Students’ Rights Concerning Education Records (FERPA)

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) affords students certain rights with respect to their education records. They are:

I. The right to inspect and review the student’s education records.

Students should submit to the registrar, the dean of students, or other appropriate college official, written requests that identify the record(s) they wish to inspect. If the records are not maintained by the college official to whom the request was submitted, that official shall advise the student of the correct official to whom the request should be addressed.

All requests shall be granted or denied in writing within 45 days of receipt. If the request is granted, the student will be provided with copies of the requested records or notified of the time and place where the records may be inspected. Students will be charged a fee for copies of requested records. If the request is denied or not responded to within 45 days, the student may appeal to the college’s FERPA appeals officer. Additional information regarding the appeal procedures will be provided by the college’s FERPA appeals officer: Office of Legal Affairs, Hunter College, Room 1705E, 695 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10021.

II. The right to request the amendment of the student’ s education records that the student believes are inaccurate or misleading.

Students may ask the college to amend a record that they believe is inaccurate or misleading. They should write to the registrar, the dean of students, or other appropriate college official, clearly identify the part of the record they want changed, and specify why it is inaccurate or misleading. If the college decides not to amend the record as requested by the student, the college will notify the student of the decision and advise the student of his or her right to a hearing before the college’s FERPA appeals officer regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to the student when notified of the right to a hearing.

III. The right to consent to disclosure of personally identifiable information contained in the student’ s education records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent.

One exception which permits disclosure without consent is disclosure to college officials with legitimate educational interests. A college official is a person employed by the University in an administrative, supervisory, academic or research, or support staff position; a person or company with whom the university has contracted; a person serving on the Board of Trustees; or a student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another college official in performing his or her tasks. A college official has a legitimate educational interest if access is reasonably necessary in order to perform his/her instructional, research, administrative or other duties and responsibilities. Upon request, the college discloses education records without consent to officials of another college or school in which a student seeks or intends to enroll.

IV. You may appeal the alleged denial of FERPA rights to the:

General Counsel and Vice Chancellor for Legal Affairs, The City University of New York, 205 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017.

V. The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by the college to comply with the requirements of FERPA.

The name and address of the office that administers FERPA are: Family Policy Compliance Office, U.S. Department of Education, 600 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20202-4605.

VI. The college will make the following “directory information” concerning current and former students available to those parties having a legitimate interest in the information:

A student’s name, attendance dates, telephone listing, home address, present address, e-mail address, major and minor fields of study, degrees and awards received, date of birth, place of birth, level of education, and the most recent previous educational institution attended. By filing a form with the Registrar’s Office, a student or former student may request that any or all of the above information not be released without his or her prior written consent. This form may be completed, withdrawn, or modified at any time.

This policy shall be effective as of September 2000 and shall supersede prior policy on this issue.