Overview

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), 20 USC § 1232(g), is a federal law that protects the confidentiality of student education records.  Students who are 18 years of age or older or who attend a postsecondary institution at any age have certain rights concerning their education records.  Those rights are:

  • The right to inspect and review their education records.
  • The right to request an amendment to their education records.
  • The right to consent to disclosures of personally identifiable information contained in their education records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent.
  • The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Dept. of Education.

 

There are certain circumstances in which information can be released from a student’s education record without a student’s written consent, such as with “Directory Information.”  Directory information is information that would not generally be considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if disclosed to the public.  Fort Valley State University has designated the following items as directory information:

  • Student Name
  • Hometown
  • Major Field of Study
  • Class Level
  • School E-Mail Address (it may be disclosed without consent only to other current students)
  • Participation in officially recognized activities and sports
  • Weight and height of members of athletic teams
  • Dates of attendance
  • Enrollment status (including hours enrolled)
  • Degrees received
  • Honors/awards received
  • Most recent previous school attended
  • Thesis and dissertation title 

The Solomon Amendment. The Solomon Amendment, 10 USC § 983, is a federal law that allows military recruiters to access some address, biographical, and academic program information about students aged 17 and older. The U.S. Dept. of Education has determined that the Solomon Amendment supersedes most elements of FERPA.

FVSU is obligated to release education records pursuant to the Solomon Amendment, which may or may not match FVSU’s Directory Information list, as long as the student has not submitted a request to opt-out of the information disclosure. Records under the Solomon Amendment that may be released is known as Student Recruitment Information.

    • Student Recruitment Information. FVSU has designated the following as Student Recruitment Information under the Solomon Amendment:

      • Student’s name

      • Address (permanent)

      • Telephone

      • Age or date of birth (17 years of age or older)

      • Place of birth

      • Education level

      • Academic major

      • Degrees received

      • Educational institution in which the student was most recently enrolled

Students have the right to prohibit the release of their directory information without their consent.  Students desiring to opt-out of having their directory information released should complete the FERPA Directory Information Opt-Out Form.

Students may make their education records accessible to third parties by providing consent to disclosure of their education records.  Students desiring to authorize the release of information from their education records must complete a FERPA Release Authorization for Education Records Form. 

Additional Resources:

FERPA Overview

Ferpa Request Form

Fort Valley State University FERPA Policy: FERPA Policy

U.S. Dept. of Education FERPA page: https://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html

Questions concerning the release of educational information under FERPA should be –directed to FVSU’s Privacy Officer, Ms. Michelle Clarington, via e-mail at michelle.clarington@fvsu.edu or via phone at 478-825-4321.