This section is Oklahoma State University Policy and Procedure Letter 2-0701, revised February 2011.
1.01 This letter contains the University’s policy and procedures relative to the Family Rights and Privacy Act of l974, known as the “Buckley Amendment.”
2.01 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that current and former students and parents of students, where appropriate, have the right to review educational records maintained about them by the institution, except for material to which the student has waived right of access or for material specifically determined to be confidential by law. Students shall be informed of their rights each year.
2.02 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that information contained in educational records is confidential but may be reviewed by “school officials” who have a “legitimate educational interest” in the student without prior consent of the student. “School official” is defined as an individual currently serving as a member of the Oklahoma State University Board of Regents or classified as faculty, administrative, or professional and staff such school officials supervise; and, the President and CEO of the Alumni Association and President and CEO of the Oklahoma State University Foundation and the staff they supervise, the National Student Clearinghouse, and contractors, volunteers, and other non-employees performing institutional functions as school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school official has a “legitimate educational interest” if a review of a student’s record is necessary to fulfill the official’s professional responsibilities to the University. School officials may have legitimate educational interests both in students who are currently enrolled and in those no longer enrolled.
2.03 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that Directory Information may be released without prior consent of the student unless the student formally requests that such information be kept confidential. Such requests for confidentiality of directory information remain in effect until revoked by the student and apply to all categories of directory information, i.e., students may not specify that only some of the items be kept confidential. Only identifiers that are acceptable under FERPA will be used to identify students whose records are released.
2.04 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that a student may be provided with copies of all or a part of his or her own educational record, although the University reserves the right both to charge for this service and to suspend such rights to copies in those cases in which the student has an outstanding obligation to the institution. Such a “hold” on the records will be removed when the obligation is legally and morally satisfied.
2.05 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that requests from off-campus parties for information from educational records shall be handled through the office that is responsible for maintaining the record. These include, but are not restricted to: a) the Office of the Registrar for academic records; b) the Office of Student Judicial Affairs for disciplinary records; c) the Office of the Bursar for billing and payment records; d) the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid for scholarship and financial aid records; e) the Human Resources office or Career Services office for employment/placement records; and f) the Communication Services office for directory information. A student or former student, however, may request any school official to release personally identifiable information from his or her records to a third party by providing written authorization.
2.06 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that a record of non-routine disclosure of personally identifiable information—i.e., disclosure to persons other than school officials who have a legitimate educational interest in the student (see 2.02 above)--shall be maintained in each student’s file, and such a record may be reviewed by the student.
2.07 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that a student may challenge the content of the educational record if such records are believed to be inaccurate, misleading, or in violation of the privacy or other rights of the student.
2.08 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that faculty, staff, and other employees or volunteers serving as school officials with legitimate educational interest complete university-sponsored FERPA training before obtaining access to student education records.
2.09 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University that if an articulable and significant threat to the health or safety of a student or other individual is determined, university personnel may disclose information from education records to any person, including parents, whose knowledge of the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals. University personnel must record in the student’s file the articulable and significant threat that formed the rational basis for the disclosure.
2.10 It is the policy of Oklahoma State University to use methods that are in compliance with FERPA to identify and authenticate the identity of students, parents, school officials, and other parties to whom personally identifiable information from education records is released.
3.01 Each year, the Registrar shall publicly notify students of their right to review their own educational records, and students seeking access to their own educational records should present themselves to the appropriate central office (see Section 2.05 above) and make their request to a member of the office staff. Positive identification will be expected.
3.02 “Directory information” consists of the following information and is subject to change provided the change is effective only at the subsequent year (i.e., fall term) and provided the change(s) is/are appropriately publicized.
Students who want directory information kept confidential shall complete the form designated for that action, doing so in the Office of the Registrar on or before the date established by and publicized by that office.
3.03 A student who wants a copy of information contained in the educational record shall make such request in writing to the official responsible for maintaining the record. The request shall clearly identify what material is to be copied. Fees for copies are as follows: Copies of transcripts shall be provided at the rate established by the Registrar for all such requests; copies of other records shall be provided at a per page rate equal to that established for photocopy machines housed in the University Library.
3.04 When personally identifiable information is released from the educational record to individuals or parties (other than those for whom record-keeping requirements are not mandated), a record shall be kept of who requested the material, why the request was made, and what material, if any, was made available. In addition, records must be maintained of the names of state and local educational authorities and federal officials and agencies that may make further disclosures of personally identifiable information from the student’s education records without consent. The university must obtain a copy of the record of further disclosures maintained and make it available in response to an eligible student’s request to review the record.
3.05 When a student challenges the content of the educational record, the following steps will be used:
October 26, 1976
Revised June 2007; March 2008; January 2011; February 2011
This policy may be accessed on the OSU Stillwater website.
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