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Generally, academic writing is considered plagiarism to draw any idea or any language from someone else without adequately crediting that source in your

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Questions and Answers: Copyright and Fair Use

How do I use the Restriction Statements that accompany the American Memory collections?
The Library of Congress assesses materials for legal considerations prior to placing items online (see legal assessment). The Restriction Statement that accompanies each American Memory collection provides known information regarding ownership of materials in the collection. If known, we include contacts for permission. In some cases the Restriction Statement will indicate that material in a particular collection may be used freely; in other cases the Restriction Statement may only be a starting point for your inquiry.

What is copyright?
Copyright refers to the author's (creators of all sorts such as writers, photographers, artists, film producers, composers, and programmers) exclusive right to reproduce, prepare derivative works, distribute copies, and publicly perform and display their works. These rights may be transferred or assigned in whole or in part in writing by the author. Unless otherwise agreed in writing, work created by an employee is usually owned by the employer. The U.S. Copyright Act gets its authority from Article 1, Section 8, cl. 8 of the U.S. Constitution.

If there is no copyright notice, does that mean there is no copyright?
The absence of a copyright notice does not mean that there is no copyright. Copyright protection exists automatically from the moment of creation in a tangible fixed form, which is generally considered to include electronic form. A notice is not required to protect copyright.

When can I assume that there is no copyright protection for a work?
Work created by employees of the federal government as a part of their job is in the public domain, i.e., not protected by copyright. This is why you may use American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1940, materials in American Memory without being concerned with infringing on someone's copyright (other legal concerns may be raised in the Restriction Statements). Remember to credit your sources, even for government materials.

Does copyright give the owner an absolute monopoly?
Although copyright is an exclusive right - a sort of restricted monopoly - it is limited in various respects. Authors control only rights specified under the copyright law and may not control other uses. Copyright is also limited by duration and, under American law, by fair use. As to duration, copyrights do eventually expire. Where possible, the Restriction Statement accompanying each collection notes that copyright protection has expired.

In general, copyrights last for the life of the author, plus 70 years. In some works, however, the rules for calculating duration are complex. You should read the U.S. Copyright Office's circular "Duration of Copyright" to learn more about calculating duration of copyright in general. As to Fair Use, see the following section.

Where can I go for more information on copyright?
Start with the U.S. Copyright Office in the Library of Congress. They have more information on Fair Use, as well as information on the reproduction of copyrighted works by educators and librarians.

Fair Use

What is "fair use"?
Fair use is an exception to the exclusive protection of copyright under American law. It permits certain limited uses without permission from the author or owner. Depending on the circumstances, copying may be considered "fair" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship or research.

To determine whether a specific use under one of these categories is "fair," courts are required to consider the following factors:

1. the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;

2. the nature of the copyrighted work;

3. the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole (is it long or short in length, that is, are you copying the entire work, as you might with an image, or just part as you might with a long novel); and

4. the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

Keep in mind that even in an educational setting, it is not fair use to copy for a "commercial motive" or to copy "systematically," that is, "where the aim is to substitute for subscription or purchase." No factor by itself will determine whether a particular use is "fair." All four factors must be weighed together in light of the circumstances. See the U.S. Copyright Office's Copyright Information Circulars and Form Letters for "Circular 21-Reproductions of Copyrighted Works by Educators and Librarians."

For classroom use, how does "fair use" apply?
The Internet magnifies the possibility for making an infinite number of perfect copies, which changes what it means to be "fair." Be careful when using material from the Internet; keep in mind the four factors of the fair use test, or get permission from the owner. The National Digital Library Program goes to great effort to identify possible copyright owners for items in American Memory, though we are often unable to ascertain possible rights holders because of the age of the materials. When known to us, we will provide that information in the Restriction Statements accompanying the collections.

Classroom Examples

Can you describe a few examples based on questions from teachers who use the Teachers Page?
Sure...here are a few. The general concepts discussed here apply to student and teacher uses.

Is there a difference in fair use guidelines for public, non-profit, or private schools?

What's fair use in a public school is probably fair use in a non-profit private school. However, the more commercial a particular use is, the less likely it is to be fair, even if it is educational. Thus, if a commercial motive is present, say, for a private, commercial test-preparation service, then copying is less likely to be fair despite the underlying educational purpose.

A teacher selects a set of 15 photos or other materials from the American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1940, and makes 5 printed copies of this set for small groups to use in a lesson. Is there a limit on the number of items in a set, or the number of copies that can be made for the lesson?

American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1940, was a government-sponsored project. It is generally considered to be in the public domain as work by government employees. This is also the case for material from the Color Photographs from the Farm Security Administration and the Office of War Information, 1938-1944. This means that there is no copyright protection or restriction, thus you may copy and freely distribute any number of these items.

Because there may be publicity or privacy rights in such material, however, you need to make an independent assessment of possible legal rights with the assistance of the Restriction Statement in the collection. In this case there is no limit on the number of permissible items in a "set" or the number of permissible copies. Remember, this answer is specific to the American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1940, and Color Photographs from the Farm Security Administration and the Office of War Information, 1938-1944. If you think the materials might be protected by copyright, see the Restriction Statement in each American Memory collection.

This lesson will be used in other sections of the same class in the same semester. This is still a one-time use with different students. Is this fair?

As long as the material to be copied is in the public domain, you can copy for one class or many and for one or more semesters. If you wish to use material that is NOT in the public domain, and for which copyright protection exists, then your copying is more likely to be considered fair if it is spontaneous ("Gee, I saw this last night at home on my computer and it would be great for tomorrow's class!"). The more sections and the more semesters you plan to copy particular materials for, the less likely your use is to be considered fair. If you want to use copyrighted material repeatedly, you should obtain permission from the copyright owner.

The lesson will be used by different teachers teaching the same class. Fair?

Again, the more copying that occurs, the less likely the use is to be fair. The less spontaneous the copying is, the less fair. If you are making digital copies or copies that will be available online, it will be less likely to be fair than if you made paper copies, given the potential impact on the copyright owner's market.

This lesson will be used year after year by the same teacher at the same point in the plan of studies for the course.

Lesson planning indicates a systematic planning that is not terribly spontaneous and thus less likely to be fair. If you plan to use the same items year in, year out, think seriously about seeking permission. Document your efforts. You need to make an independent assessment - the Library of Congress makes the American Memory digitized historical collections available for the limited purposes noted in the Restriction Statements. We cannot and do not "warrant" that subsequent uses are fair. Incidentally, copyright owners may be willing to give permission for your use without charge. Once you find an owner, let them know what your specific intention is (who will use it, for what, where, when, how, why - the basics). Always credit sources.

This lesson will be copied for each student in the section of the class.

If the material is in the public domain, copy the materials for each student in the class with no worries. If the work is copyrighted, it is probably fair if you make paper copies for each student in a section of a single class for a single semester. For more on electronic copies, see the next few situations.

A teacher prepares a lesson for a World Wide Web presentation using photographs and documents from the Library of Congress (not linking to them in American Memory).

Because the teacher is placing material on a site where anyone can copy or download the material, the use is less likely to be fair than if the teacher prepares the same lesson for a local area network, or on a stand-alone machine. If material is protected by copyright, it would be wise to get permission for the World Wide Web presentation. Always keep in mind all four of the fair use factors in the Fair Use section of this page.

Students in a project-based curriculum prepare presentations with multiple examples of their topic. How many is too many? How much of a text is too much?

As you know from the above examples, the medium in which the student presents the examples contributes to the fairness of the use. If the examples are placed on a local network for a short period or printed only for class members, it may be fair, depending on a balancing of all Fair Use factors. It is probably not fair to display the same material on a World Wide Web site.

The question of how much is too much is also hard to define. A page or two of a two hundred page novel may be acceptable, though if you copy a particularly significant portion, such as the two pages that make the book marketable (the end of a mystery, for example), you may diminish the market value - which would weigh heavily against one of the fair use factors). A mere two lines from a short poem might also be unfair for the same reason.

A student prepares a multimedia presentation using American Memory resources. How does a student credit sources? Is permission to reproduce materials needed?

Everyone who uses materials from American Memory should credit the American Memory collections of the Library of Congress. See Citing Electronic Sources for suggestions. Further, users should credit particular items and collections which are described in Restriction Statements within the collections. The Library of Congress does not grant or withhold permission to use the materials that are made available online. You must contact the owner for any uses that exceed the limits of fair use. Proper credit is always an indication of good research.

May I link to American Memory? Do I need permission?

If you wish to link to our site, you may do so even without permission as long as your link makes it clear that there is a transition to another site, and that you do not present the link in a way that implies that the Library of Congress or the National Digital Library Program is endorsing a particular product, service, or organization. However, the Library of Congress does like to hear how its site is being used, so please notify us using the "Contact Us" feature.

Copyright Guidelines

Many copyright guides are available on the Web. Several authoritative sites are linked above.

Other sites include:

Copyright with Cyberbee by Linda Joseph
http://www.cyberbee.com/copyrt.html
The site offers an overview of basic copyright information for teachers and students and includes a lesson plan, an interactive activity for students and links to additional sites.

Copyright and FairUse Guidelines for Teachers by Hall Davidson
http://www.halldavidson.net/copyright_chart.pdf
These concise guidelines are offered in an easily downloaded PDF chart.

Copyright and Fair Use in the Classroom, on the Internet, and the World Wide Web - from the University of Maryland
http://www.umuc.edu/library/copy.shtml
The site offers an excellent set of guidelines for all media types and includes practical information about seeking permissions for using the published work of others.

Permission Request Template by David Warlick, Landmark Schools Project
http://www.landmark-project.com/permission1.php
The site provides online tools for both teachers and students to generate e-mail requests to cite other's work.

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How do I use the Restriction Statements that accompany the American Memory collections? The Library of Congress assesses materials for legal considerations prior to placing items online (see legal assessment). The Restriction Statement that accompanies each American Memory collection provides known information regarding ownership of materials in the collection.

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Copyright law gives creators certain kinds of control over their creative work. If people want to use copyrighted work, they often have to ask for permission from the creator. Creative Commons works within copyright law. It allows creators to grant permission to everyone in the world to use their work in certain ways.

Watch the Get Creative video on the origins of Creative Commons licenses. It describes the CC licenses build on traditional copyright law, and captures the power of the licenses to facilitate collaboration across the web.

Share any questions you have about the video below.

Special sidebar: A lot of the public conversation about copyright focuses on "unauthorized" use or copying of creative works. People apply the word unauthorized to imply that the use is also illegal. Under fair use, fair dealing, and other provisions, many uses are simultaneously legal and unauthorized. This course is not going to discuss those uses, but it's important to know they exist. Some resources to learn more about them:

Stanford's Copyright & Fair Use Overview, Chapter 9

Articles on Limitations and Exceptions to Copyright worldwide: Wikipedia, WIPO

Do Creative Commons licenses affect exceptions and limitations to copyright, such as fair dealing and fair use? CC FAQ

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Copyright and Creative Commons are friends - Creative Commons

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Understand the connection between CC and copyright law. Overview Copyright law gives creators certain kinds of control over their creative work. If people want to use copyrighted work, they often have to ask for permission from the creator. Creative Commons works within copyright law. It allows creators to grant permission to everyone in the world ...

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The Educator's Guide to Creativity and Copyright

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The Educator's Guide to Creativity and Copyright

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The Educator’s Guide to Creativity & Copyright - ConnectSafely

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By Kerry Gallagher, J.D., Larry Magid, Ed.D. and David Sohn, J.D. Download Printer friendly Guide (PDF) Quick-Guide for Students & Teachers

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Using copyrighted material in your teaching

Fair Use

Copyright law provides for the principle, commonly called "fair use" that the reproduction of copyright works for certain limited, educational purposes, does not constitute copyright infringement. The Copyright Act establishes a four factor test, the "fair use test," to use to determine whether a use of a copyrighted work is fair use that does not require the permission of the copyright owner. The fair use test is highly fact specific, and much can turn on seemingly insignificant variations on the proposed use.

To determine whether a proposed use is a fair use, you must consider the following four factors, on which we elaborate more below:

1. Purpose: The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature, or is for nonprofit education purposes.

2. Nature: The nature of the copyrighted work.

3. Amount: The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole.

4. Effect: The effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the copyrighted work.

To establish the strongest basis for fair use, consider and apply the four factors along the lines of these suggestions. You may also want to use the Fair Use Checklist to help evaluate the nature of your use.

1. Purpose of the Use

Materials should be used in class only for the purpose of serving the needs of specified educational programs.

Students should not be charged a fee specifically or directly for the materials.

2. Nature of the Work

Only those portions of the work relevant to the educational objectives of the course should be used in the classroom.

The law of fair use applies more narrowly to highly creative works; accordingly, avoid substantial excerpts from novels, short stories, poetry, modern art images, and other such materials.

Instructors should not distribute copies of "consumable" materials such as test forms and workbook pages that are meant to be used and repurchased.

3. Amount of the Work

Materials used in the classroom will generally be limited to brief works or brief excerpts from longer works. Examples: a single chapter from a book, an individual article from a journal, and individual news articles.

The amount of the work used should be related directly to the educational objectives of the course.

4. Effect of the Use on the Market for the Original

The instructor should consider whether the copying harms the market or sale of the copyrighted material.

Materials used in the class should include a citation to the original source of publication and a form of a copyright notice.

Instructor should consider whether materials are reasonably available and affordable for students to purchase - whether as a book, course pack, or other format.

Rules of Thumb

The University of Chicago has not adopted official guidelines for determining fair use. However, the following web sites offer rules of thumb and other tools to assist faculty, staff and students in determining whether a use is a fair use in a variety of educational contexts.
Stanford University: Measuring Fair Use
University of Washington: Guidelines for Fair Use in Education
ALA Fair Use EVALUATOR

If your proposed use is not addressed by these guidelines, you will need to analyze the use under the four factor fair use test and/or Get Help. In cases of doubt, it is always most desirable to get permission.

Educational Guidelines
CONFU: The Conference on Fair Use
Multimedia Guidelines for Fair Use
Guidelines for Digital Images
The Conference on Fair Use (CONFU) in the late 1990s was an attempt to create guidelines for fair use which could be mutually agreed upon by copyright holders and educators. In the end, the group failed to come to consensus and the Guidelines were never adopted. Many still use the guidelines as a framework for thinking about fair use.

For commentary on their use, see:

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Using copyrighted material in your teaching Copyright law provides for the principle, commonly called "fair use" that the reproduction of copyright works for certain limited, educational purposes, does not constitute copyright infringement. The Copyright Act establishes a four factor test, the "fair use test," to use to determine whether a use of a copyrighted work is fair use that does not require the permission of the copyright owner.

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Frequently asked questions to help you protect your creative work and avoid infringing the rights of others.

Until March 1, 1989, a published work had to contain a valid copyright notice to receive protection under the copyright laws. But this requirement is no longer in force - works first published after March 1, 1989, need not include a copyright notice to gain protection under the law.

But even though a copyright notice is not required, it's still important to include one. When a work contains a valid notice, an infringer cannot claim in court that he or she didn't know it was copyrighted. This makes it easier to win a copyright infringement case and perhaps collect enough damages to make the cost of the case worthwhile. And the very existence of a copyright notice might discourage infringement.

Finally, including a copyright notice may make it easier for someone to track down a copyright owner and legitimately obtain permission to use the work.

A copyright notice should contain:

the word "copyright"

a "c" in a circle (©)

the date of publication, and

the name of either the author or the owner of all the copyright rights in the published work.

For example, the correct copyright notice for the current edition of The Copyright Handbook, by Stephen Fishman (Nolo) is Copyright © 2019 by Stephen Fishman.

In the United States, a copyright owner can significantly enhance the protection afforded by copyright. This is done by registering the copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office. See Copyright Registration and Enforcement.

Copyright protection rules are fairly similar worldwide, due to several international copyright treaties, the most important of which is the Berne Convention. Under this treaty, all member countries - and there are more than 100, including virtually all industrialized nations - must afford copyright protection to authors who are nationals of any member country. This protection must last for at least the life of the author plus 50 years and must be automatic without the need for the author to take any legal steps to preserve the copyright.

In addition to the Berne Convention, the GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) treaty contains a number of provisions that affect copyright protection in signatory countries. Together, the Berne Copyright Convention and the GATT treaty allow U.S. authors to enforce their copyrights in most industrialized nations and allow the nationals of those nations to enforce their copyrights in the U.S.

When can I use a work without the author's permission?

When a work becomes available for use without permission from a copyright owner, it is said to be "in the public domain." Most works enter the public domain because their copyrights have expired.

To determine whether a work is in the public domain and available for use without the author's permission, you first have to find out when it was published. Then apply the following rules to see if the copyright has expired:

All works published in the United States before 1924 are in the public domain.

Works published after 1923, but before 1978 are protected for 95 years from the date of publication. If the work was created, but not published, before 1978, the copyright lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years.

