Section 123 - Educational Records

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Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, including the Office of the Chancellor, must comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Ct (FERPA), 20 U.S.C. §1232g, and the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act, (MGDPA) Minn. Stat. Chapter 13, in handling education records. In accordance with these and other applicable laws, the following is presented.

Definitions

The following definitions apply for the purpose of this policy:

Student means an individual currently or formerly enrolled or registered at Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical (Southeast Technical), applicants for enrollment or registration at Southeast Technical, or individuals who receive shared time educational services from Southeast Technical.

Educational data or education records means information recorded in any form directly related to a student collected, created, received, maintained or disseminated by Southeast Technical or by a person acting for the college.

Education records do not include:

records of instructional personnel which are kept in the sole possession of the maker and are not accessible or revealed to any other individual except a temporary substitute for the maker and are destroyed by the end of the school year
records created by the college law enforcement unit, maintained by the law enforcement unit apart from educational data and solely for law enforcement purposes, and are not disclosed to Southeast Technical school officials outside the law enforcement unit
employment records related exclusively to a student’s employment capacity (not employment related to status as a student, such as work study) and not available for use for any other purpose
medical or psychological treatment records, which are maintained and accessible only to professionals for treatment purposes
Records that only contain information about a former student after that individual is no longer a student at the institution (alumni data)

Notice of Rights and Policy

Enrolled students will be provided information about their rights under FERPA including, but not limited to, the following rights to: 1) inspect and review the student’s education records; 2) seek amendment of the student’s education records if believed to be inaccurate, misleading incomplete, or otherwise in violation of the student’s privacy rights; 3) consent to disclosure of personally identifiable information contained in education records, as required by law; 4) file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged violations of FERPA.

The College FERPA Notice will be provided to enrolled students at least annually in the student handbooks and college catalog and via student email. Availability in alternate formats or translations can be requested.

Copies of this policy are available in the Student Affairs Office.

Data Privacy Collection Notice

Pursuant to the requirements of the MGDPA, whenever the college collects private data from an individual who is the subject of the information, the college shall inform the individual: 1) the purpose and intended use of the information; 2) whether the individual may refuse or is legally required to provide the information; 3) any known consequences from giving or refusing to supply the data; 4) the identity of individuals who will have access to the information.

Access to Student Records

Access by Student

Upon written request, the college shall provide a student with access to his or her education records, unless limited by law. All students at a college have the same rights regarding their education records irrespective of age.

There is no charge for viewing the records even if the college is required to make a copy for the record in order to provide access. Responses to requests by students to review their education records shall be immediate, if possible, or within ten business days.

Upon request, the meaning of their education record shall be explained to the student by Southeast Technical personnel assigned to, and designated by, the appropriate office.

Students have the right to review only their own records. When a record contains private information about other individual(s), disclosure cannot include information regarding the other individual(s). A student does not have access to financial information and statements of the student’s parents or any information contained therein.

A student may gain access to their educational records in writing. Request should be directed to the Department they wish to review information from.

Academic Records

Registrar

College Deans/Coordinator Student

Services Records

Vice President of Student Affairs

Financial Records

Director of Finance

Director of Financial Aid

Students do not have access to confidential letters or statements of recommendation placed in education records before January 1, 1975 or after January 1, 1975 if the student waived his/her right of access as permitted by law.

Consent for Release to Third Parties Generally Required

The college will not disclose or release to a third party personally identifiable information from education records without the prior written consent of the subject student except as authorized by law.

To be valid, a written consent for the disclosure of education records must: 1) specify the records to be disclosed; 2) state the purpose of the disclosure; 3) identify the party or class of parties to whom the disclosure may be made; and 4) be signed and dated by the student. If the disclosure is to an insurer or its representative, the release must also include an expiration date no later than one year from the original authorization, or two years for a life insurance application. If the student requests, the school shall provide him or her with a copy of the records released pursuant to the consent. A consent to release education records is available in the Student Services Office.

Release Without Consent

As required or permitted by law, the college will release personally identifiable information in an education record without consent as follows:

