School Based Research:
The Family Education Rights and
Privacy Act (FERPA)
&
The Protection of Pupil Rights
Amendment (PPRA)
IRB C Member Presentation
The Family Education Rights
and Privacy Act (FERPA)
(20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99)
What is FERPA?

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The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20
U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99) is a Federal law that protects
the privacy of student education records. The law applies to
all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of
the U.S. Department of Education.
FERPA gives parents certain rights with respect to their
children's education records. These rights transfer to the
student when he or she reaches the age of 18 or attends a
school beyond the high school level. Students to whom the
rights have transferred are "eligible students.“
http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html
What is FERPA?

Generally, schools must have written permission from the parent or eligible student in
order to release any information from a student's education record. However, FERPA
allows schools to disclose those records, without consent, to the following parties or
under the following conditions (34 CFR § 99.31):
–
School officials with legitimate educational interest;
–
Other schools to which a student is transferring;
–
Specified officials for audit or evaluation purposes;
–
Appropriate parties in connection with financial aid to a student;
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Organizations conducting certain studies for or on behalf of the school;
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Accrediting organizations;
–
To comply with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena;
–
Appropriate officials in cases of health and safety emergencies; and
–
State and local authorities, within a juvenile justice system, pursuant to specific
State law.
How is FERPA Interpreted?
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FERPA is a federal law that is locally interpreted and applied. In the UC
system, we interpret FERPA as adopted by the UC Regents.
Definitions per the UC Regent’s 130.00 Policies Applying to the Disclosure of
Information from Student Records:
http://www.ucop.edu/ucophome/coordrev/ucpolicies/aos/toc130.html
130.220 - "Record" means any information recorded in any way,
including, but not limited to, handwriting, print, computer media, video
or audio tape, film, microfilm, and microfiche.
130.231 - "Student records" are those records that contain information
directly related to a student and that are maintained by a University of
California campus, the University of California Office of the President, or
by any organization authorized to act on behalf of the University.
130.232 - Student records include, but are not limited to, academic
evaluations, including student examination papers, transcripts, test
scores and other academic records; general counseling and advising
records; disciplinary records; and financial aid records, including student
loan collection records.
How is FERPA Interpreted?
The UCI Registrar is the
FERPA campus
coordinator. They provide
a matrix to help navigate
what student information
can be accessed at UCI
per the UC Regents
adoption of FERPA.
http://www.reg.uci.edu/facnet/matrix.pdf
How does FERPA effect the
IRB Review of protocols?
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To maintain consistency across protocols, all UCI protocols are
reviewed as if they were federally funded. Therefore, when a
researcher is accessing official student records for research
purposes, the protocol must adhere FERPA regulations.
The IRB does not have the authority to determine if waivers of
written permission can be granted when a researcher is accessing
official student records. As each institution interprets FERPA
differently, the participating school district and/or local school will
make the determination regarding whether the researcher must
obtain written permission.
Prior to granting IRB approval, the IRB must receive written letters
of permission from each participating school district and/or local
school. The letter of permission must confirm the study’s adherence
to FERPA and provide the determination regarding whether written
permission is necessary.
How does FERPA effect the
IRB Review of protocols?
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When the researcher is accessing UCI student records, they must
submit a copy their IRB application to the UCI FERPA Analyst for
review.
The UCI FERPA Analyst will issue a written letter to the researcher
and to the IRB. This letter will specify any revisions that are
required in order for the protocol to be FERPA compliant and it will
provide the determination regarding whether written permission
must be obtained.
The UCI Registrar’s current FERPA Analyst is:
Mark Fonseca
Registrar/SAIS
ifonseca@uci.edu
(949) 824-9672
The Protection of Pupil
Rights Amendment (PPRA)
(20 U.S.C. § 1232h; 34 CFR Part 98)
What is the PPRA?
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The Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) (20 U.S.C. §
1232h; 34 CFR Part 98) applies to programs that receive funding
from the U.S. Department of Education (ED). PPRA is intended to
protect the rights of parents and students in two ways:
– It seeks to ensure that schools and contractors make
instructional materials available for inspection by parents if those
materials will be used in connection with an ED-funded survey,
analysis, or evaluation in which their children participate; and
– It seeks to ensure that schools and contractors obtain written
parental consent before minor students are required to
participate in any ED-funded survey, analysis, or evaluation that
ask questions falling in the protected information categories.
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PPRA gives parents the right to:
– Inspect instructional materials and surveys
– Consent before their children participate in protected information
surveys
Protected Information
Categories
– Political affiliations;
– Mental and psychological problems potentially
embarrassing to the student and his/her family;
– Sex behavior and attitudes;
– Illegal, anti-social, self-incriminating and demeaning
behavior;
– Critical appraisals of other individuals with whom
respondents have close family relationships;
– Legally recognized privileged or analogous
relationships, such as those of lawyers, physicians,
and ministers; or
– Income (other than that required by law to
determine eligibility for participation in a program or
for receiving financial assistance under such
program).
How does PPRA effect the
IRB Review of protocols?
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To maintain consistency across protocols, all UCI
protocols are reviewed as if they were federally funded.
Therefore, PPRA regulations should be applied to all
protocols falling under its purview.
The PPRA applies specifically to students who are
minors.
The IRB does not have the authority to waive written
parental consent when a researcher is conducting
research that falls under PPRA regulations.
When a protocol falls under PPRA, the IRB must ensure
that researcher allows parents to inspect the materials
and that written parental permission is obtained.
Additional Information
Please visit the following U.S.
Department of Education websites for
additional information regarding these
regulations:

FERPA:
http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html
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PPRA:
http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ppra/index.html
Questions?
Please feel free to contact the IRB C HRP staff:
Jessica Sheldon
IRB C Administrator
jessica.sheldon@uci.edu
949-824-4779
Alicia Tieman (Asgari)
IRB C Analyst
alicia.tieman@uci.edu
949-824-7114
Matthew Alcala
IRB C Assistant
matthew.alcala@uci.edu
949-824-6662