E175-R/H225-R – STUDENT RECORDS AND INSPECTION OF MATERIALS

In order to provide appropriate educational services and programming, the Corporation must collect, retain, and use information about individual students. Simultaneously, the Corporation recognizes the need to safeguard student’s privacy and restrict access to student’s personally identifiable information.

Student “personally identifiable information” (“PII”) includes, but is not limited to: the student’s name; the name of the student’s parent or other family members; the address of the student or student’s family; a personal identifier, such as the student’s social security number, student number, or biometric record; other indirect identifiers, such as the student’s date of birth, place of birth, and mother’s maiden name; other information that, alone or in combination, is linked or linkable to a specific student that would allow a reasonable person in the school community, who does not have personal knowledge of the relevant circumstances, to identify the student with reasonable certainty; or information requested by a person whom the School Corporation reasonably believes knows the identity of the student to whom the education record relates.

A social security number of a student contained in the records of the Corporation may be disclosed if the record is specifically required by a State or a Federal Statute or is ordered by a court under the rules of discovery.

PII concerning students shall be protected against theft, unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, misuse, or invasion of privacy. Unless specifically authorized by the Superintendent or produced pursuant to a request under the Indiana Access to Public Records Act, PII concerning students shall not be left unprotected, shared or transferred from Corporation records to any place not within the control of the Corporation. This includes any laptop computer or portable storage medium.

The Corporation is responsible for maintaining records of all students attending schools in this Corporation. In addition to records mandated by the Federal Government, the State of Indiana requires that the Corporation record or include in the official high school transcript for each high school student the following information:

A.	attendance records
B.	the students’ latest standardized test results
C.	any secondary level and postsecondary level certificates of achievement earned by the student
D.	immunization information from the student’s immunization record
E.	any dual credit courses taken that are included in the core transfer library under I.C. 21-42-5-4

The Administration will collect various other student  data and information as necessary for the education of Corporation students.  Such information shall be kept confidential as required by law:

Student records shall be available only to students and their parents, eligible students, and designated school officials, who have a legitimate educational interest in the information, or to other individuals or organizations as permitted by law.

The term “parents” includes legal guardians or other persons standing in loco parentis. The term “eligible student” includes any student who is eighteen (18) years of age or older, or who is enrolled in a postsecondary institution regardless of his/her age.

In situations in which a student has both a custodial and a noncustodial parent, both shall have access to the student’s educational records unless stated otherwise by court order. In the case of an eligible student, that is a student who is eighteen (18) years of age or older, parents will be allowed access to the records without the student’s consent, provided the student is considered a dependent under Section 152 of the Internal Revenue Code.

A “school official” is a person employed by the Corporation as an administrator, supervisor, teacher/instructor (including substitutes), school psychologist, therapist, or support staff member (including health or medical staff and law enforcement unit personnel); and a person serving on the Board. The Board further designates the following individuals and entities as “school officials” for purposes of FERPA:

A.	persons or companies with whom the Corporation has contracted to perform a specific task (such as an attorney, auditor, insurance representative, or medical consultant);
B.	school psychologists, whether employed by a special education cooperative, interlocal, joint services organization, or an outside contractor, for purposes of the referral, evaluation and identification of students suspected to have a disability;
C.	contractors, consultants, volunteers or other parties to whom the Corporation has outsourced a service or function otherwise performed by Corporation employees (e.g. a therapist, authorized information technology (IT) staff, and approved online educational service providers).

The above-identified outside parties must (a) perform institutional services or functions for which the Corporation would otherwise use its employees, (b) be under the direct control of the Corporation with respect to the use and maintenance of education records, and (c) be subject to the requirements of 34 C.F.R. 99.33(a) governing the use and re-disclosure of PII from education records.

“Legitimate educational interest” shall be defined as a “direct or delegated responsibility for helping the student achieve one (1) or more of the educational goals of the Corporation” or if the record is necessary in order for the designated school personnel official to perform an administrative, supervisory or instructional task for the Corporation or to perform a service or benefit for the student or the student’s family or to provide a defense to the Corporation with respect to any of these tasks. The Board directs that reasonable and appropriate methods (including but not limited to physical and/or technological access controls) are utilized to control access to student records and to make certain that school officials obtain access to only those education records in which they have a legitimate educational interest.