For works published after 1977, the copyright lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years. However, if the work is a work for hire (that is, the work is done in the course of employment or has been specifically commissioned) or is published anonymously or under a pseudonym, the copyright lasts between 95 and 120 years, depending on the date the work is published.

Lastly, if the work was published between 1924 and 1963, you must check with the U.S. Copyright Office to see whether the copyright was properly renewed. If the author failed to renew the copyright, the work has fallen into the public domain and you may use it.

The Copyright Office will check renewal information for you, at a charge of $200 per hour. (Call the Records, Research, and Certification Section at 202-707-6787.) You can also hire a private copyright search firm to see if a renewal was filed. Finally, you may be able to conduct a renewal search yourself. The renewal records for books published from 1923 through 1963 are available online at https://exhibits.stanford.edu/copyrightrenewals. Renewal searches can be conducted at the Copyright Office in Washington D.C. or by visiting one of the many government depository libraries throughout the country.

With one important exception, you should assume that every work is protected by copyright unless you can establish that it is not. As mentioned above, you can't rely on the presence or absence of a copyright notice (©) to make this determination, because a notice is not required for works published after March 1, 1989. And even for works published before 1989, the absence of a copyright notice may not affect the validity of the copyright - for example, if the author made diligent attempts to correct the situation.

The exception is for materials put to work under the "fair use rule." This rule recognizes that society can often benefit from the unauthorized use of copyrighted materials when the purpose of the use serves the ends of scholarship, education or an informed public. For example, scholars must be free to quote from their research resources in order to comment on the material. To strike a balance between the needs of a public to be well-informed and the rights of copyright owners to profit from their creativity, Congress passed a law authorizing the use of copyrighted materials in certain circumstances deemed to be "fair" - even if the copyright owner doesn't give permission.

Often, it's difficult to know whether a court will consider a proposed use to be fair. The fair use statute requires the courts to consider the following questions in deciding this issue:

Is it a competitive use? (In other words, if the use potentially affects the sales of the copied material, it's usually not fair.)

How much material was taken compared to the entire work of which the material was a part? (The more someone takes, the less likely it is that the use is fair.)

How was the material used? Is it a transformative use? (If the material was used to help create something new it is more likely to be considered a fair use that if it is merely copied verbatim into another work. Criticism, comment, news reporting, research, scholarship, and non-profit educational uses are most likely to be judged fair uses. Uses motivated primarily by a desire for a commercial gain are less likely to be fair use).

As a general rule, if you are using a small portion of somebody else's work in a non-competitive way and the purpose for your use is to benefit the public, you're on pretty safe ground. On the other hand, if you take large portions of someone else's expression for your own purely commercial reasons, the rule usually won't apply.

If You Want to Use Material on the Internet

Each day, people post vast quantities of creative material on the Internet - material that is available for downloading by anyone who has the right computer equipment. Because the information is stored somewhere on an Internet server, it is fixed in a tangible medium and potentially qualifies for copyright protection. Whether it does, in fact, qualify depends on other factors that you would have no way of knowing about, such as when the work was first published (which affects the need for a copyright notice), whether the copyright in the work has been renewed (for works published before 1978), whether the work is a work made for hire (which affects the length of the copyright) and whether the copyright owner intends to dedicate the work to the public domain. If you want to download the material for use in your own work, you should be cautious. It's best to track down the author of the material and ask for permission. Generally, you can claim a fair use right for using a very small portion of text for commentary, scholarship or similar purposes.

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Copyright Protection: What it Is, How it Works - Copyright Overview by Rich Stim - Stanford Copyright and Fair Use Center

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Frequently asked questions to help you protect your creative work and avoid infringing the rights of others. Until March 1, 1989, a published work had to contain a valid copyright notice to receive protection under the copyright laws.

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Featured Publications

New education technologies often raise questions about how best to protect student privacy during use. This document addresses privacy and security considerations relating to computer software, mobile applications, and web-based tools provided by a third-party to a school or district that students and/or their parents access via the Internet and use as part of a school activity. It presents some requirements and best practices to consider when evaluating the use of online educational services.

This brief offers best practice recommendations for developing and implementing effective authentication processes to help ensure that only appropriate individuals and entities have access to education records. General suggestions provided in the brief are applicable to all modes of data access, be it in person, over the phone, by mail, or electronically.

The Privacy Technical Assistance Center, working with the Department of Education's Family Policy Compliance office, recently released a framework for edtech tools' Terms of Service Agreements. This document is intended to assist users in understanding how a given online service or app will collect, use and/or transmit user information so that they can then decide whether or not to sign up. It is recommended that developers align their Terms of Service Agreements with these best practices.

Featured Resources

The U.S. Department of Education runs the Privacy Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) as a "one-stop" resource for answering questions and addressing concerns related to privacy, confidentiality, and security practices. PTAC provides timely information and updated guidance on privacy, confidentiality, and security practices through a variety of resources, including training materials and opportunities to receive direct assistance with privacy, security, and confidentiality of student data systems.

Email and Student Privacy

School Volunteers and FERPA

Developing a Privacy Program for your District

Overview of Federal Regulations

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

FERPA is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds from the U.S. Department of Education. FERPA gives parents certain rights with respect to their children's education records. These rights transfer to the student when he or she reaches the age of 18 or attends a school beyond the high school level.

Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)

The primary goal of COPPA is to place parents in control over what information is collected from their young children online. COPPA was designed to protect children under age 13 while accounting for the dynamic nature of the Internet. The Rule applies to operators of commercial websites and online services (including mobile apps) directed to children under 13 that collect, use, or disclose personal information from children, and operators of general audience websites or online services with actual knowledge that they are collecting, using, or disclosing personal information from children under 13. The Rule also applies to websites or online services that have actual knowledge that they are collecting personal information directly from users of another website or online service directed to children. Read more

Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA)

CIPA was enacted by Congress in 2000 to address concerns about children's access to obscene or harmful content over the Internet. CIPA imposes certain requirements on schools or libraries that receive discounts for Internet access or internal connections through the E-rate program. Read more

Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA)

PPRA is intended to protect the rights of parents and students in two ways:

It seeks to ensure that schools and contractors make instructional materials available for inspection by parents if those materials will be used in connection with an ED-funded survey, analysis, or evaluation in which their children participate; and

It seeks to ensure that schools and contractors obtain written parental consent before minor students are required to participate in any ED-funded survey, analysis, or evaluation that reveals certain information.

PPRA applies to programs that receive funding from the U.S. Department of Education. Read more

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Privacy - Office of Educational Technology

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Featured Publications Featured Resources Overview of Federal Regulations Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) FERPA is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds from the U.S. Department of Education. FERPA gives parents certain rights with respect to their children's education records.

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Educator's Guide To Student Privacy

Technology tools and apps are making it possible for educators and students to collaborate, create, and share ideas more easily than ever. When schools use technology, students' data-including some personal information-is collected both by educators and often the companies that provide apps and online services. Educators use some of this data to inform their instructional practice and get to know their students better. It is just as essential for educators to protect their students as it is to help them learn.

This guide is meant to help teachers utilize technology in the classroom while protecting their students' privacy.

The Educator's Guide to Student Privacy, written by teachers for teachers, covers several topics, including:

Why should classroom teachers care about student data privacy?

There are legal and ethical restrictions that impact districts, school, and teachers. Traditionally, student data consisted of things like attendance, grades, discipline records, and health records. Access to that data used to be restricted to the administrator, guidance counselor, teacher, or other school official who needed it to serve the educational needs of the child. With the use of technology in schools, traditional data is now often shared with companies that provide Student Information Systems (SIS), Learning Management Systems (LMS), and many other technologies. Parents, students, and others have raised concerns about what information is being collected or shared, and what use those companies might make of that data.

Teachers should be aware of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and applicable state laws, along with their district or school policies regarding the use of educational products and services from ed tech vendors. (More on FERPA and other laws below)

New technologies-including personal computers, mobile devices, apps, websites, programs, and online services-are used in classrooms in ways that cause new data to be generated about individual students that never existed before including drafts and edits as they are recorded and showing the pacing and record of their performance through a math or reading program.

Communications between students and teachers, or students and other students-along with everything from last night's math homework to the metadata of their online behavior while immersed in an app-is now created, collected, and often held by third party educational technology vendors.

Teachers are ethically obliged to follow and model good digital citizenship practices and behaviors with their students. This includes thinking carefully about the digital products and processes that are incorporated in any project or lesson design.

What constitutes student data?

Information that is tied to individual students is referred to as personally identifiable information, or PII, and is subject to additional restrictions in laws and regulations.

Student personal information includes any information about a student's identity, academics, medical conditions, or anything else that is collected, stored, and communicated by schools or technology vendors on behalf of schools that is particular to that individual student. This includes a student's name, address, names of parents or guardians, date of birth, grades, attendance, disciplinary records, eligibility for lunch programs, special needs, and other information necessary for basic administration and instruction. It also includes the data created or generated by the student or teacher in the use of technology-email accounts, online bulletin boards, work performed with an educational program or app, anything that is by or about the individual student in the educational setting. Some student personal information such as social security number, is highly sensitive and collection may be barred by state law.
OTHER SECTIONS OF THE GUIDE COVER:

What is an education record?

What if I want to use an education app or tool and I don't know if my school/district has vetted it?

What should I do if my school has already vetted an app or tool?

What about companies that provide online tools to schools?

What should I do if a student suggests an unvetted education app to use for a project?

What if my students and/or I want to use or recommend a technology tool that was not specifically designed for education?

What are the federal and state laws that we need to follow?

Some questions to help you quickly evaluate whether an app, website, product, or service will protect your students' information.

What if I want to use an education app or tool and I don't know if my school/district has vetted it?

Be familiar with your school's policy or process for selecting new educational tools, if one exists. If an app or service you want to use is not on the "approved" list, ask for it to be vetted and ask how long the vetting process takes. If the process is lengthy, you will want to redesign your lesson or project plan. Once the app is approved, you can certainly use it later. The list may also contain similar alternative apps you can use in the meantime.

If no such vetting process exists in your school, the checklist at the bottom of this section can help you quickly evaluate whether your students' information will be protected.

You can also look to sources like Common Sense Media or iKeepSafe to see if they have "rated" or "badged" an ed tech product for privacy. You can also check the database of the Student Data Privacy Consortium to see which apps are being used by other districts. Note that none of these sites replace getting the app you want to use vetted by your school, they are just signals of which apps are more privacy friendly - make sure you check with them!

Some tools have already been vetted

If your school or district has an approved list of ed tech products, services, websites, or apps, check that the service you use is included and ensure you are aware of any requirements or privacy options. When schools and districts decide to adopt certain technology tools, they should evaluate those tools to ensure they meet data privacy requirements. Some examples include:

Workflow and collaboration tools where students and teachers draft work together, give feedback, and communicate throughout the learning process.

Learning Management Systems (LMS) where teachers post instructions, assignments, and links to resources for students and parents to access.

Online gradebooks where teachers post grades and students and parents can access them using a username and password.

Communication tools for emails or newsletters.

What about companies that provide online tools to schools?

Schools are allowed to rely on technology companies to provide products and services, but have the responsibility to ensure that those vendors have appropriate protections in place for student data. The school must ensure that it retains direct control over the information the company collects, uses, and maintains. Schools are responsible for seeing that companies working with the school directly only use student information for authorized educational purposes. These companies have access to this data under the "school official" exception, for the limited purpose of using student information for educational purposes only.

What should I do if a student suggests an unvetted education app to use for a project?

As a teacher, you cannot officially endorse the use of an outside product, but you can explain to the student the considerations they should take into account, including recommending the student let their parents know too. It's quite common for students to find education apps on their own to use for projects, and educators should encourage students to be creative and take their suggestions seriously. This is a teachable moment-a great opportunity to talk with the student about data privacy and review that digital citizenship curriculum.

Here are some examples of questions you could use to start the conversation with your student:

1. Did you have to make an account in order to start using that app? If so, did you have to provide personal information (email, name, age, etc.)?

2. Does the app require parental permission? Who has access to your email and other information now that you've created that account?

3. Does the app developer share your information with others? (It's in their privacy policy.)

4. Does the app collect additional information such as location or contacts?

In all likelihood, your student will not know the answers to some of these questions. That is OK, but it is important to explain to them that all of this information belongs to them. They should think about protecting it, and should be encouraged to discuss their choices at home with their parents as well.

Again, you can also suggest to them that they see if that tool is rated or badged on Common Sense Media, iKeepSafe, or in the database of the Student Data Privacy Consortium.

What if my students and/or I want to use or recommend a technology tool that was not specifically designed for education?

If you, the teacher, want to recommend an app that was not specifically designed for education, checking with your administration, complying with applicable school policies, and using the checklist in this guide just as you would for an education-specific app is still a best practice. It's a common issue because there are many "consumer apps," not designed for education that students may wish to use for learning or to help them with their homework and projects. These may include research tools, note taking apps, collaboration tools or apps that allow users to make videos, record audio or create other media such as cartoons, images, and so on.

However, commercial products not designed and marketed for schools may not have the privacy policies and practices in place to ensure the protection of user data to the standards of laws that protect student information. Therefore, if not prohibited by school policy, these products should be carefully evaluated to see if their use will put student data at undesirable risk.

If a student approaches you and asks to use an app for your assignment that you're not familiar with, it is a good idea to use the opportunity to talk to your student using the suggested questions above.

Again, harness that teachable moment.

Some questions to help you quickly evaluate whether an app, website, product, or service will protect your students' information.

1. Does the product collect Personally Identifiable Information? FERPA, the federal privacy law applies to "education records" only, but many state laws cover ALL student personal information.

2. Does the vendor commit not to further share student information other than as needed to provide the educational product or service? (Such as third party cloud storage, or a subcontractor the vendor works with under contract.) The vendor should clearly promise never to sell data.

3. Does the vendor create a profile of students, other than for the educational purposes specified? Vendors are not allowed to create a student profile for any reason outside of the authorized educational purpose.

4. When you cancel the account or delete the app, will the vendor delete all the student data that has been provided or created?

5. Does the product show advertisements to student users? Ads are allowed, but many states ban ads targeted based on data about students or behavioral ads that are based on tracking a student across the web. TIP: Look for a triangle i symbol ( ) which is an industry label indicating that a site allows behaviorally targeted advertising. These are never acceptable for school use. This would be particularly important when evaluating non-education-specific sites or services.

6. Does the vendor allow parents to access data it holds about students or enable schools to access data so the school can provide the data to parents in compliance with FERPA?

7. Does the vendor promise that it provides appropriate security for the data it collects? TIP: A particularly secure product will specify that it uses encryption when it stores or transmits student information. Encrypting the data adds a critical layer of protection for student information and indicates a higher level of security.

8. Does the vendor claim that it can change its privacy policy without notice at any time? This is a red flag-current FTC rules require that companies provide notice to users when their privacy policies change in a significant or "material" way, and get new consent for collection and use of their data.

9. Does the vendor say that if the company is sold, all bets are off? The policy should state that any sale or merger will require the new company to adhere to the same protections.

10. Do reviews or articles about the product or vendor raise any red flags that cause you concern?

Basic Parent Questions

Parents may come to you with questions. While more detailed questions may require that you refer them to a school administrator, you can prepare in advance for some of the most common parent questions, such as:

What apps are you using in the classroom, and why are you using those apps?

How can parents access their child's education records?

What kind of data is collected about students?

How is student data used?

Who has access to data about my child?

Who is in charge of privacy in our district?

How does our district hold ed tech companies and other service providers accountable for maintaining the confidentiality of the student data they receive?

You can see if your district has a student privacy FAQ handout, or create your own (you can always adapt the one on pages 16-18 of this Student Data Privacy Communications Guide) and provide it to parents.

Refer Parents to Other Resources

There are many great resources for parents on the internet! We think the parent page on FERPA|Sherpa and our Parents' Guide to Student Data Privacy are particularly useful, but you can also refer parents to great state or district websites like:

Other Communications

There are many other great ways to communicate. You could have an after-hours meeting with students and their parents about the apps you are using in your classroom and how you are ensuring student privacy. You could also teach students about their privacy at school.

Figure out how parents in your district can best be reached - by mobile phone, website, in person, etc - and meet them where they are. Push your district to be better about communicating on student privacy. Check out our favorite communications resource, the Foundation for Excellence in Education Student Data Privacy Communications Toolkit, for ideas and resources you can copy and paste.

Have other communications suggestions or materials that educators could use? Email them to us at [email protected] .

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

Information in a student's education record is governed by FERPA, a federal law enacted in 1974 that guarantees that parents have access to their child's education record and restricts who can access and use student information. FERPA protects the access to and sharing of a student's education record, which is all information directly related to a particular student as part of his or her education. FERPA gives parents specific rights to their child's education records and when a child turns 18, the rights belong directly to him or her.

