Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

Manhattanville University FERPA Policy Statement

Manhattanville University follows student records privacy guidelines set forth by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (the “Buckley Amendment”). The University's policy text refers to this act by its more familiar name of “FERPA”.

A Student's FERPA Rights

In accordance with FERPA, Manhattanville University requires that every student who chooses to have the University release copies of grades, transcripts, or any other data pertaining to academic performance to either parents, guardians, spouses, life partners, bill-payers, prospective employers, or governmental agencies must authorize the University to do so. Therefore, all requests to release such information must be accompanied by a written authorization which has been signed by the student. Without such authorization, the University will not release information. This policy extends and applies to parents who request access and disclosure of their child's educational records. A student's record is never released without written consent, except to University faculty and staff who have demonstrated a clear “need to know and legitimate educational interest”. Other exceptions to the above policy include compliance with a judicial order, the Solomon Amendment, subpoena or an emergency involving the health or safety of a student, another person or the campus-at-large.

In addition, Manhattanville University designates the following categories of student information as public or “Directory Information.” Unless specifically requested by the student within ten (10) days of the beginning of each semester to withhold disclosure of this information, such information may be disclosed by the institution for any purpose, at its discretion.

Category I: Name, dates of attendance, classification, major/degree program.

Category II: Previous institution(s) attended, awards, honors, degree(s) conferred, including dates.

Category III: Past and present participation in officially recognized activities.

Currently enrolled students, or any who have previously attended Manhattanville University, may inspect their academic records by making an official request in writing to the Registrar and obtaining an appointment to do so. A student may challenge possible inaccuracies or misleading items in his/her record during the course of such an inspection. Students also have the right to file a complaint with the United States Department of Education over alleged failures by the University to comply with the requirements of FERPA. NOTE: The fairness of grading by any Faculty member may NOT be challenged under FERPA.

Students will be notified each year of their rights under FERPA through the annual edition of this University Course Catalog (published online) and through the Registrar's Office web portal at www.mville.edu/registrar.

Student Review of Official College Records

A. Type and Location of Education Records; Officers Responsible

1. The principal education record for every current student and for graduates of the University is kept in the Registrar's Office. The Registrar and his/her representative are responsible for these records.
2. For the purposes of defining an education record, the University also recognizes the following types of administrative records as educational and, hence, protected by the provisions of FERPA.
   1. Student Financial Records (Officers responsible: VP Finance and Director of Student Accounts)
   2. Admission Records [prior to transmitting files to the Registrar's Office] (Officer responsible: Vice President for Enrollment Management)
   3. Financial Aid Records (Officer responsible: Director of Financial Aid)
   4. Records Pertaining to Student Athletes: (Officer responsible: Director of Athletics)
   5. Student Health Records (Officer responsible: Director of Health Services). Health records and HIPAA policy may apply here as well.
   6. Cumulative Academic Records [former students; permanent transcript] (Officer responsible: Registrar)
   7. Disciplinary Records [Academic] (Officer responsible: Provost's Office)
   8. Disciplinary Records [Non-Academic and those records which are not “law enforcement unit records”] (Officer responsible: Director of Student Life)
   9. Records Pertaining to Student Academic Advisement: (Officer responsible: Dean of Academic Advisement Office)
   10. Learning Assistance Center Student Records (Officer responsible: (Director: Academic Resource Center)

B. Inspection & Review of Records

1. Any student may inspect and review his/her educational records upon written request to the person in charge of the records, as listed above. If the written request is directed to any person other than the Registrar, a copy of that request must also be forwarded to the Registrar for inclusion in the student's academic file. That person is expected to comply as soon as possible; this must be done not later than 45 days after the request has been made and received.
2. The student has the right to review and inspect all the documents in his/her record EXCEPT:
   1. Confidential evaluations and letters of recommendation filed before January 1, 1975;
   2. Evaluations and recommendations after that date if the student has waived his/her right to see them;
   3. Financial records and statements of the student's parents or guardians submitted to assess eligibility for financial aid; and,
   4. Those documents classified by the law as non-educational. These include personal and procedural notes maintained by Faculty such as grade books, class room notes, etc.
3. If, after inspecting and reviewing his/her records, the student has any question about them, he/she may request an oral or written explanation and interpretation of them.
4. The student may also secure a copy of every document in the record which is open to him/her. These copies will be made by the Registrar or other designated officer under the same terms, conditions, and charges as for a copy of an official transcript at $8.00 for each request. Copies will be ready within 10 working days of the request. Copies will NOT be released if the student has an overdue debt owed the University.
5. The student has a right to file a complaint with the United States Department of Education over alleged failures by the University to comply with the requirements of FERPA; and
6. The student also has a right to obtain a copy of this policy. The publication of this FERPA statement within Manhattanville's annual University catalog serves as yearly notification of our FERPA policy.