The Board authorizes the administration to:

A.	forward student records including disciplinary records with respect to suspensions and expulsions upon request to a private or public school or school Corporation in which a student of this Corporation seeks or intends to enroll, or is instructed to enroll, on a full-time or part-time basis, upon condition that:
1.	a reasonable attempt is made to notify the student’s parent or eligible student of the transfer (unless the disclosure is initiated by the parent or eligible student; or the Board’s annual notification –  – includes a notice that the Board will forward education records to other agencies or institutions that have requested the records and in which the student seeks or intends to enroll or is already enrolled so long as the disclosure is for purposes related to the student’s enrollment or transfer);
2.	the parent or eligible student, upon request, receives a copy of the record; and
3.	the parent or eligible student, upon request, has an opportunity for a hearing to challenge the content of the record;

B.	provide “personally-identifiable” information to appropriate parties, including parents of an eligible student, whose knowledge of the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals, if there is an articulable and significant threat to the health or safety of a student or other individuals, considering the totality of the circumstances;
C.	request each person or party requesting access to a student’s record to abide by the Federal and State regulations concerning the disclosure of information to a third party;
D.	report a crime committed by a child to appropriate authorities, and, with respect to reporting a crime committed by a student with a disability, to transmit copies of the student’s special education and disciplinary records to the authorities for their consideration;
E.	disclose personally identifiable information from education records, without consent, to organizations conducting studies “for, or on behalf of” the Corporation for purposes of developing, validating or administering predictive tests, administering student aid programs, or improving instruction;
Information disclosed under this exception must be protected so that students and parents cannot be personally identified by anyone other than representative(s) of the organization conducting the study, and must be destroyed when no longer needed for the study. In order to release information under this provision, the Corporation will enter into a written agreement with the recipient organization that specifies the purpose of the study. Further, the following personally identifiable information will not be disclosed to any entity: a student or his/her family member’s social security number(s); religion; political party affiliation; voting history; or biometric information.

While the disclosure of personally identifiable information (other than social security numbers, religion, political party affiliation, voting record, or biometric information) is allowed under this exception, it is recommended that de-identified information be used whenever possible. This reduces the risk of unauthorized disclosure.
F.	disclose personally identifiable information from education records without consent, to authorized representatives of the Comptroller General, the Attorney General, and the Secretary of Education, as well as state and local educational authorities. The disclosed records must be used to audit or evaluate a federal or state supported education program, or to enforce or comply with federal requirements related to those education programs. A written agreement between the parties is required under this exception.
The Corporation will verify that the authorized representative complies with FERPA regulations.
G.	disclose or report educational records to a State or local juvenile agency when the disclosure or reporting relates to the ability of the juvenile justice system to serve, before adjudication, the student whose records are being released; and the juvenile justice agency receiving the information certifies, in writing, that the agency or individual receiving the information has agreed not to disclose it to a third party, other than other juvenile justice agency, without the consent of the child’s parent, guardian, or custodian.

A disclosure or reporting of educational records concerning a child who has been adjudicated as a delinquent child shall be treated as related to the ability of the juvenile justice system to serve the child before adjudication if the agency provides documentation to the Corporation that the agency seeks the information in order to identify and intervene with the child as a juvenile at risk of delinquency rather than to obtain information solely related to the supervision of the child as an adjudicated delinquent child.

The juvenile court may grant a school access to all or a portion of the juvenile court records of a child who is a student at the school if the Superintendent submits a written request establishing that the juvenile court records are necessary for the school to serve the educational needs of the child whose records are requested or to protect the safety or health of a student, an employee, or a volunteer at the school.

The school shall keep the records confidential. However, the confidentiality order does not prohibit the school from forwarding the juvenile records to another school or a person if a parent, guardian, or custodian of the child consents to the release of the juvenile court records to the person.

The Corporation will comply with a legitimate request for access to a student’s records within a reasonable period of time but not more than forty-five (45) days after receiving the request or within such shorter period as may be applicable to students with disabilities. Upon the request of the viewer, a record shall be reproduced, unless said record is copyrighted, and the viewer may be charged a fee equivalent to the cost of handling and reproduction. Based upon reasonable requests, viewers of education records will receive explanation and interpretation of the records.

The Corporation shall maintain a record of those persons to whom information about a student has been disclosed. Such disclosure records will indicate the student, person viewing the record, information disclosed, date of disclosure, and date parental/eligible student consent was obtained (if required).

Only “directory information” regarding a student shall be released to any person or party, other than the student or his/her parent, without the written consent of the parent; or, if the student is an eligible student, the written consent of the student, except those persons or parties stipulated by the Corporation’s policy and administrative guidelines and/or those specified in the law.

DIRECTORY INFORMATION

Each year the  as “directory information”. The Corporation designates as student “directory information”: a student’s name; address; telephone number; date and place of birth; e-mail address photograph major field of study; grade level; participation in officially recognized activities and sports; height and weight, if a member of an athletic team; dates of attendance; date of graduation; type of diploma awarded; and awards received.

The Corporation designates school-assigned email accounts as “directory information” for the limited purpose of facilitating students’ registration for access to various online educational services, including mobile applications/apps that will be utilized by the student for educational purposes. School assigned email accounts shall not be released as directory information beyond this limited purpose and to any person or entity but the specific online educational service provider.

Directory information shall not be provided to any organization for profit-making purposes. The Superintendent may allow access to a school campus or give students’ directory information to organizations that make students aware of educational or occupational options.

In accordance with Federal law, the Corporation shall comply with FERPA when releasing students’ information to a recruiting officer for any branch of the United States Armed Forces or an institution of higher education who requests such information.