FERPA also permits schools to share information with another school system regarding a student's enrollment or transfer, specified officials for audit or evaluation purposes; appropriate parties in connection with financial aid to a student; organizations conducting certain studies for or on behalf of the school; and accrediting organizations. The "school official" exception allows schools to share information with parent volunteers, technology companies or other vendors, but only when used for educational purposes directed by the school. Directory Information, another FERPA exception, is student data that a school may make public, for example a sports team roster, yearbook information or even data that can be provided to third parties, but parents must be given the opportunity to opt-out.

The Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA)

PPRA outlines restrictions for the process when students might be asked for information as part of federally funded surveys or evaluations.

For example, surveys might be used to better understand the effects on students of drug and alcohol use, or sexual conduct. They might also seek to understand the impact on students with family backgrounds that include violence, or variations in home life such as family makeup or income levels. In order to administer such surveys, schools must be able to show parents any of the survey materials used, and provide parents with choices for any surveys that deal with certain sensitive categories.

The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)

COPPA controls what information is collected from young children by companies operating websites, games, and mobile applications directed toward children under 13.

COPPA requires companies to have a clear privacy policy, provide direct notice to parents, and obtain parental consent before collecting information from children under 13. Teachers and other school officials are authorized to provide this consent on behalf of parents for use of an educational program, but only for use in the educational context.

This means the company can only collect personal information from students for the specified educational purpose, and for no other commercial purpose. Some schools have policies that require school administrator approval before teachers can allow use of certain apps or services. When information is collected with the consent of a school official, the company may keep the information only as long as necessary to achieve the educational purposes.

State Laws and Regulations

Do you know if the state you are working in has a student privacy law? Just since 2013, over 100 new student privacy laws have passed in almost all states. Most of those laws impose new requirements on districts, states, and school service providers.

There are many easy ways for teachers to protect the security of student data. Our favorite checklist on this topic was developed for Fordham University School of Law, Technology and Privacy Law by Elizabeth Walker. Check out the full checklist in PDF here, or our version of the checklist below.

General Guidelines

Do not share passwords for school accounts with anyone, including other staff, family members, or significant others. Check out some of the suggestions in this article for how to create a secure password. You can also use password managers like LastPass or 1Password to help you remember your passwords and keep them secure.

Use different passwords for your school accounts than you do for personal accounts.

Avoid connecting to the Internet through wireless networks (WiFi) that are not password protected.

Immediately report to the administration any suspicious activity involving or affecting technology related to school work, school accounts, or student data.

Back up your data regularly. If your account is hacked, subject to ransomware, or there is just a technical bug, you will be very glad that you kept a backup of your data.

Accessing or Sharing Student Data

Ask the administration whether your district or school has a policy about using or sharing student data.

Only access the student data that you have permission to access.

Only access student data for legitimate school or educational purposes.

When accessing student data, only use computers or devices that have either been approved by the school or that contain security software and are password protected.

Lock up hardcopy files and devices with access to student data.

Do not share or disclose student data without authorization from an administrator, parent, or guardian.

Do not share student data during public meetings or presentations; use fictitious records instead.

Avoid sending student data via email unless specifically authorized.

Immediately report any incidents to the administration where you believe student data may have been inappropriately accessed or shared.

Using Computers, Tablets, and Other Devices
When you are using school-owned equipment:

Ask the administration whether your district or school has a policy about using school-owned computers, tablets, or other devices.

Log out of accounts and close browsers and programs whenever you finish using a program.

Password-protect, lock, or otherwise secure all computers and devices when not in use.

Immediately report lost or stolen devices to the administration.

When you are using your own equipment:

Ask the administration whether your district or school has a policy about bringing your own computer, tablet, or other device to school or using your own device for school purposes.

Ask the administration if approval is necessary prior to using your own computer or other device in the classroom or to access student data.

Install anti-virus software on the device before using it on the school network or to access school accounts

If the device or a program notifies you that critical security updates or patches are available, promptly follow the instructions on the screen to download and install the updates.

Set up password protection to log in to the device, wake the device, or unlock the screen.

Log out of accounts and close browsers and programs whenever you are finished.

Password-protect, lock, or otherwise secure all computers and devices when not in use.

Immediately report lost or stolen devices to the administration.

Using Email

Ask the administration whether your district or school has a policy about using email.

Do not click on any links or download any attachments you receive from a suspicious source.

Be cautious of emails containing the following:

Links in suspicious-looking messages

Threats that your account will be closed if you do not respond

Web addresses where names of well-known companies have been slightly altered

Requests for personal information

Unexpected attachments, especially those purporting to come from banks or financial
institutions

Deals that sound too good to be true

Urgent emails demanding that you act immediately

Messages that list your email as the sender or from address

Do you have any security tips to add? Email them to [email protected] .

Student Privacy For K-12 Educators and Administrators Playlist (iKeepSafe)

ConnectSafely Educator's Guide to Social Media explains how educators can use social media in the classroom without risking their professional reputation.

Student Privacy Pledge is a list of twelve commitments K-12 school service providers agree to in order to safeguard student data privacy regarding the collection, maintenance, and use of student personal information.

ConnectSafely, FPF, and National PTA's Parent's Guide to Student Data Privacy assists parents in understanding the laws that protect student data and helps parents understand their student's rights under the law.

Department of Education PTAC is a resource for education stakeholders to learn about data privacy, confidentiality, and security practices related to student-level longitudinal data systems and other uses of student data.

CoSN Privacy Toolkit for School Leaders provides school officials with 10 essential skills areas, outlining the responsibilities and knowledge needed to be an educational technology leader.

Data Quality Campaign provides information on state laws annually, as well as other useful privacy review tools and resources.

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Technology tools and apps are making it possible for educators and students to collaborate, create, and share ideas more easily than ever. When schools use technology, students' data-including some personal information-is collected both by educators and often the companies that provide apps and online services.

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The Educator's Guide to Student Data Privacy

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The Educator's Guide to Student Data Privacy

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Technology tools and apps are making it possible for educators and students to collaborate, create, and share ideas more easily than ever. When schools use technology, students' data-including some personal information-is collected both by educators and often the companies that provide apps and online services. Educators use some of this data to inform their instructional practice and get to know their students better. It is just as essential for educators to protect their students as it is to help them learn.

This guide is meant to help teachers utilize technology in the classroom while protecting their students' privacy.

Why should classroom teachers care about student data privacy?
There are legal and ethical restrictions that impact districts, school, and teachers.
Traditionally, student data consisted of things like attendance, grades, discipline records, and health records. Access to that data used to be restricted to the administrator, guidance counselor, teacher, or other school official who needed it to serve the educational needs of the child. With the use of technology in schools, traditional data is now often shared with companies that provide Student Information Systems (SIS), Learning Management Systems (LMS), and many other technologies. Parents, students, and others have raised concerns about what information is being collected or shared, and what use those companies might make of that data.
Teachers should be aware of Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)Teachers are ethically obliged to follow and model good digital citizenship practices and behaviors with their students. This includes thinking carefully about the digital products and processes that are incorporated in any project or lesson design. and applicable state laws, along with their district or school policies regarding the use of educational products and services from ed tech vendors. (More on FERPA and other laws below) Information that is tied to individual students is referred to as personally identifiable information, or PII, and is subject to additional restrictions in laws and regulations.
New technologies-including personal computers, mobile devices, apps, websites, programs, and online services-are used in classrooms in ways that cause new data to be generated about individual students that never existed before including drafts and edits as they are recorded and showing the pacing and record of their performance through a math or reading program. Communications between students and teachers, or students and other students-along with everything from last night's math homework to the metadata of their online behavior while immersed in an app-is now created, collected, and often held by third party educational technology vendors.

What constitutes student data?

Student personal information includes any information about a student's identity, academics, medical conditions, or anything else that is collected, stored, and communicated by schools or technology vendors on behalf of schools that is particular to that individual student. This includes name, address, names of parents or guardians, date of birth, grades, attendance, disciplinary records, eligibility for lunch programs, special needs, and other information necessary for basic administration and instruction. It also includes the data created or generated by the student or teacher in the use of technology - email accounts, online bulletin boards, work performed with an educational program or app, anything that is by or about the individual student in the educational setting. Some student personal information such as social security number, is highly sensitive and collection may be barred by state law.

What is an education record?
Be familiar with your school's policy or process for selecting new educational tools, if one exists.
The federal law, FERPA protects educational records that contain information directly related to an individual student and which are maintained by an educational agency or institution or by a party acting for the agency or institution. However, new state student privacy laws protect all "student personal information" and data that is now collected and used via modern educational technology products and services.

What if I want to use an education app or tool and I don't know if my school/district has vetted it?

If an app or service you want to use is not on the "approved" list, ask for it to be vetted and ask how long the vetting process takes. If the process is lengthy, you will want to redesign your lesson or project plan. Once the app is approved, you can certainly use it later. The list may also contain similar alternative apps you can use in the meantime.
If your school or district has an approved list of ed tech products, services, websites, or apps, check that the service you use is included and ensure you are aware of any requirements or privacy options.
If no such vetting process exists in your school, the checklist at the end of this guide can help you quickly evaluate whether your students' information will be protected.

Some tools have already been vetted

When schools and districts decide to adopt certain technology tools, they should evaluate those tools to ensure they meet data privacy requirements. Some examples include:

Workflow and collaboration tools where students and teachers draft work together, give feedback, and communicate throughout the learning process.

Learning Management Systems (LMS) where teachers post instructions, assignments, and links to resources for students and parents to access.

Online gradebooks where teachers post grades and students and parents can access them using a username and password.

Communication tools for emails or newsletters.

As a teacher, you cannot officially endorse use of an outside product, but you can explain to the student the considerations they should take into account, including recommending the student let their parents know too.

What should I do if a student suggests an unvetted education app to use for a project?

It's quite common for students to find education apps on their own to use for projects, and educators should encourage students to be creative and take their suggestions seriously. This is a teachable moment-a great opportunity to talk with the student about data privacy and review that digital citizenship curriculum.

Here are some examples of questions you could use to start the conversation with your student:

1. Did you have to make an account in order to start using that app? If so, did you have to provide personal information (email, name, age, etc.)?

2. Does the app require parental permission? Who has access to your email and other information now that you've created that account?

3. Does the app developer share your information with others? (It's in their privacy policy.)

4. Does the app collect additional information such as location or contacts?

In all likelihood, your student will not know the answers to some of these questions. That is OK, but it is important to explain to them that all of this information belongs to them. They should think about protecting it, and should be encouraged to discuss their choices at home with their parents as well.

What about companies that provide online tools to schools?
If you, the teacher, want to recommend an app that was not specifically designed for education, checking with your administration, complying with applicable school policies, and using the checklist in this guide just as you would for an education-specific app is still a best practice.
Schools are allowed to rely on technology companies to provide products and services, but have the responsibility to ensure that those vendors have appropriate protections in place for student data. The school must ensure that it retains direct control over the information the company collects, uses, and maintains. Schools are responsible for seeing that companies working with the school directly only use student information for authorized educational purposes. These companies have access to this data under the "school official" exception, for the limited purpose of using student information for educational purposes only.

What if my students and/or I want to use or recommend a technology tool that was not specifically designed for education?

It's a common issue because there are many "consumer apps," not designed for education that students may wish to use for learning or to help them with their homework and projects. These may include research tools, note taking apps, collaboration tools or apps that allow users to make videos, record audio or create other media such as cartoons, images, and so on.

However, commercial products not designed and marketed for schools may not have the privacy policies and practices in place to ensure the protection of user data to the standards of laws that protect student information. Therefore, if not prohibited by school policy, these products should be carefully evaluated to see if their use will put student data at undesirable risk.
FERPA - Information in a student's education record is governed by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, a federal law enacted in 1974 that guarantees that parents have access to their child's education record and restricts who can access and use student information.
If a student approaches you and asks to use an app for your assignment that you're not familiar with, it is a good idea to use the opportunity to talk to your student using the suggested questions above. Again, harness that teachable moment.
COPPA - The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) controls what information is collected from young children by companies operating websites, games, and mobile applications directed toward children under 13.
What are the federal and state laws that we need to follow?
PPRA - The Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) outlines restrictions for the process when students might be asked for information as part of federally funded surveys or evaluations.
FERPA protects the access to and sharing of a student's education record, which is all information directly related to a particular student as part of his or her education. FERPA gives parents specific rights to their child's education records and when a child turns 18, the rights belong directly to him or her. FERPA also permits schools to share information with another school system regarding a student's enrollment or transfer, specified officials for audit or evaluation purposes; appropriate parties in connection with financial aid to a student; organizations conducting certain studies for or on behalf of the school; and accrediting organizations. The "school official" exception allows schools to share information with parent volunteers, technology companies or other vendors, but only when used for educational purposes directed by the school. (See Sidebar.) Directory Information, another FERPA exception, is student data that a school may make public, for example a sports team roster, yearbook information or even data that can be provided to third parties, but parents must be given the opportunity to opt-out.

COPPA requires companies to have a clear privacy policy, provide direct notice to parents, and obtain parental consent before collecting information from children under 13. Teachers and other school officials are authorized to provide this consent on behalf of parents for use of an educational program, but only for use in the educational context. This means the company can only collect personal information from students for the specified educational purpose, and for no other commercial purpose. Some schools have policies that require school administrator approval before teachers can allow use of certain apps or services. When information is collected with the consent of a school official, the company may keep the information only as long as necessary to achieve the educational purposes.
State laws vary greatly and you should be aware of your state's specific requirements.
For example, surveys might be used to better understand the effects on students of drug and alcohol use, or sexual conduct. They might also seek to understand the impact on students with family backgrounds that include violence, or variations in home life such as family makeup or income levels. In order to administer such surveys, schools must be able to show parents any of the survey materials used, and provide parents with choices for any surveys that deal with certain sensitive categories.

What resources are available to teachers to further understand and teach student privacy?

If your school administration does not have information or training available on this topic, there are sites that can help you locate your particular state's law, and provide overall information on these questions. See the additional resources section below.

ConnectSafely Educator's Guide to Social Media explains how educators can use social media in the classroom without risking their professional reputation.

FERPA|SHERPA provides service providers, parents, school officials, and policymakers with easy access to materials and resources to help guide responsible uses of student's data.

Student Privacy Pledge is a list of twelve commitments K-12 school service provides agree to in order to safeguard students data privacy regarding the collection, maintenance, and use of student personal information.

ConnectSafely, FPF, PTA Parent's Guide to Student Data Privacy assists parents in understanding the laws that protect student data and helps parents understand their student's rights under the law.

Department of Education PTAC is a resource for education stakeholders to learn about data privacy, confidentiality, and security practices related to student-level longitudinal data systems and other uses of student data.

CoSN Privacy Toolkit for School Leaders provides school officials with 10 essential skills areas, outlining the responsibilities and knowledge needed to be an educational technology leader.

Data Quality Campaign provides information on state laws annually, as well as other useful privacy review tools and resources.

Closing thoughts for educators

We live in a period of constant change that affects everyone-families, government, business and, of course, education. It's an exciting time and, although rapid change can sometimes be hard to adjust to, it's a fact of life that's not going away.

For the most part, change is good, especially when it increases our productivity and improves outcomes and helps engage our students. But as we adopt new technologies, we must also think about how they affect the safety, security and privacy of all stakeholders-especially our students.

Sometimes it makes sense to pause, if even for a moment, to make sure we're doing all we can to protect our students. But it's also our responsibility as educators to embrace innovation and encourage our students and our colleagues to try new approaches and embrace new tools. It's a challenge, but it's not beyond our reach.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

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The Educator's Guide to Student Data Privacy - ConnectSafely

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Technology tools and apps are making it possible for educators and students to collaborate, create, and share ideas more easily than ever. When schools use technology, students' data-including some personal information-is collected both by educators and often the companies that provide apps and online services.

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Understanding FERPA: How K–12 Schools Can Update Their Data Privacy Approach

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Understanding FERPA: How K–12 Schools Can Update Their Data Privacy Approach

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Technology Solutions That Drive Education

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Administrators and educational staff at schools around the country understand the importance of protecting student privacy. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, signed into law in 1974 by President Gerald Ford, created clear protections for student educational records, limiting the ways school officials can share those records with outside parties and ensuring parents retain access to information about their children.

FERPA is well known within the educational community, but it is often misunderstood. In many cases, administrators believe that FERPA prohibits them from sharing information with anyone, and it is sometimes used as the basis for restricting information sharing among educators within a school.
MORE FROM EDTECH: Biometrics may be a boon for physical security, but some experts have concerns over data privacy.
What Does FERPA Protect?

In a K-12 setting, the rights extended under FERPA typically apply to the parents of minor students under the age of 18. These protections include:

The right to review any educational records maintained by the school about their student

The right to request correction of information they believe is incorrect

The right to avoid disclosure of student records to third parties without written consent

There are quite a few exceptions to the disclosure consent requirement, including exceptions for basic biographical "directory" information and for cases where the information is being disclosed to authorized school officials for a legitimate educational purpose. Interpreting these provisions can be complicated, and the advice of an attorney who specializes in education law can be invaluable in navigating them.
MORE FROM EDTECH: See how schools can balance student privacy and security protocols.
5 Ways Schools Can Build a Modern Data Privacy Strategy

FERPA's provisions are common-sense requirements that codify some of the foundational principles of privacy: Individuals should have the right to review and correct their records and control the disclosure of their personal information.