C. Amendment of an Education Record

1. If, after inspecting and reviewing his/her records, the student believes that any information contained in them is inaccurate or misleading or violates his/her privacy or other rights, he/she may request, in writing to the Registrar, that the officer who is responsible for maintaining those records amend them. A copy of the request will be included in the student's file and in the record of inspection requests maintained by the Office of the Registrar.
2. That officer, in consultation with the Registrar, must reach a decision and inform the student of this decision in writing within a reasonable period of time after receipt of the request. A copy of this decision must also be forwarded to the Registrar for inclusion in the student's permanent academic record.
3. If the officer refuses to amend the record in accordance with the student's request, the student has the right to a hearing.
4. This hearing will be conducted by a committee appointed by the Provost and will consist of persons who do not have a direct interest in the outcome of the hearing.
5. The hearing will be held within a reasonable period of time after the student has made the request. The Provost's Office will provide the student with the date, place, and time of the hearing, reasonably in advance of the hearing.
6. The student will be afforded a full and fair opportunity to present evidence relevant to the issue raised, and may be assisted or represented by individuals of his/her own choice at his/her own expense, including an attorney. The hearing shall be presided over by a school official who shall not have a direct interest in the outcome of the hearing. The University may, in its discretion, decide to also have counsel present to assist the presiding officials.
7. The committee will make its decision in writing within a reasonable time period after the conclusion of its hearing.
8. The decision of the committee will be based solely upon the evidence presented at the hearing and will consist of a written statement given to all parties concerned, summarizing the evidence and stating the reasons for the decision.
9. If, as a result of the hearing, the committee supports the complaint of the student, the education records of the student will be amended accordingly, and the student will be so informed.
10. If the committee decides against the student, he/she has the right to place in his/her record a statement commenting on the information in the record and/or stating his/her reasons for disagreeing with the decision. This explanation will be maintained by the University in the office of the individual designated as custodian of the record in question as part of that education record of the student for as long as those records are maintained; and, whenever a copy of those records is sent to any party, the explanation will accompany it. A copy of this statement will also be forwarded to the Registrar for inclusion in the student's permanent file.

D. Disclosure of Information From Records

1. No office maintaining an education record of a student will disclose any personally identifiable information from that record to anyone other than the student without the written consent of the student, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent. Manhattanville University requires that every student who chooses to have the University release copies of grades, transcripts, or any other information relative to academic performance to either parents, guardians, bill-payers, prospective employers, or governmental agencies, must authorize the University to do so. Therefore, all requests either to secure or release these types of information must be accompanied by a written authorization which has been signed by the student. Without such authorization, the University will not release such information. This policy extends and applies to parents who request access and disclosure of their child's educational records. The student's written consent shall:
   1. Specify the records that may be disclosed
   2. State the purpose of the disclosure
   3. Identify the party or class of parties to whom disclosure may be made
2. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her written consent to academic and administrative officers within the University who have a legitimate educational interest in the information. “Legitimate educational interest” means the demonstrated need to know by those persons who act in the student's educational interest or require such information to carry out their usual duties. These individuals include the following persons as well as their professional and clerical staff acting under their instruction: the President and Vice-Presidents; The Provost's office; the Registrar; the Finance and Student Accounts offices; the Director of Financial Aid; Divisional Deans; the Director of the Academic Resource Center; the Director of Student Life; the Director of Health Services; the Director of Athletics; the Director of Campus Safety; and any other faculty member or administrator to whom, or to whose office, the student has addressed an educational request, application, or inquiry, for the records as needed to prepare a reply.
3. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her written consent to those federal and state government agencies and officials provided by law.
4. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her written consent to an agency to which the student has applied for or from which he/she has received financial aid, or which has made decisions concerning eligibility, amount, conditions, or enforcement of terms of such aid.
5. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her written consent to certain educational agencies and institutions, as permitted by law.
6. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her written consent to comply with a judicial order or subpoena.
7. The records of a student will be disclosed without his/her written consent in a health or safety emergency, as provided by law.
8. DIRECTORY INFORMATION: The University reserves the right to disclose directory information to anyone inquiring without the student's consent unless the student, within ten days of the beginning of each semester, informs the Office of the Registrar, in writing, that any or all such information about him/her is not to be made public without his/her written permission: student's name, dates of attendance, classification, program of study, previous institution(s) attended, awards, honors, degree(s) conferred (including dates), and past and/or present participation in officially recognized activities.
9. A record of all disclosures will be maintained in the office of the education record with a copy of the disclosure sent to the Office of the Registrar. This record will be subject, upon written request by the student, to inspection and review.
10. The Solomon Amendment (10 U.S.C. § 982; 32 C.F.R. 216, 65 F.R. 2056) is not a part of FERPA, but it allows military organizations access to information ordinarily restricted under FERPA for the purpose of military recruiting. Specifically, the Solomon Amendment allows armed forces entities to recruit students 17 years old or older, and to obtain students' names, addresses, phone numbers, age, class, and degree program one or more times per year. Institutions are only exempt from these requirements if they do not collect this information, or if they do not normally provide this information to prospective employers. Institutions that violate the Solomon Amendment risk loss of funding from several federal agencies, including the Departments of Defense, Education, Health and Human Services, and Labor. If a component of the institution violates the Solomon Amendment, larger system funding may be affected.

E. Right of Complaint

Students who believe that Manhattanville University is not complying with the requirements of FERPA or with the regulations issued by the Department of Education implementing that Act, may file complaints in writing with:

Family Policy and Regulations Office

U.S. Department of Education

Room 1087, FB-6

400 Maryland Avenue, SW

Washington, D.C. 20202-4605