Policy JRA
Student Records (FERPA)
School Board Approved: August 30, 2010

Adult students over 18 years of age (“eligible student”) and parents/legal guardians of students under age 18 will have access to school records of Jaffrey-Rindge students in accordance with Federal and State law and this policy.

Annual Notice
Annually, the School District will distribute a student handbook to students, parents or guardians and adult students over 18 years of age containing the following notice of policies:

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act Annual Notice
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) affords parents and students over 18 years of age (“eligible students”) certain rights with respect to the student's education records. These rights are:

• The right to inspect and review the student's education records within 45 days of the day the School receives a request for access. Parents or eligible students should submit to the School principal a written request that identifies the record(s) they wish to inspect. The School principal or his/her designee will make
• arrangements for access and notify the parent or eligible student of the time and place where the records may be inspected.
  
• The right to request the amendment of the student’s education records that the parent or eligible student believes is inaccurate, misleading or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights. They should write the School principal, clearly identify the part of the record they want changed, and specify why it is
• inaccurate, misleading or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights. If the School principal decides not to amend the record as requested by the parent or eligible student, the School principal will notify the parent or eligible student of the decision and advise them of their right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to the parent or eligible student when notified of the right to a hearing.
  
• The right to consent to disclosures 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 school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school official is a person employed by the School as an administrator, supervisor, instructor, or support staff member (including health or medical staff and law enforcement unit personnel); a person serving on the
• School Board; a person or company with whom the School has contracted to perform a special task (such as an attorney, auditor, medical or educational consultant, education provider or therapist); or a parent or student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks. A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibility.
  
• The right, upon request, to have the School District discloses education records without consent to officials of schools in which a student seeks or intends to enroll.
  
• The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by the School 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
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20202-5901

Notice of Directory Information
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) requires that the Jaffrey- Rindge Cooperative School District, with certain exceptions, obtain your written consent prior to the disclosure of personally identifiable information from your child's education records. However, the School District may disclose appropriately designated “directory information” without written consent, unless you have advised the District to the contrary in accordance with District procedures. The primary purpose of directory information is to allow the School District to include this type of information from your child's education records in certain school publications. Examples include:

• Programs showing your student's role in an event.
  
• A yearbook.
  
• Honor roll or other recognition lists.
  
• Graduation programs.
  
• Sports activity sheets that may show weight and height of team members.
  

Directory information, which is information that is generally not considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if released, can also be disclosed to outside organizations without a parent's prior written consent. In addition, federal law requires local educational agencies (LEAs)or School Districts receiving assistance under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to provide military recruiters, upon request, with three directory information categories - names, addresses and telephone listings - unless parents have advised the LEA or School District that they do not want their student's information disclosed without their prior written consent.

If you do not want the School District to disclose directory information from your child's education records without your prior written consent, you must notify the School District in writing by September 30. The School District has designated the following information as directory information:

• Student's name
  
• Participation in officially recognized activities and sports
  
• Address and town of residence
  
• Telephone listing
  
• Weight and height of members of athletic teams
  
• Electronic mail address
  
• Photograph
  
• Degrees, honors, and awards received
  
• Date and place of birth
  
• Major field of study
  
• Dates of attendance
  
• Grade level
  
• The most recent educational agency or institution attended
  

Procedure to Inspect and Review Records
Parents/guardians and eligible students wishing to inspect student records must file a written request to do so with the Principal. Such inspection shall take place during regular school hours or at reasonable times during vacation periods, but not during weekends or holidays.

Single copies of appropriate records shall be made available in a reasonable length of time, but in no case more than 45 days after request has been made in writing to the building principals. The records may be inspected by the parents, guardians, and all eligible students in the presence of the records manager or his/her designee.

The school shall make a written record of the disclosure of all student information, except directory information, and such record will be kept in the student’s file. This record of disclosure is also available for inspection by the parent or eligible student. A record of inspections will also be kept in the student’s file.

In cases involving a third party request for records requiring consent for disclosure under law, the eligible student, parent or guardian shall sign a consent form furnished by the principal. Forms used will identify the records to which access is sought and will be placed in the student’s file as a record of the request.

Access will be refused or granted depending upon the propriety of the request and whether consent, if required, was granted.

If a request for access is refused, and the party who requested access objects to said refusal, said request will be referred to the Superintendent for a final ruling.

The building principal shall be the custodian of all student records in their school.

Procedure to Amend Records
The parent(s) or guardian(s) of a student under 18, or an eligible student, shall have an opportunity to identify in writing, addressed to the building principal, the record or records which they believe to be inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights, together with a statement of the reasons for the requested amendment of the record.

A response by the building principal shall be made within fourteen (14) days indicating whether he/she finds the record to be inaccurate, misleading or otherwise in violation of the student’s privacy rights and if so how the record will be corrected or deleted. The parent or eligible student will then be given five (5) days from receipt of the principal’s decision to refer the request on to the Superintendent for a hearing.

If requested, a hearing before the Superintendent or his/her designee who does not have a direct interest in the outcome of the hearing, shall be held within a reasonable period of time, but in no case more than forty-five (45) days after receipt of such a request by the superintendent of schools. The parent(s), guardian(s) or eligible student, will have the right to be represented by counsel and to present evidence in support of his/her belief that the record should be amended. A written decision will be rendered within thirty (30) days stating the disposition of the challenge to the record and the reasons for the determination. Although the hearing may be informal in nature, the processes used shall ensure fairness and impartiality. The decision of the Superintendent or designee shall be final and not subject to appeal.

If as a result of the hearing the Superintendent or his/her designee decides that the information in the education record is not inaccurate, misleading or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights of the student, he/she shall inform the parent or the eligible student of the right to place a statement in the record commenting on the contested information in the record or stating why he or she disagrees with the decision of the School District.

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