Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

What is FERPA?
It is the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, originally enacted in 1974 and has been significantly amended in 1992 and 1994.  The original purpose was to assure parents of students access to their education records and to such individuals' rights to privacy by limiting the transferability of their records without their consent.  FERPA does not create a right to public access.

Who has rights under FERPA?
Parents of students under the age of 18, while students attend school.  However, the law transfers rights to the student when the student turns 18.

What are the rights granted by FERPA?
The right to inspect and review the educational records relating to the student maintained by the university the student attends or has attended.

The right to challenge and require the university to amend any portion of the educational records concerning the student that are inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the student's privacy rights.

The right to require the university to obtain written consent prior to disclosure of personally identifiable information, except in those specific instances noted in the statute.