FERPA
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974 is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. “Education records” are those records, files documents, and other materials which 1) contain information directly related to a student; and 2) are maintained by an educational institution. FERPA applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education.
Generally speaking, FERPA allows the University to disclose education records or personally identifiable information from education records in the following circumstances: with the written consent of the student, if the disclosure meets one of the statutory exemptions, or if the disclosure is directory information and the student has not placed a hold on release of directory information.
Directory information at the University of Washington is defined as:
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student’s name
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street address
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email address
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telephone number
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date of birth
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dates of attendance
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degrees and awards received
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major and minor field(s) of studies
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class
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participation in officially recognized activities and sports
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most recent previous educational agency or institution attended by the student, and
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weight and height, if student is a member of an intercollegiate athletic team
FERPA allows the University to release a student’s directory information to anyone unless the student informs the Office of the University Registrar that they do not wish directory information to be released. For more information, visit FERPA for Staff and Faculty.
Privacy vs. Confidentiality
If a student expresses that they wish to share something with you confidentially, it’s important to let them know that anything shared will be kept private (you will only tell who you are required to tell), but not necessarily confidential. Washington State law designates professional school personnel as mandatory reporters – this means that we have a legal duty to report if a student discloses abuse, neglect, sexual assault, suicide ideation, or child abuse you are required to consult with and provide all known information to your supervisor and with law enforcement. Reporting steps can be found here.
The University of Washington has several important resource centers for student health, safety, and wellbeing: SafeCampus and Hall Health Center. Hall Health Center, for example, provides both medical and mental health care for students, and can also provide urgent mental health help and psychiatric medication services if needed.
SafeCampus is a suite of resources to support students facing a number of health and safety challenges, including individualized care, support, and safety plans tailored to student situations. Students can call trained professionals who can offer support and guidance when students have concerns for themselves or others. More info is available here.
These resources are particularly important if students mention anything about concerning behaviors, abuse or neglect, harassment or sexual harassment, relationship violence, assault, sexual assault, stalking, or suicide concerns.