Notification of FERPA to students is done annually during the fall semester. This document, the Annual Family Educational Rights Privacy Act (FERPA) Notice, is mailed to the student’s home address annually. It is also available to each student on the college website and in the student catalog.
Students have a right to review their educational records. Students who wish to review their educational records must submit the request in writing with the Registrar. Students must review educational records in the presence of the Registrar or a member of Student Affairs. Students who request to review their academic record will be notified within 5 to 7 business days of an appointment date, place and time to review their academic record. The office of the registrar has 45 days to comply with the request.
Students wishing to amend their records must submit a written appeal to the registrar and Dean of Students Services for review. There are three reasons in which a record may be amended.
A written request to amend a record must be submitted to the Registrar with a detailed explanation of what information the student is requesting to amend and why. The request will be reviewed within 10 business days by the Registrar.
Under the Federal Family Educational and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) and provisions of state law relating to public disclosure, Mesalands Community College policies applying to the disclosure of information from students’ records Mesalands Community College students have the following rights:
- The right to inspect information contained in the student’s educational records.
- The right to request correction of records upon proof of error.
- The right to prevent disclosure of records without consent, with certain exceptions, including directory information, as delineated in the College’s complete policy.
- The right to secure a copy of the College’s complete policy (see Office of Enrollment Management).
- The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by the College to comply with the provisions of the Act.
- The right to have directory information withheld.
Copies of the campus policy are available in the Student Affairs Office, which maintains student records and has available written procedures indicating the types of student records maintained, the officials responsible for their maintenance, the procedures for granting access to records, the procedures for reviewing and correcting and/or challenging the content of records, the cost (if any) charged for copies, the categories of information made available as public information, and the manner in which students may request that information about them not be released as public information.
Under 34 C.F.R. 99.36(c), the DOE states that health and safety issues are best made by the individual institution on disclosing personal identifiable information to appropriate parties, based on the information available at the time of the determination.
