FERPA Student Script
Slide 1: Blank
Slide 2: Student Privacy
Understanding FERPA
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974
Slide 3: Provide you with knowledge of educational privacy requirements.
Give you the tools needed to begin to solve other issues related to the protection of your
student record.
Learn about campus resources for assistance.
Slide 4: Which law protects students’ educational records?
What rights does this law give to students?
When students are in high school, their parents have the right to access their educational
records without their permission. Is this still true when a student enrolls in college?
Slide 5: Why does the college’s Testing Center ask for identification when a student takes an
examination or placement test?
Why does the Admissions and Records Office ask for identification when a student inquires
about a grade or requests a transcript?
Why should students log off Owl Link and MyPGCC after they access their records or register for
classes?
Slide 6: The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 protects student educational records and
describes when it is appropriate to release student information. It is also known as FERPA.
Slide 7: Under FERPA, students have:
The right to limit the release of information, except as permitted by the law.
The right to inspect and review education records.
The right to request an amendment to education records believed to be inaccurate or
misleading.
The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education.
Additional information about FERPA can be found in the College Catalog and in the Schedule of
Classes.
Slide 8: Education Records are records directly related to a student and maintained by an educational
agency or institution, or by a party acting for the agency or institution.
Examples:
Transcript/Grades
Class Schedule
Program Evaluation
Owl Link Records (computer records)
Slide 9: So, who may access education records?
Students may access their own records.
School officials, employees, and agents may access records to perform the duties of their jobs.
Slide 10: A person with permission from the student or who has permission through an exception to the
law.
While others may not access education records without a student’s permission, or through an
exception to the law, public or directory information may be released.
Slide 11: The College Catalog provides the following:
Directory information is information which may be released to a third party without written
consent.
Directory Information includes, but is not limited to, name, address, telephone number, e-mail
address, dates of attendance, degrees earned and previous colleges attended.
Slide 12: While the college does not routinely release such information to everyone who inquires, it
may legally do so if the third party demonstrates a legitimate need to know such information.
Students may refuse to permit such disclosure without written consent by notifying the
Director of Admissions and Records in writing of your wish to be excluded from such a release
of information.
Slide 13: FERPA is the law that protects students’ educational records and gives students rights to those
records.
Those rights include the ability to limit the release of information, to review education records,
and others.
Once a recent high school student is enrolled in college, the right to the student’s educational
record is transferred from the parent to the student.
Parents are no longer automatically entitled to access records without a student’s consent.
Slide 14: College offices and employees ask for identification before information is provided to a
student from his/her record, in order to protect the record and to ensure that information is
not released improperly.
Records include those available on the computer through Owl Link and MyPGCC.
As a result, it is important that students take steps to protect their information too.
This includes logging off after you access Owl Link and MyPGCC.
Slide 15: Office of Admissions and Records, Bladen Hall, Room 126
College Catalog
Schedule of Classes
U.S. Department of Education, Family Policy Compliance Office web site
Slide 16: Thank you for viewing this tutorial.
We hope that you have a better understanding of student privacy, student records, and the
way that the college protects those records.
Welcome to Prince George’s Community College!