(s) conferred, including dates.
Category III: Past and present participation in officially
recognized activities.
Currently enrolled students, or any who have previously attended Neumann
College, may inspect their academic records by making an official request
in writing to the Registrar and obtaining an appointment to do so. A
student may challenge possible inaccuracies or misleading items in his/her
record during the course of such an inspection. However, the fairness
of a grade may not be challenged under this provision. Students also
have the right to file a complaint with the United States Department
of Education over alleged failures by the College to comply with the
requirements of FERPA.
Students will be notified each year of their rights under FERPA through
the annual edition of the College's Undergraduate Catalog and
Graduate Catalog, as well as through the Office of the
Registrar's Web Page at www.neumann.edu/academics/registrar.asp.
Further information regarding the Family Educational Rights and Privacy
Act of 1974 may be obtained from the Registrar's Office.
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