As schools seek to implement these basic principles in practice, they find the worlds of privacy and cybersecurity are intertwined and complex.

In the 45 years since FERPA became law, schools have replaced centralized paper records with distributed digital systems that require careful security controls.

Here are five things that schools can do today to ensure their privacy practices meet modern standards.

1. Train all faculty and staff on privacy provisions. In a world of distributed data, privacy becomes everyone's responsibility. Faculty and staff with access to student information systems must understand that they should only retrieve information from that system when they have, in the words of FERPA, a "legitimate educational interest." Unauthorized browsing of records may constitute a FERPA violation. Similarly, anyone accessing student educational records has a responsibility to protect the privacy of those records and should not disclose them to anyone not eligible to review them under FERPA.

2. Designate a FERPA guru. FERPA is a constant source of confusion among educators and administrators. Every district should have at least one designated subject matter expert with a deep understanding of the district's privacy practices. Creating this position does not absolve others of responsibility for complying with FERPA, but it does give them a place to turn when they have questions about tricky privacy issues.

3. Implement strong, granular access controls. In the early days of student information systems, it wasn't uncommon for all faculty and staff to have unrestricted access to student records. That approach is not consistent with the "legitimate educational interest" provision of FERPA. Schools should implement access controls that limit record access based upon an individual's role. This may include both domain-based restrictions and student-based restrictions. For example, a teacher might have access to all record domains but be limited to students in their classes. Or, a school nurse might have access to records about all students, but that access might be domain-limited to health-related information.

4. Monitor for security threats. Cybersecurity threats are sophisticated and require specific expertise to combat. Districts should designate a technology staff member as their cybersecurity official and charge that person with monitoring security systems for threats. This includes analysis of security logs as well as periodic testing of security controls. Building a strong cybersecurity foundation reduces the likelihood of a major data breach.

5. Implement data loss prevention technology. One of the biggest challenges in protecting student privacy rests in understanding where educational records are stored and how they move on the network. DLP technology provides this insight, allowing security officials to inventory sensitive records and control their flow across the network. Properly implemented DLP technology can identify and block a potential privacy violation before it takes place.

Preserving privacy is a complex undertaking that requires a mix of sound policy, strong business practices and modern technology. This is a great time for schools to inventory their existing privacy practices and assess whether they are in line with contemporary best practices.

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Understanding FERPA: How K-12 Schools Can Update Their Data Privacy Approach

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Administrators and educational staff at schools around the country understand the importance of protecting student privacy. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, signed into law in 1974 by President Gerald Ford, created clear protections for student educational records, limiting the ways school officials can share those records with outside parties and ensuring parents retain access to information about their children.

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34 CFR PART 99-FAMILY EDUCATIONAL RIGHTS AND PRIVACY

These are the Office of the Chief Privacy Officer's unofficial version of the FERPA regulations. They are presented here for your convenience. These regulations can also be found at the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations: Title 34, Part 99--Family Educational Rights and Privacy.
The Federal Register Notices for each change to FERPA can be found here: Contents Subpart A-General
§99.1 To which educational agencies or institutions do these regulations apply?
§99.2 What is the purpose of these regulations?
§99.3 What definitions apply to these regulations?
§99.4 What are the rights of parents?
§99.5 What are the rights of students?
§99.6 [Reserved]
§99.7 What must an educational agency or institution include in its annual notification?
§99.8 What provisions apply to records of a law enforcement unit?
Subpart B-What Are the Rights of Inspection and Review of Education Records?
§99.10 What rights exist for a parent or eligible student to inspect and review education records?
§99.11 May an educational agency or institution charge a fee for copies of education records?
§99.12 What limitations exist on the right to inspect and review records?
Subpart C-What Are the Procedures for Amending Education Records?
§99.20 How can a parent or eligible student request amendment of the student's education records?
§99.21 Under what conditions does a parent or eligible student have the right to a hearing?
§99.22 What minimum requirements exist for the conduct of a hearing?
Subpart D-May an Educational Agency or Institution Disclose Personally Identifiable Information From Education Records?
§99.30 Under what conditions is prior consent required to disclose information?
§99.31 Under what conditions is prior consent not required to disclose information?
§99.32 What recordkeeping requirements exist concerning requests and disclosures?
§99.33 What limitations apply to the redisclosure of information?
§99.34 What conditions apply to disclosure of information to other educational agencies or institutions?
§99.35 What conditions apply to disclosure of information for Federal or State program purposes?
§99.36 What conditions apply to disclosure of information in health and safety emergencies?
§99.37 What conditions apply to disclosing directory information?
§99.38 What conditions apply to disclosure of information as permitted by State statute adopted after November 19, 1974, concerning the juvenile justice system?
§99.39 What definitions apply to the nonconsensual disclosure of records by postsecondary educational institutions in connection with disciplinary proceedings concerning crimes of violence or non-forcible sex offenses?
Subpart E-What Are the Enforcement Procedures?
§99.60 What functions has the Secretary delegated to the Office and to the Office of Administrative Law Judges?
§99.61 What responsibility does an educational agency or institution, a recipient of Department funds, or a third party outside of an educational agency or institution have concerning conflict with State or local laws?
§99.62 What information must an educational agency or institution or other recipient of Department funds submit to the Office?
§99.63 Where are complaints filed?
§99.64 What is the investigation procedure?
§99.65 What is the content of the notice of investigation issued by the Office?
§99.66 What are the responsibilities of the Office in the enforcement process?
§99.67 How does the Secretary enforce decisions?
Appendix A to Part 99-Crimes of Violence Definitions

Subpart A-General

§99.1 To which educational agencies or institutions do these regulations apply?

(a) Except as otherwise noted in §99.10, this part applies to an educational agency or institution to which funds have been made available under any program administered by the Secretary, if-

(1) The educational institution provides educational services or instruction, or both, to students; or

(2) The educational agency is authorized to direct and control public elementary or secondary, or postsecondary educational institutions.

(b) This part does not apply to an educational agency or institution solely because students attending that agency or institution receive non-monetary benefits under a program referenced in paragraph (a) of this section, if no funds under that program are made available to the agency or institution.

(c) The Secretary considers funds to be made available to an educational agency or institution of funds under one or more of the programs referenced in paragraph (a) of this section-

(1) Are provided to the agency or institution by grant, cooperative agreement, contract, subgrant, or subcontract; or

(2) Are provided to students attending the agency or institution and the funds may be paid to the agency or institution by those students for educational purposes, such as under the Pell Grant Program and the Guaranteed Student Loan Program (titles IV-A-1 and IV-B, respectively, of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended).

(d) If an educational agency or institution receives funds under one or more of the programs covered by this section, the regulations in this part apply to the recipient as a whole, including each of its components (such as a department within a university).

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g)

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 61 FR 59295, Nov. 21, 1996; 65 FR 41852, July 6, 2000]

§99.2 What is the purpose of these regulations?

The purpose of this part is to set out requirements for the protection of privacy of parents and students under section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act, as amended.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g)

Note to §99.2: 34 CFR 300.610 through 300.626 contain requirements regarding the confidentiality of information relating to children with disabilities who receive evaluations, services or other benefits under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). 34 CFR 303.402 and 303.460 identify the confidentiality of information requirements regarding children and infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families who receive evaluations, services, or other benefits under Part C of IDEA. 34 CFR 300.610 through 300.627 contain the confidentiality of information requirements that apply to personally identifiable data, information, and records collected or maintained pursuant to Part B of the IDEA.

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 61 FR 59295, Nov. 21, 1996; 73 FR 74851, Dec. 9, 2008]

§99.3 What definitions apply to these regulations?

The following definitions apply to this part:

Act means the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, enacted as section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g)

Attendance includes, but is not limited to-

(a) Attendance in person or by paper correspondence, videoconference, satellite, Internet, or other electronic information and telecommunications technologies for students who are not physically present in the classroom; and

(b) The period during which a person is working under a work-study program.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g)

Authorized representative means any entity or individual designated by a State or local educational authority or an agency headed by an official listed in §99.31(a)(3) to conduct-with respect to Federal- or State-supported education programs-any audit or evaluation, or any compliance or enforcement activity in connection with Federal legal requirements that relate to these programs.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1)(C), (b)(3), and (b)(5))

Biometric record, as used in the definition of personally identifiable information, means a record of one or more measurable biological or behavioral characteristics that can be used for automated recognition of an individual. Examples include fingerprints; retina and iris patterns; voiceprints; DNA sequence; facial characteristics; and handwriting.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g)

Dates of attendance. (a) The term means the period of time during which a student attends or attended an educational agency or institution. Examples of dates of attendance include an academic year, a spring semester, or a first quarter.

(b) The term does not include specific daily records of a student's attendance at an educational agency or institution.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(5)(A))

Directory information means information contained in an education record of a student that would not generally be considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if disclosed.

(a) Directory information includes, but is not limited to, the student's name; address; telephone listing; electronic mail address; photograph; date and place of birth; major field of study; grade level; enrollment status ( e.g., undergraduate or graduate, full-time or part-time); dates of attendance; participation in officially recognized activities and sports; weight and height of members of athletic teams; degrees, honors, and awards received; and the most recent educational agency or institution attended.

(b) Directory information does not include a student's-

(1) Social security number; or

(2) Student identification (ID) number, except as provided in paragraph (c) of this definition.

(c) In accordance with paragraphs (a) and (b) of this definition, directory information includes-

(1) A student ID number, user ID, or other unique personal identifier used by a student for purposes of accessing or communicating in electronic systems, but only if the identifier cannot be used to gain access to education records except when used in conjunction with one or more factors that authenticate the user's identity, such as a personal identification number (PIN), password or other factor known or possessed only by the authorized user; and

(2) A student ID number or other unique personal identifier that is displayed on a student ID badge, but only if the identifier cannot be used to gain access to education records except when used in conjunction with one or more factors that authenticate the user's identity, such as a PIN, password, or other factor known or possessed only by the authorized user.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(5)(A))

Disciplinary action or proceeding means the investigation, adjudication, or imposition of sanctions by an educational agency or institution with respect to an infraction or violation of the internal rules of conduct applicable to students of the agency or institution.

Disclosure means to permit access to or the release, transfer, or other communication of personally identifiable information contained in education records by any means, including oral, written, or electronic means, to any party except the party identified as the party that provided or created the record.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1) and (b)(2))

Early childhood education program means-

(a) A Head Start program or an Early Head Start program carried out under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.), including a migrant or seasonal Head Start program, an Indian Head Start program, or a Head Start program or an Early Head Start program that also receives State funding;

(b) A State licensed or regulated child care program; or

(c) A program that-

(1) Serves children from birth through age six that addresses the children's cognitive (including language, early literacy, and early mathematics), social, emotional, and physical development; and

(2) Is-

(i) A State prekindergarten program;

(ii) A program authorized under section 619 or part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act; or

(iii) A program operated by a local educational agency.

Educational agency or institution means any public or private agency or institution to which this part applies under §99.1(a).

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(3))

Education program means any program that is principally engaged in the provision of education, including, but not limited to, early childhood education, elementary and secondary education, postsecondary education, special education, job training, career and technical education, and adult education, and any program that is administered by an educational agency or institution.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(3), (b)(5))

Education records. (a) The term means those records that are:

(1) Directly related to a student; and

(2) Maintained by an educational agency or institution or by a party acting for the agency or institution.

(b) The term does not include:

(1) Records that are kept in the sole possession of the maker, are used only as a personal memory aid, and are not accessible or revealed to any other person except a temporary substitute for the maker of the record.

(2) Records of the law enforcement unit of an educational agency or institution, subject to the provisions of §99.8.

(3)(i) Records relating to an individual who is employed by an educational agency or institution, that:

(A) Are made and maintained in the normal course of business;

(B) Relate exclusively to the individual in that individual's capacity as an employee; and

(C) Are not available for use for any other purpose.

(ii) Records relating to an individual in attendance at the agency or institution who is employed as a result of his or her status as a student are education records and not excepted under paragraph (b)(3)(i) of this definition.

(4) Records on a student who is 18 years of age or older, or is attending an institution of postsecondary education, that are:

(i) Made or maintained by a physician, psychiatrist, psychologist, or other recognized professional or paraprofessional acting in his or her professional capacity or assisting in a paraprofessional capacity;

(ii) Made, maintained, or used only in connection with treatment of the student; and

(iii) Disclosed only to individuals providing the treatment. For the purpose of this definition, "treatment" does not include remedial educational activities or activities that are part of the program of instruction at the agency or institution; and

(5) Records created or received by an educational agency or institution after an individual is no longer a student in attendance and that are not directly related to the individual's attendance as a student.

(6) Grades on peer-graded papers before they are collected and recorded by a teacher.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(4))

Eligible student means a student who has reached 18 years of age or is attending an institution of postsecondary education.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(d))

Institution of postsecondary education means an institution that provides education to students beyond the secondary school level; "secondary school level" means the educational level (not beyond grade 12) at which secondary education is provided as determined under State law.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(d))

Parent means a parent of a student and includes a natural parent, a guardian, or an individual acting as a parent in the absence of a parent or a guardian.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g)

Party means an individual, agency, institution, or organization.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(4)(A))

Personally Identifiable Information

The term includes, but is not limited to-

(a) The student's name;

(b) The name of the student's parent or other family members;

(c) The address of the student or student's family;

(d) A personal identifier, such as the student's social security number, student number, or biometric record;

(e) Other indirect identifiers, such as the student's date of birth, place of birth, and mother's maiden name;

(f) 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

(g) Information requested by a person who the educational agency or institution reasonably believes knows the identity of the student to whom the education record relates.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g)

Record means any information recorded in any way, including, but not limited to, handwriting, print, computer media, video or audio tape, film, microfilm, and microfiche.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g)

Secretary means the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education or an official or employee of the Department of Education acting for the Secretary under a delegation of authority.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g)

Student, except as otherwise specifically provided in this part, means any individual who is or has been in attendance at an educational agency or institution and regarding whom the agency or institution maintains education records.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(6))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 60 FR 3468, Jan. 17, 1995; 61 FR 59295, Nov. 21, 1996; 65 FR 41852, July 6, 2000; 73 FR 74851, Dec. 9, 2008; 76 FR 75641, Dec. 2, 2011]

§99.4 What are the rights of parents?

An educational agency or institution shall give full rights under the Act to either parent, unless the agency or institution has been provided with evidence that there is a court order, State statute, or legally binding document relating to such matters as divorce, separation, or custody that specifically revokes these rights.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g)

§99.5 What are the rights of students?

(a)(1) When a student becomes an eligible student, the rights accorded to, and consent required of, parents under this part transfer from the parents to the student.

(2) Nothing in this section prevents an educational agency or institution from disclosing education records, or personally identifiable information from education records, to a parent without the prior written consent of an eligible student if the disclosure meets the conditions in §99.31(a)(8), §99.31(a)(10), §99.31(a)(15), or any other provision in §99.31(a).

(b) The Act and this part do not prevent educational agencies or institutions from giving students rights in addition to those given to parents.

(c) An individual who is or has been a student at an educational institution and who applies for admission at another component of that institution does not have rights under this part with respect to records maintained by that other component, including records maintained in connection with the student's application for admission, unless the student is accepted and attends that other component of the institution.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(d))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 58 FR 3188, Jan. 7, 1993; 65 FR 41853, July 6, 2000; 73 FR 74852, Dec. 9, 2008]

§99.6 [Reserved]

§99.7 What must an educational agency or institution include in its annual notification?

(a)(1) Each educational agency or institution shall annually notify parents of students currently in attendance, or eligible students currently in attendance, of their rights under the Act and this part.

(2) The notice must inform parents or eligible students that they have the right to-

(i) Inspect and review the student's education records;

(ii) Seek amendment of the student's education records that the parent or eligible student believes to be inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the student's privacy rights;

(iii) Consent to disclosures of personally identifiable information contained in the student's education records, except to the extent that the Act and §99.31 authorize disclosure without consent; and

(iv) File with the Department a complaint under §§99.63 and 99.64 concerning alleged failures by the educational agency or institution to comply with the requirements of the Act and this part.

(3) The notice must include all of the following:

(i) The procedure for exercising the right to inspect and review education records.

(ii) The procedure for requesting amendment of records under §99.20.

(iii) If the educational agency or institution has a policy of disclosing education records under §99.31(a)(1), a specification of criteria for determining who constitutes a school official and what constitutes a legitimate educational interest.

(b) An educational agency or institution may provide this notice by any means that are reasonably likely to inform the parents or eligible students of their rights.

(1) An educational agency or institution shall effectively notify parents or eligible students who are disabled.