Parents and eligible students may refuse to allow the Corporation to disclose any or all of such “directory information” upon written notification to the Corporation within ten (10) days after receipt of the Superintendent’s annual public notice.

Whenever consent of the parent(s)/eligible student is required for the inspection and/or release of a student’s health or education records or for the release of directory information, either parent may provide such consent unless specifically stated otherwise by court order.

The Corporation may disclose “directory information” on former students without consent of the parent(s)/eligible student, unless the parent or eligible student previously submitted a request that such information not be disclosed without their prior written consent.

Disclosure of Lists of Students for Political or Commercial Purposes

It is the policy of the Corporation not to release the lists of students for commercial or political purposes, and shall be equally applied to similarly situated organizations and persons. (I.C. 5-14-3-3(f))

Inspection of Information Collection Instrument

The parent of a student or an eligible student has the right to inspect upon request any instrument used in the collection of personal information before the instrument is administered or distributed to a student. Personal information for this section is defined as individually identifiable information including a student or parent’s first and last name, a home or other physical address (including street name and the name of the city or town), a telephone number, or a Social Security identification number. In order to review the instrument, the parent or eligible student must submit a written request to the building principal at least five (5) business days before the scheduled date of the activity. The instrument will be provided to the parent or eligible student within two (2) business days of the principal receiving the request.

The Superintendent shall directly notify the parent(s) of a student and eligible students, at least annually at the beginning of the school year, of the specific or approximate dates during the school year when such activities are scheduled or expected to be scheduled.

This section does not apply to the collection, disclosure, or use of personal information collected from students for the exclusive purpose of developing, evaluating, or providing educational products or services for, or to, students or educational institutions, such as the following:

A.	college or other postsecondary education recruitment, or military recruitment
B.	book clubs, magazine, and programs providing access to low-cost literary products
C.	curriculum and instructional materials used by elementary and secondary schools
D.	tests and assessments used by elementary and secondary schools to provide cognitive, evaluative, diagnostic, clinical, aptitude, or achievement information about students (or to generate other statistically useful data for the purpose of securing such tests and assessments) and the subsequent analysis and public release of the aggregate data from such tests and assessments
E.	the sale by students of products or services to raise funds for school-related or education-related activities
F.	student recognition programs

This administrative guideline shall be widely disseminated to ensure that students and parents are adequately informed each year regarding their rights to:

A.	inspect and review the student’s education records;
B.	request amendments if the record is inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the student’s privacy rights;
C.	consent to disclosures of personally-identifiable information contained in the student’s education records, except disclosures allowed without parental consent;
D.	challenge Board noncompliance with a parent’s request to amend the records through a hearing;
E.	file a complaint of Corporation noncompliance with the United States Department of Education;
F.	obtain a copy of the Corporation’s policy and administrative guidelines on student records.

The Superintendent also shall assure:

A.	the proper storage and retention of records including a list of the type and location of records;
B.	informing Corporation employees of the Federal and State laws concerning student records.

The Board authorizes the use of the microfilm process or electromagnetic or electronic processes of reproduction for the recording, filing, maintaining, and preserving of records.

No liability shall attach to any  officer, official, or employee of this Corporation specifically as a consequence of permitting access or furnishing students’ records in accordance with policy and administrative guidelines.

Any entity receiving personally identifiable information pursuant to a study, audit, evaluation or enforcement/compliance activity must comply with all FERPA regulations. Further, such an entity must enter into a written contract with the Corporation delineating its responsibilities in safeguarding the disclosed information. Specifically, the entity must demonstrate the existence of a sound data security plan or data stewardship program, and must also provide assurances that the personally identifiable information will not be redisclosed without prior authorization from the Corporation. Further, the entity conducting the study, audit, evaluation, or enforcement/compliance activity is required to destroy the disclosed information once it is no longer needed or when the time frame for the activity has ended, as specified in its written agreement with the Corporation.

Violations

As provided for by State law, an employee or agent of the Corporation:

A.	who knowingly or intentionally discloses information classified as confidential by State statute commits a Class A infraction;
B.	who intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly discloses or fails to protect information classified as confidential by this guide may be disciplined or terminated.

Additionally, State law provides that a person who recklessly, knowingly, or intentionally destroys or damages any public record commits a Level 6 felony unless the destruction is pursuant to a record retention scheduled adopted by the County Public Records Commission.

I.C. 5-14-3-3(f), 5-14-3-4(a)(3) and (12), 5-14-3-4(c), 5-14-3-10
I.C. 5-15-6-8
I.C. 20-32-4-12
I.C. 20-33-2-13I.C. 20-33-7-1 et seq.
I.C. 31-39-2-13.8
511 I.A.C. 7-38-1 et seq.
26 U.S.C. 152
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, 20 U.S.C. 1232g

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004, 20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.
20 U.S.C. 7165(b)
20 U.S.C. 7908
34 C.F.R. Part 99
34 C.F.R. Part 300

REVISED 7/09/2020