FERPA Policy

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974 is a federal law that requires colleges and universities to protect the confidentiality of student education records. The law states that, except in specified circumstances, no one outside the institution shall have access to a student's education records, nor will the institution disclose any information from those records without the written consent of the student.

What Are Education Records?

"Education records" are records that:

Contain information that is directly related to a student.
Are maintained by an education agency or institution or by a party acting for the agency or institution.

What Does Not Qualify as an Education Record?

Records that are kept in the sole possession of the maker for use only as a memory aid and not shared with others.

Records created by Public Safety for a law enforcement purpose and maintained by Public Safety.
Certain employment records that relate exclusively to an individual's employment capacity. However, Student Employment records are considered education records under FERPA.
Medical and psychological records made, maintained, or used only in connection with the treatment of the student.
Post-attendance records (alumni records).

Note: In most circumstances, students do not have the right to review their parents' financial records or confidential recommendations to which they have waived access.

What Are a Student's Rights Under FERPA?

Right to inspect and review education records.
Right to request amendment of education records.
Right to have some control over the disclosure of information from education records.
Right to file with the U.S. Department of Education a complaint concerning alleged failures by the education agency or institution to comply with the requirements of the act.

What About Parental Access to a Student's Education Records?

At the post-secondary level, parents have no inherent rights to inspect a student's education record. The right to inspect is limited solely to the student.

Parents may gain access to non-directory information (grades, GPA, etc.) if they obtain consent from the student.

What Is Considered "Directory Information"?

Ocademy may release appropriately designated “directory information” without the student’s written consent, unless the student has advised Ocademy to the contrary.

Ocademy has designated the following as directory information: the student's name, address, telephone number, electronic mail address, photograph, date and place of birth, major field of study, dates of attendance, grade level, enrollment status (e.g., undergraduate or graduate; full-time or part-time), participation in officially recognized activities and sports, degrees, honors and awards received, and the most recent education agency or institution attended.

If students do not want Ocademy to disclose directory information from their education records without their prior written consent, they must notify admissions@ocademyai.org. Status of nondisclosure is binding until such time that Ocademy is notified in writing by the student to permit release of "directory information."

Ocademy reserves the right to withhold directory information at its discretion.

Pursuant to FERPA, Ocademy may disclose a student's education records without a student's written consent under certain conditions. These include, but are not limited to:

Disclosure to a school official who has a legitimate educational interest.
Disclosure to an education auditing or enforcing agency of a federal or state-supported program.
Disclosure associated with eligibility for financial aid.
Disclosure pursuant to a court order or subpoena.
Disclosure that is necessary to protect the safety of the student or other persons.

What Is Annual Notification?

In compliance with FERPA, Ocademy annually notifies students of the rights afforded to them under FERPA by publishing Ocademy’s FERPA policy on our website and in the student applications.

Where Can I Find Additional FERPA Information?

https://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html?src=rn