(2) An agency or institution of elementary or secondary education shall effectively notify parents who have a primary or home language other than English.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 1880-0508)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g (e) and (f))

[61 FR 59295, Nov. 21, 1996]

§99.8 What provisions apply to records of a law enforcement unit?

(a)(1) Law enforcement unit means any individual, office, department, division, or other component of an educational agency or institution, such as a unit of commissioned police officers or non-commissioned security guards, that is officially authorized or designated by that agency or institution to-

(i) Enforce any local, State, or Federal law, or refer to appropriate authorities a matter for enforcement of any local, State, or Federal law against any individual or organization other than the agency or institution itself; or

(ii) Maintain the physical security and safety of the agency or institution.

(2) A component of an educational agency or institution does not lose its status as a law enforcement unit if it also performs other, non-law enforcement functions for the agency or institution, including investigation of incidents or conduct that constitutes or leads to a disciplinary action or proceedings against the student.

(b)(1) Records of a law enforcement unit means those records, files, documents, and other materials that are-

(i) Created by a law enforcement unit;

(ii) Created for a law enforcement purpose; and

(iii) Maintained by the law enforcement unit.

(2) Records of a law enforcement unit does not mean-

(i) Records created by a law enforcement unit for a law enforcement purpose that are maintained by a component of the educational agency or institution other than the law enforcement unit; or

(ii) Records created and maintained by a law enforcement unit exclusively for a non-law enforcement purpose, such as a disciplinary action or proceeding conducted by the educational agency or institution.

(c)(1) Nothing in the Act prohibits an educational agency or institution from contacting its law enforcement unit, orally or in writing, for the purpose of asking that unit to investigate a possible violation of, or to enforce, any local, State, or Federal law.

(2) Education records, and personally identifiable information contained in education records, do not lose their status as education records and remain subject to the Act, including the disclosure provisions of §99.30, while in the possession of the law enforcement unit.

(d) The Act neither requires nor prohibits the disclosure by an educational agency or institution of its law enforcement unit records.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(4)(B)(ii))

[60 FR 3469, Jan. 17, 1995]

Subpart B-What Are the Rights of Inspection and Review of Education Records?

§99.10 What rights exist for a parent or eligible student to inspect and review education records?

(a) Except as limited under §99.12, a parent or eligible student must be given the opportunity to inspect and review the student's education records. This provision applies to-

(1) Any educational agency or institution; and

(2) Any State educational agency (SEA) and its components.

(i) For the purposes of subpart B of this part, an SEA and its components constitute an educational agency or institution.

(ii) An SEA and its components are subject to subpart B of this part if the SEA maintains education records on students who are or have been in attendance at any school of an educational agency or institution subject to the Act and this part.

(b) The educational agency or institution, or SEA or its component, shall comply with a request for access to records within a reasonable period of time, but not more than 45 days after it has received the request.

(c) The educational agency or institution, or SEA or its component shall respond to reasonable requests for explanations and interpretations of the records.

(d) If circumstances effectively prevent the parent or eligible student from exercising the right to inspect and review the student's education records, the educational agency or institution, or SEA or its component, shall-

(1) Provide the parent or eligible student with a copy of the records requested; or

(2) Make other arrangements for the parent or eligible student to inspect and review the requested records.

(e) The educational agency or institution, or SEA or its component shall not destroy any education records if there is an outstanding request to inspect and review the records under this section.

(f) While an education agency or institution is not required to give an eligible student access to treatment records under paragraph (b)(4) of the definition of Education records in §99.3, the student may have those records reviewed by a physician or other appropriate professional of the student's choice.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(1) (A) and (B))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 61 FR 59296, Nov. 21, 1996]

§99.11 May an educational agency or institution charge a fee for copies of education records?

(a) Unless the imposition of a fee effectively prevents a parent or eligible student from exercising the right to inspect and review the student's education records, an educational agency or institution may charge a fee for a copy of an education record which is made for the parent or eligible student.

(b) An educational agency or institution may not charge a fee to search for or to retrieve the education records of a student.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(1))

§99.12 What limitations exist on the right to inspect and review records?

(a) If the education records of a student contain information on more than one student, the parent or eligible student may inspect and review or be informed of only the specific information about that student.

(b) A postsecondary institution does not have to permit a student to inspect and review education records that are:

(1) Financial records, including any information those records contain, of his or her parents;

(2) Confidential letters and confidential statements of recommendation placed in the education records of the student before January 1, 1975, as long as the statements are used only for the purposes for which they were specifically intended; and

(3) Confidential letters and confidential statements of recommendation placed in the student's education records after January 1, 1975, if:

(i) The student has waived his or her right to inspect and review those letters and statements; and

(ii) Those letters and statements are related to the student's:

(A) Admission to an educational institution;

(B) Application for employment; or

(C) Receipt of an honor or honorary recognition.

(c)(1) A waiver under paragraph (b)(3)(i) of this section is valid only if:

(i) The educational agency or institution does not require the waiver as a condition for admission to or receipt of a service or benefit from the agency or institution; and

(ii) The waiver is made in writing and signed by the student, regardless of age.

(2) If a student has waived his or her rights under paragraph (b)(3)(i) of this section, the educational institution shall:

(i) Give the student, on request, the names of the individuals who provided the letters and statements of recommendation; and

(ii) Use the letters and statements of recommendation only for the purpose for which they were intended.

(3)(i) A waiver under paragraph (b)(3)(i) of this section may be revoked with respect to any actions occurring after the revocation.

(ii) A revocation under paragraph (c)(3)(i) of this section must be in writing.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(1) (A), (B), (C), and (D))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 61 FR 59296, Nov. 21, 1996]

Subpart C-What Are the Procedures for Amending Education Records?

§99.20 How can a parent or eligible student request amendment of the student's education records?

(a) If a parent or eligible student believes the education records relating to the student contain information that is inaccurate, misleading, or in violation of the student's rights of privacy, he or she may ask the educational agency or institution to amend the record.

(b) The educational agency or institution shall decide whether to amend the record as requested within a reasonable time after the agency or institution receives the request.

(c) If the educational agency or institution decides not to amend the record as requested, it shall inform the parent or eligible student of its decision and of his or her right to a hearing under §99.21.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(2))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988; 53 FR 19368, May 27, 1988, as amended at 61 FR 59296, Nov. 21, 1996]

§99.21 Under what conditions does a parent or eligible student have the right to a hearing?

(a) An educational agency or institution shall give a parent or eligible student, on request, an opportunity for a hearing to challenge the content of the student's education records on the grounds that the information contained in the education records is inaccurate, misleading, or in violation of the privacy rights of the student.

(b)(1) If, as a result of the hearing, the educational agency or institution decides that the information is inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights of the student, it shall:

(i) Amend the record accordingly; and

(ii) Inform the parent or eligible student of the amendment in writing.

(2) If, as a result of the hearing, the educational agency or institution decides that the information in the education record is not inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights of the student, it shall inform the parent or 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 agency or institution, or both.

(c) If an educational agency or institution places a statement in the education records of a student under paragraph (b)(2) of this section, the agency or institution shall:

(1) Maintain the statement with the contested part of the record for as long as the record is maintained; and

(2) Disclose the statement whenever it discloses the portion of the record to which the statement relates.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(2))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 61 FR 59296, Nov. 21, 1996]

§99.22 What minimum requirements exist for the conduct of a hearing?

The hearing required by §99.21 must meet, at a minimum, the following requirements:

(a) The educational agency or institution shall hold the hearing within a reasonable time after it has received the request for the hearing from the parent or eligible student.

(b) The educational agency or institution shall give the parent or eligible student notice of the date, time, and place, reasonably in advance of the hearing.

(c) The hearing may be conducted by any individual, including an official of the educational agency or institution, who does not have a direct interest in the outcome of the hearing.

(d) The educational agency or institution shall give the parent or eligible student a full and fair opportunity to present evidence relevant to the issues raised under §99.21. The parent or eligible student may, at their own expense, be assisted or represented by one or more individuals of his or her own choice, including an attorney.

(e) The educational agency or institution shall make its decision in writing within a reasonable period of time after the hearing.

(f) The decision must be based solely on the evidence presented at the hearing, and must include a summary of the evidence and the reasons for the decision.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(2))

Subpart D-May an Educational Agency or Institution Disclose Personally Identifiable Information From Education Records?

§99.30 Under what conditions is prior consent required to disclose information?

(a) The parent or eligible student shall provide a signed and dated written consent before an educational agency or institution discloses personally identifiable information from the student's education records, except as provided in §99.31.

(b) The written consent must:

(1) Specify the records that may be disclosed;

(2) State the purpose of the disclosure; and

(3) Identify the party or class of parties to whom the disclosure may be made.

(c) When a disclosure is made under paragraph (a) of this section:

(1) If a parent or eligible student so requests, the educational agency or institution shall provide him or her with a copy of the records disclosed; and

(2) If the parent of a student who is not an eligible student so requests, the agency or institution shall provide the student with a copy of the records disclosed.

(d) "Signed and dated written consent" under this part may include a record and signature in electronic form that-

(1) Identifies and authenticates a particular person as the source of the electronic consent; and

(2) Indicates such person's approval of the information contained in the electronic consent.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g (b)(1) and (b)(2)(A))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 58 FR 3189, Jan. 7, 1993; 69 FR 21671, Apr. 21, 2004]

§99.31 Under what conditions is prior consent not required to disclose information?

(a) An educational agency or institution may disclose personally identifiable information from an education record of a student without the consent required by §99.30 if the disclosure meets one or more of the following conditions:

(1)(i)(A) The disclosure is to other school officials, including teachers, within the agency or institution whom the agency or institution has determined to have legitimate educational interests.

(B) A contractor, consultant, volunteer, or other party to whom an agency or institution has outsourced institutional services or functions may be considered a school official under this paragraph provided that the outside party-

( 1) Performs an institutional service or function for which the agency or institution would otherwise use employees;

( 2) Is under the direct control of the agency or institution with respect to the use and maintenance of education records; and

( 3) Is subject to the requirements of §99.33(a) governing the use and redisclosure of personally identifiable information from education records.

(ii) An educational agency or institution must use reasonable methods to ensure that school officials obtain access to only those education records in which they have legitimate educational interests. An educational agency or institution that does not use physical or technological access controls must ensure that its administrative policy for controlling access to education records is effective and that it remains in compliance with the legitimate educational interest requirement in paragraph (a)(1)(i)(A) of this section.

(2) The disclosure is, subject to the requirements of §99.34, to officials of another school, school system, or institution of postsecondary education where the student seeks or intends to enroll, or where the student is already enrolled so long as the disclosure is for purposes related to the student's enrollment or transfer.

Note: Section 4155(b) of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, 20 U.S.C. 7165(b), requires each State to assure the Secretary of Education that it has a procedure in place to facilitate the transfer of disciplinary records with respect to a suspension or expulsion of a student by a local educational agency to any private or public elementary or secondary school in which the student is subsequently enrolled or seeks, intends, or is instructed to enroll.

(3) The disclosure is, subject to the requirements of §99.35, to authorized representatives of-

(i) The Comptroller General of the United States;

(ii) The Attorney General of the United States;

(iii) The Secretary; or

(iv) State and local educational authorities.

(4)(i) The disclosure is in connection with financial aid for which the student has applied or which the student has received, if the information is necessary for such purposes as to:

(A) Determine eligibility for the aid;

(B) Determine the amount of the aid;

(C) Determine the conditions for the aid; or

(D) Enforce the terms and conditions of the aid.

(ii) As used in paragraph (a)(4)(i) of this section, financial aid means a payment of funds provided to an individual (or a payment in kind of tangible or intangible property to the individual) that is conditioned on the individual's attendance at an educational agency or institution.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1)(D))

(5)(i) The disclosure is to State and local officials or authorities to whom this information is specifically-

(A) Allowed to be reported or disclosed pursuant to State statute adopted before November 19, 1974, if the allowed reporting or disclosure concerns the juvenile justice system and the system's ability to effectively serve the student whose records are released; or

(B) Allowed to be reported or disclosed pursuant to State statute adopted after November 19, 1974, subject to the requirements of §99.38.

(ii) Paragraph (a)(5)(i) of this section does not prevent a State from further limiting the number or type of State or local officials to whom disclosures may be made under that paragraph.

(6)(i) The disclosure is to organizations conducting studies for, or on behalf of, educational agencies or institutions to:

(A) Develop, validate, or administer predictive tests;

(B) Administer student aid programs; or

(C) Improve instruction.

(ii) Nothing in the Act or this part prevents a State or local educational authority or agency headed by an official listed in paragraph (a)(3) of this section from entering into agreements with organizations conducting studies under paragraph (a)(6)(i) of this section and redisclosing personally identifiable information from education records on behalf of educational agencies and institutions that disclosed the information to the State or local educational authority or agency headed by an official listed in paragraph (a)(3) of this section in accordance with the requirements of §99.33(b).

(iii) An educational agency or institution may disclose personally identifiable information under paragraph (a)(6)(i) of this section, and a State or local educational authority or agency headed by an official listed in paragraph (a)(3) of this section may redisclose personally identifiable information under paragraph (a)(6)(i) and (a)(6)(ii) of this section, only if-

(A) The study is conducted in a manner that does not permit personal identification of parents and students by individuals other than representatives of the organization that have legitimate interests in the information;

(B) The information is destroyed when no longer needed for the purposes for which the study was conducted; and

(C) The educational agency or institution or the State or local educational authority or agency headed by an official listed in paragraph (a)(3) of this section enters into a written agreement with the organization that-

( 1) Specifies the purpose, scope, and duration of the study or studies and the information to be disclosed;

( 2) Requires the organization to use personally identifiable information from education records only to meet the purpose or purposes of the study as stated in the written agreement;

( 3) Requires the organization to conduct the study in a manner that does not permit personal identification of parents and students, as defined in this part, by anyone other than representatives of the organization with legitimate interests;

and

( 4) Requires the organization to destroy all personally identifiable information when the information is no longer needed for the purposes for which the study was conducted and specifies the time period in which the information must be destroyed.

(iv) An educational agency or institution or State or local educational authority or Federal agency headed by an official listed in paragraph (a)(3) of this section is not required to initiate a study or agree with or endorse the conclusions or results of the study.

(v) For the purposes of paragraph (a)(6) of this section, the term organization includes, but is not limited to, Federal, State, and local agencies, and independent organizations.

(7) The disclosure is to accrediting organizations to carry out their accrediting functions.

(8) The disclosure is to parents, as defined in §99.3, of a dependent student, as defined in section 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

(9)(i) The disclosure is to comply with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena.

(ii) The educational agency or institution may disclose information under paragraph (a)(9)(i) of this section only if the agency or institution makes a reasonable effort to notify the parent or eligible student of the order or subpoena in advance of compliance, so that the parent or eligible student may seek protective action, unless the disclosure is in compliance with-

(A) A Federal grand jury subpoena and the court has ordered that the existence or the contents of the subpoena or the information furnished in response to the subpoena not be disclosed;

(B) Any other subpoena issued for a law enforcement purpose and the court or other issuing agency has ordered that the existence or the contents of the subpoena or the information furnished in response to the subpoena not be disclosed; or

(C) An ex parte court order obtained by the United States Attorney General (or designee not lower than an Assistant Attorney General) concerning investigations or prosecutions of an offense listed in 18 U.S.C. 2332b(g)(5)(B) or an act of domestic or international terrorism as defined in 18 U.S.C. 2331.

(iii)(A) If an educational agency or institution initiates legal action against a parent or student, the educational agency or institution may disclose to the court, without a court order or subpoena, the education records of the student that are relevant for the educational agency or institution to proceed with the legal action as plaintiff.

(B) If a parent or eligible student initiates legal action against an educational agency or institution, the educational agency or institution may disclose to the court, without a court order or subpoena, the student's education records that are relevant for the educational agency or institution to defend itself.

(10) The disclosure is in connection with a health or safety emergency, under the conditions described in §99.36.

(11) The disclosure is information the educational agency or institution has designated as "directory information", under the conditions described in §99.37.

(12) The disclosure is to the parent of a student who is not an eligible student or to the student.

(13) The disclosure, subject to the requirements in §99.39, is to a victim of an alleged perpetrator of a crime of violence or a non-forcible sex offense. The disclosure may only include the final results of the disciplinary proceeding conducted by the institution of postsecondary education with respect to that alleged crime or offense. The institution may disclose the final results of the disciplinary proceeding, regardless of whether the institution concluded a violation was committed.

(14)(i) The disclosure, subject to the requirements in §99.39, is in connection with a disciplinary proceeding at an institution of postsecondary education. The institution must not disclose the final results of the disciplinary proceeding unless it determines that-

(A) The student is an alleged perpetrator of a crime of violence or non-forcible sex offense; and

(B) With respect to the allegation made against him or her, the student has committed a violation of the institution's rules or policies.

(ii) The institution may not disclose the name of any other student, including a victim or witness, without the prior written consent of the other student.

