Tulane University Office of the General Counsel - FERPA/Student Record Policy

ANNUAL NOTIFICATION OF RIGHTS UNDER FERPA

Tulane University complies with the provision of the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (Buckley Amendment), which was enacted to protect the privacy of education records, to establish the right of students to inspect and review their education records, and to provide guidelines for the correction of inaccurate or misleading data. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) affords students certain rights with respect to their education records. They are:

1. The right to inspect and review the student’s education records within 45 days of the day the University receives a request for access.
   
   Students should submit to the registrar, dean, head of the academic department, or other appropriate official, written requests that identify the record(s) they wish to inspect. The University official will make arrangements for access and notify the student of the time and place where the records may be inspected. If the records are not maintained by the University official to whom the request was submitted, that official shall advise the student of the correct official to whom the request should be addressed.
   
   
2. The right to request the amendment of the student’s education records that the student believes are inaccurate or misleading.
   
   Students may ask the University to amend a record that they believe is inaccurate or misleading. They should write the University official responsible for the record, clearly identify the part of the record they want changed, and specify why it is inaccurate or misleading.
   
   If the University decides not to amend the record as requested by the student, the University will notify the student of the decision and advise the student of his or her right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to the student when notified of the right to a hearing.
   
   
3. The right to consent to disclosures of personally identifiable information contained in the student’s education records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent.
   
   One exception which permits disclosure without consent is disclosure 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 (such as an attorney, auditor, or collection agent); a person serving on the Board of Trustees; or a student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks. A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibility.
   
   Upon request of a post-secondary institution, Tulane discloses education records without consent of the student to 3 officials of another school in which a student seeks to enroll. Tulane will make a reasonable attempt to notify the student of the records request.
   
   
4. The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by Tulane to comply with the requirements of FERPA.
   
   The name and address of the office that administers FERPA is:
   
   Family Policy Compliance Office
   U.S. Department of Education
   600 Independence Avenue, SW
   Washington, DC 20202-4605

DIRECTORY INFORMATION

The items below are designated Directory Information and may be released for any purpose at the discretion of Tulane:

name, addresses (including e-mail), phone numbers, dates of attendance, classification, major, awards, honors, degrees conferred and dates, school, full/part time status, past and present participation in officially sanctioned sports and activities, physical factors (height, weight of athletes), photographs, and date and place of birth.

Under the provisions of the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, students have the right to withhold disclosure to such Directory Information. Such requests are valid only when a written request to rescind is received by the Office of the Registrar by 5:00 p.m. on the last day to add classes as listed in the Academic Calendar.