Office of the Registrar

1. What is FERPA?

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, commonly known as FERPA, is a federal law governing the privacy of education records.

It grants specific rights to students and sets restrictions on how schools may handle education records. FERPA requires that schools obtain written permission from students before releasing education records. In certain well-defined circumstances, some information may be released without written permission from the student.

FERPA gives each student the following rights:

  • The right to inspect and review the education records the school is keeping on the student.
  • The right to request a correction to those records.
  • The right to control the disclosure of certain aspects of the student's education record.
  • The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education.

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