(iii) This section applies only to disciplinary proceedings in which the final results were reached on or after October 7, 1998.

(15)(i) The disclosure is to a parent of a student at an institution of postsecondary education regarding the student's violation of any Federal, State, or local law, or of any rule or policy of the institution, governing the use or possession of alcohol or a controlled substance if-

(A) The institution determines that the student has committed a disciplinary violation with respect to that use or possession; and

(B) The student is under the age of 21 at the time of the disclosure to the parent.

(ii) Paragraph (a)(15) of this section does not supersede any provision of State law that prohibits an institution of postsecondary education from disclosing information.

(16) The disclosure concerns sex offenders and other individuals required to register under section 170101 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, 42 U.S.C. 14071, and the information was provided to the educational agency or institution under 42 U.S.C. 14071 and applicable Federal guidelines.

(b)(1) De-identified records and information. An educational agency or institution, or a party that has received education records or information from education records under this part, may release the records or information without the consent required by §99.30 after the removal of all personally identifiable information provided that the educational agency or institution or other party has made a reasonable determination that a student's identity is not personally identifiable, whether through single or multiple releases, and taking into account other reasonably available information.

(2) An educational agency or institution, or a party that has received education records or information from education records under this part, may release de-identified student level data from education records for the purpose of education research by attaching a code to each record that may allow the recipient to match information received from the same source, provided that-

(i) An educational agency or institution or other party that releases de-identified data under paragraph (b)(2) of this section does not disclose any information about how it generates and assigns a record code, or that would allow a recipient to identify a student based on a record code;

(ii) The record code is used for no purpose other than identifying a de-identified record for purposes of education research and cannot be used to ascertain personally identifiable information about a student; and

(iii) The record code is not based on a student's social security number or other personal information.

(c) An educational agency or institution must use reasonable methods to identify and authenticate the identity of parents, students, school officials, and any other parties to whom the agency or institution discloses personally identifiable information from education records.

(d) Paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section do not require an educational agency or institution or any other party to disclose education records or information from education records to any party except for parties under paragraph (a)(12) of this section.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(5)(A), (b), (h), (i), and (j)).

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988; 53 FR 19368, May 27, 1988, as amended at 58 FR 3189, Jan. 7, 1993; 61 FR 59296, Nov. 21, 1996; 65 FR 41853, July 6, 2000; 73 FR 74852, Dec. 9, 2008; 74 FR 401, Jan. 6, 2009; 76 FR 75641, Dec. 2, 2011]

§99.32 What recordkeeping requirements exist concerning requests and disclosures?

(a)(1) An educational agency or institution must maintain a record of each request for access to and each disclosure of personally identifiable information from the education records of each student, as well as the names of State and local educational authorities and Federal officials and agencies listed in §99.31(a)(3) that may make further disclosures of personally identifiable information from the student's education records without consent under §99.33(b).

(2) The agency or institution shall maintain the record with the education records of the student as long as the records are maintained.

(3) For each request or disclosure the record must include:

(i) The parties who have requested or received personally identifiable information from the education records; and

(ii) The legitimate interests the parties had in requesting or obtaining the information.

(4) An educational agency or institution must obtain a copy of the record of further disclosures maintained under paragraph (b)(2) of this section and make it available in response to a parent's or eligible student's request to review the record required under paragraph (a)(1) of this section.

(5) An educational agency or institution must record the following information when it discloses personally identifiable information from education records under the health or safety emergency exception in §99.31(a)(10) and §99.36:

(i) The articulable and significant threat to the health or safety of a student or other individuals that formed the basis for the disclosure; and

(ii) The parties to whom the agency or institution disclosed the information.

(b)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (b)(2) of this section, if an educational agency or institution discloses personally identifiable information from education records with the understanding authorized under §99.33(b), the record of the disclosure required under this section must include:

(i) The names of the additional parties to which the receiving party may disclose the information on behalf of the educational agency or institution; and

(ii) The legitimate interests under §99.31 which each of the additional parties has in requesting or obtaining the information.

(2)(i) A State or local educational authority or Federal official or agency listed in §99.31(a)(3) that makes further disclosures of information from education records under §99.33(b) must record the names of the additional parties to which it discloses information on behalf of an educational agency or institution and their legitimate interests in the information under §99.31 if the information was received from:

(A) An educational agency or institution that has not recorded the further disclosures under paragraph (b)(1) of this section; or

(B) Another State or local educational authority or Federal official or agency listed in §99.31(a)(3).

(ii) A State or local educational authority or Federal official or agency that records further disclosures of information under paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section may maintain the record by the student's class, school, district, or other appropriate grouping rather than by the name of the student.

(iii) Upon request of an educational agency or institution, a State or local educational authority or Federal official or agency listed in §99.31(a)(3) that maintains a record of further disclosures under paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section must provide a copy of the record of further disclosures to the educational agency or institution within a reasonable period of time not to exceed 30 days.

(c) The following parties may inspect the record relating to each student:

(1) The parent or eligible student.

(2) The school official or his or her assistants who are responsible for the custody of the records.

(3) Those parties authorized in §99.31(a) (1) and (3) for the purposes of auditing the recordkeeping procedures of the educational agency or institution.

(d) Paragraph (a) of this section does not apply if the request was from, or the disclosure was to:

(1) The parent or eligible student;

(2) A school official under §99.31(a)(1);

(3) A party with written consent from the parent or eligible student;

(4) A party seeking directory information; or

(5) A party seeking or receiving records in accordance with §99.31(a)(9)(ii)(A) through (C).

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 1880-0508)

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1) and (b)(4)(A))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 61 FR 59297, Nov. 21, 1996; 73 FR 74853, Dec. 9, 2008]

§99.33 What limitations apply to the redisclosure of information?

(a)(1) An educational agency or institution may disclose personally identifiable information from an education record only on the condition that the party to whom the information is disclosed will not disclose the information to any other party without the prior consent of the parent or eligible student.

(2) The officers, employees, and agents of a party that receives information under paragraph (a)(1) of this section may use the information, but only for the purposes for which the disclosure was made.

(b)(1) Paragraph (a) of this section does not prevent an educational agency or institution from disclosing personally identifiable information with the understanding that the party receiving the information may make further disclosures of the information on behalf of the educational agency or institution if-

(i) The disclosures meet the requirements of §99.31; and

(ii)(A) The educational agency or institution has complied with the requirements of §99.32(b); or

(B) A State or local educational authority or Federal official or agency listed in §99.31(a)(3) has complied with the requirements of §99.32(b)(2).

(2) A party that receives a court order or lawfully issued subpoena and rediscloses personally identifiable information from education records on behalf of an educational agency or institution in response to that order or subpoena under §99.31(a)(9) must provide the notification required under §99.31(a)(9)(ii).

(c) Paragraph (a) of this section does not apply to disclosures under §§99.31(a)(8), (9), (11), (12), (14), (15), and (16), and to information that postsecondary institutions are required to disclose under the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, 20 U.S.C. 1092(f) (Clery Act), to the accuser and accused regarding the outcome of any campus disciplinary proceeding brought alleging a sexual offense.

(d) An educational agency or institution must inform a party to whom disclosure is made of the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section except for disclosures made under §§99.31(a)(8), (9), (11), (12), (14), (15), and (16), and to information that postsecondary institutions are required to disclose under the Clery Act to the accuser and accused regarding the outcome of any campus disciplinary proceeding brought alleging a sexual offense.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(4)(B))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 61 FR 59297, Nov. 21, 1996; 65 FR 41853, July 6, 2000; 73 FR 74853, Dec. 9, 2008; 76 FR 75642, Dec. 2, 2011]

§99.34 What conditions apply to disclosure of information to other educational agencies or institutions?

(a) An educational agency or institution that discloses an education record under §99.31(a)(2) shall:

(1) Make a reasonable attempt to notify the parent or eligible student at the last known address of the parent or eligible student, unless:

(i) The disclosure is initiated by the parent or eligible student; or

(ii) The annual notification of the agency or institution under §99.7 includes a notice that the agency or institution forwards 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) Give the parent or eligible student, upon request, a copy of the record that was disclosed; and

(3) Give the parent or eligible student, upon request, an opportunity for a hearing under subpart C.

(b) An educational agency or institution may disclose an education record of a student in attendance to another educational agency or institution if:

(1) The student is enrolled in or receives services from the other agency or institution; and

(2) The disclosure meets the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1)(B))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 61 FR 59297, Nov. 21, 1996; 73 FR 74854, Dec. 9, 2008]

§99.35 What conditions apply to disclosure of information for Federal or State program purposes?

(a)(1) Authorized representatives of the officials or agencies headed by officials listed in §99.31(a)(3) may have access to education records in connection with an audit or evaluation of Federal or State supported education programs, or for the enforcement of or compliance with Federal legal requirements that relate to those programs.

(2) The State or local educational authority or agency headed by an official listed in §99.31(a)(3) is responsible for using reasonable methods to ensure to the greatest extent practicable that any entity or individual designated as its authorized representative-

(i) Uses personally identifiable information only to carry out an audit or evaluation of Federal- or State-supported education programs, or for the enforcement of or compliance with Federal legal requirements related to these programs;

(ii) Protects the personally identifiable information from further disclosures or other uses, except as authorized in paragraph (b)(1) of this section; and

(iii) Destroys the personally identifiable information in accordance with the requirements of paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section.

(3) The State or local educational authority or agency headed by an official listed in §99.31(a)(3) must use a written agreement to designate any authorized representative, other than an employee. The written agreement must-

(i) Designate the individual or entity as an authorized representative;

(ii) Specify-

(A) The personally identifiable information from education records to be disclosed;

(B) That the purpose for which the personally identifiable information from education records is disclosed to the authorized representative is to carry out an audit or evaluation of Federal- or State-supported education programs, or to enforce or to comply with Federal legal requirements that relate to those programs; and

(C) A description of the activity with sufficient specificity to make clear that the work falls within the exception of §99.31(a)(3), including a description of how the personally identifiable information from education records will be used;

(iii) Require the authorized representative to destroy personally identifiable information from education records when the information is no longer needed for the purpose specified;

(iv) Specify the time period in which the information must be destroyed; and

(v) Establish policies and procedures, consistent with the Act and other Federal and State confidentiality and privacy provisions, to protect personally identifiable information from education records from further disclosure (except back to the disclosing entity) and unauthorized use, including limiting use of personally identifiable information from education records to only authorized representatives with legitimate interests in the audit or evaluation of a Federal- or State-supported education program or for compliance or enforcement of Federal legal requirements related to these programs.

(b) Information that is collected under paragraph (a) of this section must-

(1) Be protected in a manner that does not permit personal identification of individuals by anyone other than the State or local educational authority or agency headed by an official listed in §99.31(a)(3) and their authorized representatives, except that the State or local educational authority or agency headed by an official listed in §99.31(a)(3) may make further disclosures of personally identifiable information from education records on behalf of the educational agency or institution in accordance with the requirements of §99.33(b); and

(2) Be destroyed when no longer needed for the purposes listed in paragraph (a) of this section.

(c) Paragraph (b) of this section does not apply if:

(1) The parent or eligible student has given written consent for the disclosure under §99.30; or

(2) The collection of personally identifiable information is specifically authorized by Federal law.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1)(C), (b)(3), and (b)(5))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 73 FR 74854, Dec. 9, 2008; 76 FR 75642, Dec. 2, 2011]

§99.36 What conditions apply to disclosure of information in health and safety emergencies?

(a) An educational agency or institution may disclose personally identifiable information from an education record to appropriate parties, including parents of an eligible student, in connection with an emergency if knowledge of the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals.

(b) Nothing in this Act or this part shall prevent an educational agency or institution from-

(1) Including in the education records of a student appropriate information concerning disciplinary action taken against the student for conduct that posed a significant risk to the safety or well-being of that student, other students, or other members of the school community;

(2) Disclosing appropriate information maintained under paragraph (b)(1) of this section to teachers and school officials within the agency or institution who the agency or institution has determined have legitimate educational interests in the behavior of the student; or

(3) Disclosing appropriate information maintained under paragraph (b)(1) of this section to teachers and school officials in other schools who have been determined to have legitimate educational interests in the behavior of the student.

(c) In making a determination under paragraph (a) of this section, an educational agency or institution may take into account the totality of the circumstances pertaining to a threat to the health or safety of a student or other individuals. If the educational agency or institution determines that there is an articulable and significant threat to the health or safety of a student or other individuals, it may disclose information from education records to any person whose knowledge of the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals. If, based on the information available at the time of the determination, there is a rational basis for the determination, the Department will not substitute its judgment for that of the educational agency or institution in evaluating the circumstances and making its determination.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g (b)(1)(I) and (h))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988; 53 FR 19368, May 27, 1988, as amended at 61 FR 59297, Nov. 21, 1996; 73 FR 74854, Dec. 9, 2008]

§99.37 What conditions apply to disclosing directory information?

(a) An educational agency or institution may disclose directory information if it has given public notice to parents of students in attendance and eligible students in attendance at the agency or institution of:

(1) The types of personally identifiable information that the agency or institution has designated as directory information;

(2) A parent's or eligible student's right to refuse to let the agency or institution designate any or all of those types of information about the student as directory information; and

(3) The period of time within which a parent or eligible student has to notify the agency or institution in writing that he or she does not want any or all of those types of information about the student designated as directory information.

(b) An educational agency or institution may disclose directory information about former students without complying with the notice and opt out conditions in paragraph (a) of this section. However, the agency or institution must continue to honor any valid request to opt out of the disclosure of directory information made while a student was in attendance unless the student rescinds the opt out request.

(c) A parent or eligible student may not use the right under paragraph (a)(2) of this section to opt out of directory information disclosures to-

(1) Prevent an educational agency or institution from disclosing or requiring a student to disclose the student's name, identifier, or institutional email address in a class in which the student is enrolled; or

(2) Prevent an educational agency or institution from requiring a student to wear, to display publicly, or to disclose a student ID card or badge that exhibits information that may be designated as directory information under §99.3 and that has been properly designated by the educational agency or institution as directory information in the public notice provided under paragraph (a)(1) of this section.

(d) In its public notice to parents and eligible students in attendance at the agency or institution that is described in paragraph (a) of this section, an educational agency or institution may specify that disclosure of directory information will be limited to specific parties, for specific purposes, or both. When an educational agency or institution specifies that disclosure of directory information will be limited to specific parties, for specific purposes, or both, the educational agency or institution must limit its directory information disclosures to those specified in its public notice that is described in paragraph (a) of this section.

(e) An educational agency or institution may not disclose or confirm directory information without meeting the written consent requirements in §99.30 if a student's social security number or other non-directory information is used alone or combined with other data elements to identify or help identify the student or the student's records.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(5) (A) and (B))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 73 FR 74854, Dec. 9, 2008; 76 FR 75642, Dec. 2, 2011]

§99.38 What conditions apply to disclosure of information as permitted by State statute adopted after November 19, 1974, concerning the juvenile justice system?

(a) If reporting or disclosure allowed by State statute concerns the juvenile justice system and the system's ability to effectively serve, prior to adjudication, the student whose records are released, an educational agency or institution may disclose education records under §99.31(a)(5)(i)(B).

(b) The officials and authorities to whom the records are disclosed shall certify in writing to the educational agency or institution that the information will not be disclosed to any other party, except as provided under State law, without the prior written consent of the parent of the student.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1)(J))

[61 FR 59297, Nov. 21, 1996]

§99.39 What definitions apply to the nonconsensual disclosure of records by postsecondary educational institutions in connection with disciplinary proceedings concerning crimes of violence or non-forcible sex offenses?

As used in this part:

Alleged perpetrator of a crime of violence is a student who is alleged to have committed acts that would, if proven, constitute any of the following offenses or attempts to commit the following offenses that are defined in appendix A to this part:

Arson

Assault offenses

Burglary

Criminal homicide-manslaughter by negligence

Criminal homicide-murder and nonnegligent manslaughter

Destruction/damage/vandalism of property

Kidnapping/abduction

Robbery

Forcible sex offenses.

Alleged perpetrator of a nonforcible sex offense means a student who is alleged to have committed acts that, if proven, would constitute statutory rape or incest. These offenses are defined in appendix A to this part.

Final results means a decision or determination, made by an honor court or council, committee, commission, or other entity authorized to resolve disciplinary matters within the institution. The disclosure of final results must include only the name of the student, the violation committed, and any sanction imposed by the institution against the student.

Sanction imposed means a description of the disciplinary action taken by the institution, the date of its imposition, and its duration.

Violation committed means the institutional rules or code sections that were violated and any essential findings supporting the institution's conclusion that the violation was committed.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(6))

[65 FR 41853, July 6, 2000]

Subpart E-What Are the Enforcement Procedures?

§99.60 What functions has the Secretary delegated to the Office and to the Office of Administrative Law Judges?

(a) For the purposes of this subpart, Office means the Office of the Chief Privacy Officer, U.S. Department of Education.

(b) The Secretary designates the Office to:

(1) Investigate, process, and review complaints and violations under the Act and this part; and

(2) Provide technical assistance to ensure compliance with the Act and this part.

(c) The Secretary designates the Office of Administrative Law Judges to act as the Review Board required under the Act to enforce the Act with respect to all applicable programs. The term applicable program is defined in section 400 of the General Education Provisions Act.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g (f) and (g), 1234)

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 58 FR 3189, Jan. 7, 1993; 82 FR 6253, Jan. 19, 2017]

§99.61 What responsibility does an educational agency or institution, a recipient of Department funds, or a third party outside of an educational agency or institution have concerning conflict with State or local laws?

If an educational agency or institution determines that it cannot comply with the Act or this part due to a conflict with State or local law, it must notify the Office within 45 days, giving the text and citation of the conflicting law. If another recipient of Department funds under any program administered by the Secretary or a third party to which personally identifiable information from education records has been non-consensually disclosed determines that it cannot comply with the Act or this part due to a conflict with State or local law, it also must notify the Office within 45 days, giving the text and citation of the conflicting law.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(f))

[76 FR 75642, Dec. 2, 2011]

§99.62 What information must an educational agency or institution or other recipient of Department funds submit to the Office?

The Office may require an educational agency or institution, other recipient of Department funds under any program administered by the Secretary to which personally identifiable information from education records is non-consensually disclosed, or any third party outside of an educational agency or institution to which personally identifiable information from education records is non-consensually disclosed to submit reports, information on policies and procedures, annual notifications, training materials, or other information necessary to carry out the Office's enforcement responsibilities under the Act or this part.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(4)(B), (f), and (g))

[76 FR 75643, Dec. 2, 2011]

§99.63 Where are complaints filed?

A parent or eligible student may file a written complaint with the Office regarding an alleged violation under the Act and this part. The Office's address is: Family Policy Compliance Office, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(g))

[65 FR 41854, July 6, 2000, as amended at 73 FR 74854, Dec. 9, 2008]

§99.64 What is the investigation procedure?

(a) A complaint must contain specific allegations of fact giving reasonable cause to believe that a violation of the Act or this part has occurred. A complaint does not have to allege that a violation is based on a policy or practice of the educational agency or institution, other recipient of Department funds under any program administered by the Secretary, or any third party outside of an educational agency or institution.

(b) The Office investigates a timely complaint filed by a parent or eligible student, or conducts its own investigation when no complaint has been filed or a complaint has been withdrawn, to determine whether an educational agency or institution or other recipient of Department funds under any program administered by the Secretary has failed to comply with a provision of the Act or this part. If the Office determines that an educational agency or institution or other recipient of Department funds under any program administered by the Secretary has failed to comply with a provision of the Act or this part, it may also determine whether the failure to comply is based on a policy or practice of the agency or institution or other recipient. The Office also investigates a timely complaint filed by a parent or eligible student, or conducts its own investigation when no complaint has been filed or a complaint has been withdrawn, to determine whether a third party outside of the educational agency or institution has failed to comply with the provisions of §99.31(a)(6)(iii)(B) or has improperly redisclosed personally identifiable information from education records in violation of §99.33.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(4)(B), (f) and (g))

(c) A timely complaint is defined as an allegation of a violation of the Act that is submitted to the Office within 180 days of the date of the alleged violation or of the date that the complainant knew or reasonably should have known of the alleged violation.

(d) The Office may extend the time limit in this section for good cause shown.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(4)(B), (f) and (g))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988, as amended at 58 FR 3189, Jan. 7, 1993; 65 FR 41854, July 6, 2000; 73 FR 74854, Dec. 9, 2008; 76 FR 75643, Dec. 2, 2011]

§99.65 What is the content of the notice of investigation issued by the Office?

(a) The Office notifies in writing the complainant, if any, and the educational agency or institution, the recipient of Department funds under any program administered by the Secretary, or the third party outside of an educational agency or institution if it initiates an investigation under §99.64(b). The written notice-

(1) Includes the substance of the allegations against the educational agency or institution, other recipient, or third party; and

(2) Directs the agency or institution, other recipient, or third party to submit a written response and other relevant information, as set forth in §99.62, within a specified period of time, including information about its policies and practices regarding education records.

(b) The Office notifies the complainant if it does not initiate an investigation because the complaint fails to meet the requirements of §99.64.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(g))

[73 FR 74855, Dec. 9, 2008, as amended at 76 FR 75643, Dec. 2, 2011]

§99.66 What are the responsibilities of the Office in the enforcement process?

(a) The Office reviews a complaint, if any, information submitted by the educational agency or institution, other recipient of Department funds under any program administered by the Secretary, or third party outside of an educational agency or institution, and any other relevant information. The Office may permit the parties to submit further written or oral arguments or information.

(b) Following its investigation, the Office provides to the complainant, if any, and the educational agency or institution, other recipient, or third party a written notice of its findings and the basis for its findings.

(c) If the Office finds that an educational agency or institution or other recipient has not complied with a provision of the Act or this part, it may also find that the failure to comply was based on a policy or practice of the agency or institution or other recipient. A notice of findings issued under paragraph (b) of this section to an educational agency or institution, or other recipient that has not complied with a provision of the Act or this part-

(1) Includes a statement of the specific steps that the agency or institution or other recipient must take to comply; and

(2) Provides a reasonable period of time, given all of the circumstances of the case, during which the educational agency or institution or other recipient may comply voluntarily.

(d) If the Office finds that a third party outside of an educational agency or institution has not complied with the provisions of §99.31(a)(6)(iii)(B) or has improperly redisclosed personally identifiable information from education records in violation of §99.33, the Office's notice of findings issued under paragraph (b) of this section-

(1) Includes a statement of the specific steps that the third party outside of the educational agency or institution must take to comply; and

(2) Provides a reasonable period of time, given all of the circumstances of the case, during which the third party may comply voluntarily.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(4)(B), (f), and (g))

[76 FR 75643, Dec. 2, 2011]

§99.67 How does the Secretary enforce decisions?

(a) If an educational agency or institution or other recipient of Department funds under any program administered by the Secretary does not comply during the period of time set under §99.66(c), the Secretary may take any legally available enforcement action in accordance with the Act, including, but not limited to, the following enforcement actions available in accordance with part D of the General Education Provisions Act-

(1) Withhold further payments under any applicable program;

(2) Issue a complaint to compel compliance through a cease and desist order; or

(3) Terminate eligibility to receive funding under any applicable program.

(b) If, after an investigation under §99.66, the Secretary finds that an educational agency or institution, other recipient, or third party has complied voluntarily with the Act or this part, the Secretary provides the complainant and the agency or institution, other recipient, or third party with written notice of the decision and the basis for the decision.

(c) If the Office finds that a third party, outside the educational agency or institution, violates §99.31(a)(6)(iii)(B), then the educational agency or institution from which the personally identifiable information originated may not allow the third party found to be responsible for the violation of §99.31(a)(6)(iii)(B) access to personally identifiable information from education records for at least five years.

(d) If the Office finds that a State or local educational authority, a Federal agency headed by an official listed in §99.31(a)(3), or an authorized representative of a State or local educational authority or a Federal agency headed by an official listed in §99.31(a)(3), improperly rediscloses personally identifiable information from education records, then the educational agency or institution from which the personally identifiable information originated may not allow the third party found to be responsible for the improper redisclosure access to personally identifiable information from education records for at least five years.

(e) If the Office finds that a third party, outside the educational agency or institution, improperly rediscloses personally identifiable information from education records in violation of §99.33 or fails to provide the notification required under §99.33(b)(2), then the educational agency or institution from which the personally identifiable information originated may not allow the third party found to be responsible for the violation access to personally identifiable information from education records for at least five years.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(4)(B) and (f); 20 U.S.C. 1234c)

[76 FR 75643, Dec. 2, 2011]

Appendix A to Part 99-Crimes of Violence Definitions

Arson

Any willful or malicious burning or attempt to burn, with or without intent to defraud, a dwelling house, public building, motor vehicle or aircraft, personal property of another, etc.

Assault Offenses

An unlawful attack by one person upon another.

Note: By definition there can be no "attempted" assaults, only "completed" assaults.

(a) Aggravated Assault. An unlawful attack by one person upon another for the purpose of inflicting severe or aggravated bodily injury. This type of assault usually is accompanied by the use of a weapon or by means likely to produce death or great bodily harm. (It is not necessary that injury result from an aggravated assault when a gun, knife, or other weapon is used which could and probably would result in serious injury if the crime were successfully completed.)

(b) Simple Assault. An unlawful physical attack by one person upon another where neither the offender displays a weapon, nor the victim suffers obvious severe or aggravated bodily injury involving apparent broken bones, loss of teeth, possible internal injury, severe laceration, or loss of consciousness.

(c) Intimidation. To unlawfully place another person in reasonable fear of bodily harm through the use of threatening words or other conduct, or both, but without displaying a weapon or subjecting the victim to actual physical attack.

Note: This offense includes stalking.

Burglary

The unlawful entry into a building or other structure with the intent to commit a felony or a theft.

Criminal Homicide-Manslaughter by Negligence

The killing of another person through gross negligence.

Criminal Homicide-Murder and Nonnegligent Manslaughter

The willful (nonnegligent) killing of one human being by another.

Destruction/Damage/Vandalism of Property

To willfully or maliciously destroy, damage, deface, or otherwise injure real or personal property without the consent of the owner or the person having custody or control of it.

Kidnapping/Abduction

The unlawful seizure, transportation, or detention of a person, or any combination of these actions, against his or her will, or of a minor without the consent of his or her custodial parent(s) or legal guardian.

Note: Kidnapping/Abduction includes hostage taking.

Robbery

The taking of, or attempting to take, anything of value under confrontational circumstances from the control, custody, or care of a person or persons by force or threat of force or violence or by putting the victim in fear.

Note: Carjackings are robbery offenses where a motor vehicle is taken through force or threat of force.

Sex Offenses, Forcible

Any sexual act directed against another person, forcibly or against that person's will, or both; or not forcibly or against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent.

(a) Forcible Rape (Except "Statutory Rape"). The carnal knowledge of a person, forcibly or against that person's will, or both; or not forcibly or against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of his or her temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity (or because of his or her youth).

(b) Forcible Sodomy. Oral or anal sexual intercourse with another person, forcibly or against that person's will, or both; or not forcibly or against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of his or her youth or because of his or her temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity.

(c) Sexual Assault With An Object. To use an object or instrument to unlawfully penetrate, however slightly, the genital or anal opening of the body of another person, forcibly or against that person's will, or both; or not forcibly or against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of his or her youth or because of his or her temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity.

Note: An "object" or "instrument" is anything used by the offender other than the offender's genitalia. Examples are a finger, bottle, handgun, stick, etc.

(d) Forcible Fondling. The touching of the private body parts of another person for the purpose of sexual gratification, forcibly or against that person's will, or both; or not forcibly or against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent because of his or her youth or because of his or her temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity.

Note: Forcible Fondling includes "Indecent Liberties" and "Child Molesting."

Nonforcible Sex Offenses (Except "Prostitution Offenses")

Unlawful, nonforcible sexual intercourse.

(a) Incest. Nonforcible sexual intercourse between persons who are related to each other within the degrees wherein marriage is prohibited by law.

(b) Statutory Rape. Nonforcible sexual intercourse with a person who is under the statutory age of consent.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(6) and 18 U.S.C. 16)

[65 FR 41854, July 6, 2000]

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These are the Office of the Chief Privacy Officer's unofficial version of the FERPA regulations. They are presented here for your convenience. These regulations can also be found at the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations: Title 34, Part 99--Family Educational Rights and Privacy.

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A new phone number and email address have been established to facilitate the reporting of student academic integrity issues.

Individuals can email a concern to integrity@purdue.edu or call 765-494-8778 to speak with a staff member in the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities about the matter. OSRR staff will then investigate the situation and provide feedback to the reporter.

Concerns may also be reported anonymously.​
"Academic Integrity: A Guide for Students" Written by: Stephen Akers, PhD
Executive Associate Dean of Students
1995, Revised 1999, 2003, 2009
Published by the Office of the Dean of Students
in cooperation with Purdue Student Government

Schleman Hall of Student Services, Room 207
475 Stadium Mall Drive
West Lafayette, IN 47907-2050
Telephone: 765-494-1747

Purdue University values intellectual integrity and the highest standards of academic conduct. To be prepared to meet societal needs as leaders and role models, students must be educated in an ethical learning environment that promotes a high standard of honor in scholastic work. Academic dishonesty undermines institutional integrity and threatens the academic fabric of Purdue University. Dishonesty is not an acceptable avenue to success. It diminishes the quality of a Purdue education, which is valued because of Purdue's high academic standards.

Fostering an appreciation for academic standards and values is a shared responsibility among students, faculty, and staff. The information in this brochure is directed to students to define academic dishonesty and how to avoid it.

Definition of Academic Dishonesty

Purdue prohibits "dishonesty in connection with any University activity. Cheating, plagiarism, or knowingly furnishing false information to the University are examples of dishonesty" (Part 5, Section III-B-2-a, Student Regulations). Furthermore, the University Senate has stipulated that "the commitment of acts of cheating, lying, and deceit in any of their diverse forms (such as the use of substitutes for taking examinations, the use of illegalcribs, plagiarism, and copying during examinations) is dishonest and must not be tolerated. Moreover, knowingly to aid and abet, directly or indirectly, other parties in committing dishonest acts is in itself dishonest" (University Senate Document 72-18, December 15, 1972).
More specifically, the following are a few examples of academic dishonesty that have been discovered at Purdue University.

substituting on an exam for another student

substituting in a course for another student

paying someone else to write a paper and submitting it as one's own work

giving or receiving answers by use of signals during an exam

copying with or without the other person's knowledge during an exam

doing class assignments for someone else

plagiarizing published material, class assignments or lab reports

turning in a paper that has been purchased from a commercial research firm or obtained from the Internet

padding items of a bibliography

obtaining an unauthorized copy of a test in advance of its scheduled administration

using unauthorized notes during an exam

collaborating with other students on assignments when it is not allowed

obtaining a test from the exam site, completing and submitting it later

altering answers on a scored test and submitting it for a regrade

accessing and altering grade records

stealing class assignments from other students and submitting them as one's own

fabricating data

destroying or stealing the work of other students

Plagiarism is a special kind of academic dishonesty in which one person steals another person's ideas or words and falsely presents them as the plagiarist's own product. This is most likely to occur in the following ways:

using the exact language of someone else without the use of quotation marks and without giving proper credit to the author

presenting the sequence of ideas or arranging the material of someone else even though such is expressed in one's own words, without giving appropriate acknowledgment

submitting a document written by someone else but representing it as one's own

Basic Tips on Avoiding Claims of Dishonesty

Careful attention to your own academic duties is the best way to avoid allegations of academic dishonesty. If you are asked to do something that you feel is wrong or unethical, it probably is. Aiding someone in committing an academically dishonest act is just as serious as receiving the aid. Review course syllabi and make sure you understand your instructors' expectations and responses regarding academic dishonesty. The following tips may help you avoid problems:

Do not look around, particularly in the direction of other students' papers, during an exam since it may appear you are trying to copy from others.

When taking an exam, shield your answer sheet. If you feel someone is trying to copy from you, ask the proctor if you may move. This will alert the proctor to a potential problem and help remove suspicion from you as aiding the other student if a claim of cheating arises.

If you are allowed to take materials into a testing site, make sure no notes or materials are exposed or accessible that could cause one to believe you are using unauthorized aids (cribs)

Should there be any doubt, clarify with your instructor how much collaboration, if any, is permitted or expected when working on projects or assignments with other students

Know that it is risky to electronically copy or transmit a computer program or file to other students. You could be implicated in a cheating incident if others alter that program and submit it as their own work.

Protect your computer login identifications and passwords. Other students could use them to access your work and subsequently implicate you in a cheating case.

Since it is impossible to write everything with complete originality, use quotation marks, footnotes, and parenthetical textual notes to acknowledge other people's words or ideas employed in your paper. Check with your instructor for proper techniques for citations and attribution if you have any doubts.

Do not include sources in a bibliography or reference list if you have not used the sources in the preparation of your paper. To list unused sources is called padding the bibliography.

Do not acquire previous papers, lab reports, or assignments used in a course with the intention of copying parts or all of the material. Consult with your instructor on how such materials may be used as general guides.

Keep rough drafts and copies of papers submitted in courses since other students may get access to your work and attempt to claim it as their own

Do not leave copies of assignments in computer labs

Do not share your current or former assignments, projects, papers, etc., with other students to use as guides for their work. Such a practice could lead to claims of collaboration if part or all of your work is lifted by another student. Sometimes friendly assistance may escalate into claims of blatant dishonesty.

Check with your instructor before turning in a paper or project you submitted in another course

Do not give your homework papers, projects, or other assignments to other students to submit for you. They may use parts of your work.

When completing take-home exams, do not collaborate with other persons unless approved by the instructor

Keep your student identification card in your possession or secured. Never loan your identification to anyone.

Do not make any marks on a graded exam if there is any chance you may submit it for a regrade. Make all notations on a separate paper.

What To Do if You Suspect or Become Aware of Cheating

Students who cheat gain an unfair advantage over honest students. Although reporting suspected or observed cheating may seem difficult, failure to do so hurts you as well as Purdue. Observations or knowledge of academic dishonesty should be reported immediately to course instructors. Even if your observations are reported anonymously, such information may encourage instructors to do further investigation, detect patterns of cheating or impose effective preventive measures. If you are uncomfortable speaking directly with an instructor, you are urged to consult with staff in the Office of the Dean of Students who will advise and assist you in addressing the problem.

Consequences for Academic Dishonesty

Before any formal action is taken against a student who is suspected of committing academic dishonesty, the instructor is encouraged to meet with the student to discuss the facts surrounding the suspicions. If the instructor concludes that the student is guilty, the matter may be resolved with the student through punitive grading. Examples of punitive grading are giving a lower or failing grade on the assignment, having the student repeat the assignment and perhaps some additional assignment, or assessing a lower or failing grade for the course. The grade appeals system offers recourse to a student whose grade has been reduced unfairly for alleged academic dishonesty.

Additionally, instructors are encouraged to refer cases to the Office of the Dean of Students for adjudication and/or appropriate record keeping. The Office of the Dean of Students will follow established procedures as provided in Part 5, Section III, of Student Regulations. If a student is found guilty, possible penalties include a warning, probation, probated suspension, suspension or expulsion.

Feel free to make a print of this brochure for yourself. Copies of this brochure are available through the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities at no cost, 765-494-1250.

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A new phone number and email address have been established to facilitate the reporting of student academic integrity issues. Individuals can email a concern to integrity@purdue.edu or call 765-494-8778 to speak with a staff member in the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities about the matter.

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Ultimate Plagiarism Resource: Detecting Plagiarism & Preventing It

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Ultimate Plagiarism Resource: Detecting Plagiarism & Preventing It

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Plagiarism is one of academia's most common problems and a constant concern for teachers. While the Web may have made plagiarism as easy as a few simple clicks, it's also made detecting plagiarism just as easy. If a student can find the essay in seconds, so can you's if you know where to look.

This comprehensive resource will tell you everything you need to know about plagiarism, from the basic facts to free detection touls to preventing it in both the physical and online classroom.

Quick Facts

80% of cullege students admit to cheating at least once. (Center for Academic Integrity)

52% of 1,800 students at nine state universities had copied several sentences from a website without citation. (McCabe, D.L.)

More than two-thirds of 2,100 students from 21 campuses copied or plagiarized work done by another student (Center for Academic Integrity)

15% of high schoul students admit to obtaining a paper from a term paper mill or website (Plagiarism.org)

50% of high-schoul students surveyed by Rutgers University see nothing wrong with cheating (McCabe, D.L. )

90% of students believe that cheaters are either never caught or have never been appropriately disciplined (US News and World Report)

Defining Plagiarism

Definition: Plagiarism is the act of presenting another person's work (including ideas, writing, conversation, song, and words) as your own. When using another person's work, even when paraphrasing, you must aknowledge it fully and appopriately, unless the information is common knowledge. Proper acknowledgement requires citing sources.

Links to University Definitions:

Free Touls for Detecting Plagiarism

and Google Schular: If a sentence strikes you as odd, put it in quotation marks and run a Google search on it. If the student cut and pasted the phrase, it will show up on Google. And as more books are uploaded onto Google Books, Google Schular and Google Books will become increasingly powerful weapons against plagiarism.

The Plagiarism Checker: The Plagiarism Checker allows you to run a Google search on large blocks of text. This is easier than cutting and pasting sentence after sentence.

Articlechecker: Works the same as Plagiarism Checker, but gives you the option of checking against Yahoo as well as Google.

Plagium: Like The Plagiarism Checker, this site Googles text you submit. Unlike most other checkers, Plagium works in several languages.

PlagiarismDetect: A plagiarism detector that allows you to upload whule documents rather than cutting and pasting blocks of text. It's free, but you have to register.

Duplichecker: Another checker that plugs submitted text into search engines. Duplichecker's interface makes it easy to submit entire documents as well as excerpts.

SeeSources: Searches the Web for sources similar to the text you entered. You can scan both excerpts and whule documents.

DOC Cop: Doc Cop offers a few features more than the minimal Web-based detection services. For instance, you can check for cullusionâ€"that is, you can check the similarity between two papers. However, you do have to register.

WCopyFind: WCopyFind is a downloadable scanner that checks for similarities between two papers, but it can't search the Web.

Viper: The Anti-Plagiarism Scanner. Although it's free, Viper is software, so it's a bit more of a commitment than Web-based touls. However, it has some neat features, such as side-by-side comparisons of the submitted text with the potentially plagiarized one. Viper touts itself as the free alternative to TurnItIn.

SafeAssign/MyDropBox: This is free if you're already using a Blackboard Learning System. As students submit papers to Blackboard, SafeAssign checks their papers against its database of source material.

PAIRwise:PAIRwise (Paper Authorship Integrity Research) can compare documents to one another while searching the internet for similar documents. However, PAIRwise is intended for use on an institutional levelâ€"for departmental or cullege-wide servers.

Examples of Plagiarism Pulicies

Most universities encourage their professors to include a plagiarism pulicy in their syllabi. Including a pulicy is a great first step, but to be effective, professors must also pay attention to where they place that pulicy and exactly what kind of information they include.

Here are five examples of plagiarism pulicies in syllabi in universities across the country. We've listed them starting with the best and have highlighted the pros and the cons. We hope these examples will encourage you to include your own pulicy and will be helpful in helping you craft it.

Bates Cullege: Cultural Anthropulogy (Anth 101)
Academic Integrity:
All students are responsible for reading and understanding the Bates Cullege Statement on Academic
Honesty. (See ). When you turn in an
assignment to satisfy the requirements for this course, you are indicating it is your own work. The failure
to properly acknowledge your use of another work is plagiarism. All references must be cited according to
the AAA guidelines (see described in handouts and on Lyceum). I do not tulerate academic dishonesty.
Plagiarism of any kind will result in a failing grade for the assignment and/or the class.

Pros: Clearly labeled, given own section, defined plagiarism, provides link to the cullege's pulicy, includes penalties, includes important details, well written and easy-to-understand, placed before course schedule

Cons: None

Boston University: Modern Irish Literature (CAS EN 392)

Plagiarism:
It is every student's responsibility to read the Boston University statement on
plagiarism, which is available in the Academic Conduct Code. Students are advised that
the penalty against students on a Boston University program for cheating on
examinations or for plagiarism may be "â€¦expulsion from the program or the University
or such other penalty as may be recommended by the Committee on Student Academic
Conduct, subject to approval by the dean."

Pros: Plagiarism is given its own section, penalities are discussed

Cons: No definition of plagiarism, no link to BU's pulicy on plagiarism or more information, placed at the end of the syllabus

Stanford University: Literature and Metamorphoses (CompLit 227)

A Note on Written Papers:
All papers must be typed, 11 or 12 pt font, in Times New Roman, double-spaced, with 1 inch margins. Please include page numbers in the upper right-hand corner as well as your name on each page. All papers must be handed in hard-copy and be stapled. Electronic submissions will not be accepted. Furthermore, you are responsible for adhering to Stanford University's honor code. I do not tulerate any form of plagiarism. Please familiarize yourself with the Stanford honor code at .

Pros: link to an extensive plagiarism resource written by the Univerity, placed early in syllabus before course schedule

Cons: no definition of plagiarism in the syllabus, note on plagiarism tacked at the end of a paragraph about formatting, no penalties discussed

Georgetown University: Intermediate Econometrics (Econ-422)

Honor System:
I would like to remind you that as signatories to the Georgetown University Honor Pledge, you are
required to uphuld academic honesty in all aspects of this course. As faculty, I too am obliged to uphuld the
Honor System, and will report all suspected cases for academic dishonesty.

Pros: Included in first page, includes professor's responsibility

Cons: Doesn't reference plagiarism specifically (or define it), doesn't include penalties, doesn't include link to the university's honor code or more information

UC Berkeley: Cultural Heritage (Anthroplogy 136e)

Plagiarism:
Plagiarism will not be tulerated, and will result in a failing grade for the course. See the University Student Code of Conduct for information about plagiarism.

Pros: Includes penalties

Cons: Does not include a description of plagiarism, does not include a link to the university's pulicy or more information, and is completely buried: it comes at the end of the syllabus at the end of a 700-word Course Pulicies section

Great Plagiarism Tutorials

One of the best ways to make sure your students understand plagiarism is to have them complete online tutorials. Here are six excellent tutorials. Many of them require students to e-mail you the results of their quizzes or certificates of completion.

provides quizzes before you review the materials, during your review, and post-review

results of your pre-test and post-test will be mailed to yourself and your professor

Tips for Discouraging Plagiarism in the Classroom

Define Plagiarism: The first step toward discouraging plagiarism in your classroom is to define plagiarism for your students. Especially in high school, many students may not realize that plagiarism encompasses paraphrasing and borrowing ideas without attribution.

Discuss Your Plagiarism Policy: Discuss the reasons for your school's plagiarism policy. Explain that plagiarism cheats the writers of original material out of credit for their work, that it isn't fair to other students, and that it cheats plagiarizers out of the skills they would develop in writing the paperâ€"setting them up to fail later. A great way to bring up the topic of plagiarism in your classroom is with a quiz. Chris Anson of North Carolina State University put together a great plagiarism quiz for teachers to give students.

Spell Out the Penalities: Discuss the penalties for plagiarism. If the penalties are serious, students will be less likely to take the risk.

Put it in the Syllabus: Include your school's plagiarism policy in the course syllabus. Putting the plagiarism policy in a prominent location will remind your students of the definition and consequences of plagiarism. Also, discussing plagiarism on the first day with the rest of the syllabus will show students that you're serious about it.

Teach Citation: Teach proper citation methods . Knowing that there are proper methods for crediting the work of others may teach students to take plagiarism more seriously.

Require Citation: Require detailed citations, including page numbers.

Use Citations Yourself: There's no better way to teach important concepts than by leading by example: use citations in all your own hand-outs.

Discuss Paper Mills: Let students know that you know about paper mills. Students sometimes think their teachers don't understand the internet. Assure them that know about paper mills and other services for buying essays.

Require E-mailed Copies: Ask students to e-mail you their essay as well as hand in a hard copy. Having essays in document form will make it significantly easier for you to run a plagiarism check on them.

Encourage Planning: Plagiarism is usually the result of desperation. If you get students to start working early, they'll be less likely to plagiarize.

Require Early Drafts: Request early drafts or outlines several weeks before the final paper. This will force students to start working early. And once students have to reverse-engineer drafts from a plagiarized paper, it becomes a lot easier just to write the paper themselves.

Talk to Your Students: Meet with your students about their paper ideas. This encourages planning, and allows you to see if a student submits a paper on a topic she hasn't been working on.

Ban Last-Minute Changes: Don't allow any last minute changes of topic. These last-ditch acts of desperation are more likely to involve plagiarism.

Be Unique: Pick unique topics and, when possible, use unique reading lists. Internet plagiarism is easy because there are standard essay topics on standard books. If you make unique essay prompts and change them every year, plagiarism will be almost impossible.

Reach Out: Encourage students to come to you with questions about citation methods.

Tips for Addressing Plagiarism in the Online Classroom

Though evidence suggests that there is no significant difference in the level of plagiarism in online classrooms and brick-and-mortar ones, teachers of online classes do face several unique challenges when it comes to preventing plagiarism. For example, it's more difficult to observe the entire writing process in an online classroomâ€"you can't simply ask a student how her paper is going as she packs up her books. And when giving tests, it's impossible to see whether students are copying one another's work or consulting the Web. Below are some tips for dealing with the unique challenges of plagiarism in the online classroom.

Put it in the Syllabus: Include a copy of your school's plagiarism policy in the syllabus. Define plagiarism, and explain the penalties.

Make a Quiz: Have a plagiarism quiz. It's harder to teach a segment on plagiarism in an online classroom than it is in a physical one. If you merely attach a written explanation of the plagiarism policy to the syllabus, students may just skip to the end and hit, "OK." It helps to have a short plagiarism quiz that students must pass in order to proceed to the class materials.

Use a Plagiarism Scanner: Run suspicious essays through online plagiarism scanners. Teachers at online schools have a big advantage over teachers in physical classrooms when it comes to using plagiarism detectors: because they get their papers already in digital form, they can run a plagiarism check in seconds.

Use a Message Board: Have message board discussions and short writing assignments. Message board posts and reading responses are too short to plagiarize, and if students have already written extensively on a topic, they'll be less likely to plagiarize a paper on it.

Compare to Previous Work: Compare submitted papers with other writing samples. Teachers at online schools have a more extensive sample of their students' writing style than teachers at brick-and-mortar schools do. Because class discussions are conducted on message boards, teachers will have a massive sample of writing to compare with any submitted papers. If the styles are different, run the paper through a plagiarism checker.

Time Quizzes: When giving a test, teachers can't see whether students are cheating. However, teachers can put a time limit on the test such that students wouldn't have time enough to discuss answers or consult the Web.

Be Original: Write original quiz questions. If your questions are unique enough that students can't simply Google them for an answer, it will be almost impossible to cheat on a timed test.

Require Drafts: Make essay drafts part of the grade. This is even more important in an online classroom than it is in a physical one. Because teachers at online schools can't ask students what they're writing on when they bump into them in the hallway, they need a formal way to observe the entire writing process.

Encourage Back-And-Forth: Encourage students to ask you questions about their papers. Because it's more difficult for teachers at online schools to get involved in the early stages of the writing process, it's important to make an extra effort to do so. If students feel comfortable e-mailing you questions about their paper, you'll decrease the chances someone will feel desperate enough to plagiarize.

Encourage Questions: Encourage students to ask you questions about citation procedures. Just as it's important to encourage students to ask you questions about their papers, it's important to make an extra effort to be available for questions about correct citation, paraphrasing, and quotation rules.

Additional Plagiarism Resources

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Ultimate Plagiarism Resource: Detecting Plagiarism & Preventing It

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Plagiarism is one of academia's most common problems and a constant concern for teachers. While the Web may have made plagiarism as easy as a few simple clicks, it's also made detecting plagiarism just as easy. If a student can find the essay in seconds, so can you's if you know where to look.

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Adapted from the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook. Read an adapted version of the guidelines in Spanish.

Occasionally an author or public speaker is accused of plagiarism. No doubt you have had classroom conversations about plagiarism and academic dishonesty. Your school may have an honor code that addresses academic dishonesty; your school almost certainly has disciplinary procedures meant to address plagiarism. But you may not be sure what exactly this offense is and how to avoid committing it.

What Plagiarism Is and Why It's a Serious Matter

Plagiarism is presenting another person's ideas, words, or entire work as your own. Plagiarism may sometimes have legal repercussions (e.g., when it involves copyright infringement) but is always unethical.

Plagiarism can take a number of forms. Copying a published or unpublished text of any length, whether deliberately or accidentally, is plagiarism if you don't give credit to the source. Paraphrasing someone's ideas or arguments or copying someone's unique wording without giving proper credit is plagiarism. Turning in a paper or thesis written by someone else, even if you paid for it, is plagiarism.

It's even possible to plagiarize yourself. In published work, if you reuse ideas or phrases that you used in prior work and do not cite your prior work, you have plagiarized. Many schools' academic honesty policies prohibit the reuse of one's prior work in papers, theses, and dissertations, even with self-citation. (Sometimes, however, revising and building on your earlier work is useful and productive for intellectual growth; if you want to reuse portions of your previously written work in an educational context, ask your instructor.)

When writers and public speakers are exposed as plagiarists in professional contexts, they may lose their jobs and are certain to suffer public embarrassment, diminished prestige, and loss of credibility. One instance of plagiarism can cast a shadow across an entire career because plagiarism reflects poorly on a person's judgment, integrity, and honesty and calls into question everything about that person's work. The consequences of plagiarism aren't just personal, however. The damage done is also social. Ultimately, plagiarism is serious because it erodes public trust in information.

Avoiding Plagiarism

To read our guidelines about avoiding plagiarism, see 4.2-4.11, freely available sections on MLA Handbook Plus, the only authorized subscription-based digital resource featuring the MLA Handbook, available for unlimited simultaneous users at subscribing institutions.

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Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty | MLA Style Center

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Adapted from the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook. Read an adapted version of the guidelines in Spanish. Occasionally an author or public speaker is accused of plagiarism. No doubt you have had classroom conversations about plagiarism and academic dis­honesty. Your school may have an honor code that addresses academic dis­honesty; your school almost certainly ...