to college school officials who have been determined to have a legitimate educational interest in the records; Note: Southeast Technical has defined school official as: a person employed by the college in an administrative, supervisory, academic or research, or support staff position (including law enforcement unit personnel); a person or company with whom the college has contracted (such as an attorney, auditor, or collection agent); a trustee of Minnesota State Colleges and Universities; or a student serving on an official committee, or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks. A school official has a legitimate education interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her official responsibilities.
to federal, state, or local officials or agencies authorized by law, including, but not limited to authorized representative of: the Comptroller General of the United States; the Attorney General of the United States; the Secretary of the United States Department of Education; or state and local educational authorities;
in connection with a student’s application for, or receipt of, financial aid;
to accrediting organizations or organizations conducting educational studies, provided that these organizations do not release personally identifiable data and destroy such data when it is no longer needed for the purpose it was obtained;
upon adequate proof, to the parents of a dependent student as defined in section 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954;
in compliance with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena, provided a reasonable effort is made to notify the student in advance unless such subpoena is a Federal grand jury subpoena or other subpoena issued for a law enforcement purpose and the court or issuing agency specifically directs the institution not to disclose the existence of a subpoena;
to appropriate persons in an emergency situation if the information in necessary to protect the health or safety of the students or other persons; the information has been designated by the college as “Directory Information” and the student has not exercised his/her rights of non-disclosure;
the information is the final result of the alleged student perpetrator’s disciplinary proceeding to an alleged victim of a crime of violence (as defined in 18 U.S.C. Sect 16) or non-forcible sex offense; or
the information is the final result of a disciplinary hearing finding that a student has violated the college’s rules or policies by conduct defined as a crime of violence in 18 U.S.C. Sec 16, or non-forcible sex offense, and the final results were reached on or after October 7, 1998.
if you are currently enrolled in, receiving services, seek or intend to enroll at a college or university within the Minnesota State College and University System, your academic records from that institution are available to officials of other schools within the System while you are in attendance. Disclosures of your records to other schools under other circumstances require your prior written consent.

The college will inform a third party to whom personally identifiable information is released of the applicable limitations on re-disclosure. If the institution discovers that a third party who has received student records from the institution has released or failed to destroy such records in violation of such limitations, it will prohibit access to education records for five (5) years.

Record of Requests for Disclosure

Where required by law, a record of requests for disclosure and such disclosure of personally identifiable information from student education records shall be maintained by Southeast Technical for each student and will be also made available for inspection pursuant to this policy. Records of requests for disclosure no longer subject to audit or under active request for access will be maintained according to the applicable records retention policy.

Directory Information

The following information on students at Southeast Technical is designated as Directory Information, which is public data accessible to the public upon request pursuant to Minn. Stat. Sect. 13.03:

student’s name
city
major field of study
participation in officially recognized activities and sports
dates of attendance
degrees and awards received
date of graduation

Notice to Students About Directory Information

Students may direct that the above-listed Directory Information be withheld from public disclosure by notifying the Office of the Registrar in writing by the fifth day of your starting semester. The Authorization to Withhold Directory Information Form is valid until a written request to rescind is received in the Office of Registrar.

Challenge of Record

Students may challenge the accuracy or completeness of their education records. Note: the right to challenge a grade does not apply under this policy unless the grade assigned was allegedly inaccurately recorded. Students may challenge a grade within one academic term after the grade has been posted to their official transcript.

The student may discuss his or her problems informally with Steve Zmyewski, Data Practices Compliance Official. If agreement is reached with respect to the student’s request, the appropriate records will be amended, and a reasonable attempt will be made to notify past recipients of inaccurate or incomplete data, including recipients named by student. If not, the student will be notified within a reasonable period of time that the records will not be amended, and will be informed by Steve Zmyewski of their right to a formal hearing.

Student requests for a formal hearing must be made in writing to the Minnesota Commissioner of Administration within 60 days of receiving the decision. The request must by directed to: Commissioner of Administration, State of Minnesota, 50 Sherburne Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55155, who, within a reasonable period of time after receiving the request, will inform the student of the date, place and the time of the hearing. The hearing will be conducted by the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) and according to the procedures set forth in Minn. Stat. Chapter 14. Students may present evidence relevant to the issues raised and may be assisted or represented at the hearings by one or more persons of their choice, including attorneys, at the student’s expense.

Decisions of the hearing officer will be based solely on the evidence presented at the hearing, will consist of the written statements summarizing the evidence and stating the reasons for the decisions, and will be delivered to all parties concerned.

The education records will be corrected or amended in accordance with the decision of OAH if the decision is in favor of the student. If the decision is unsatisfactory to the student, the student may place with the education records statements commenting on the information in the records or statements setting forth any reasons for disagreeing with the decision of the hearing officer, or both. The statements will be placed in and maintained as part of the student’s educational records, and released whenever the records in questions are disclosed.

Copies

Students may have copies of their education records and this policy upon request. The copies of records will be made at the student’s expense rates at 5 cents per copy.

The charge for transcripts will be $2.00.

Copies of academic records or transcripts will not be released for students who have a delinquent financial obligation or financial “hold” at the college, unless otherwise required by law.

Complaints

Complaints regarding alleged failures to comply with the provisions of FERPA may be submitted in writing to the Family Policy Compliance Office, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Washington, D.C. 20202-4605.

Complaints may also be submitted to the following designated college official.

Complaints about compliance with the MGDPA may be brought to the college Data Practices Compliance Official, Steve Zmyeski, or to the Minnesota Commissioner of Administration.

Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical