POLICY
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) affords students certain rights with respect to their education records. Huntington University of Health Sciences (HUHS) acknowledges this law as University policy.
Under the provisions of this law, students are entitled to the following rights:
- The right to inspect and review the student’s education records.
Requests to inspect or review education records must be submitted by the student to the Registrar in writing and must include the following:
- The record(s) the student wishes to inspect
- Student signature and date of request
The right to request an amendment to the student’s education records that the student believes contains inaccurate information.
Requests to amend education records must be submitted by the student to the Registrar in writing and include the following:
- Clear identification of the portion of the education record to be amended
- Why the record should be changed
- Student signature and date of request
If the request is not approved, the student has the right to request a hearing to challenge the contents of the education records on the grounds that the records are inaccurate, misleading, or violate the rights of the student.
- The right to provide consent to disclosure of the student’s educational records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent. Students wishing to provide a consent to disclose should complete the Consent to Release Records form and return it to the Register’s Office.
The University discloses education records without a student’s prior written consent under the FERPA exception for disclosure to school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school official is a person employed by the University in an administrative, supervisory, academic or research, or support staff position; a person or company with whom the University has contracted as its agent to provide a service instead of using University employees or officials (such as an attorney, auditor or collection agent); a person serving on the Board of Directors; or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks.
The University 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 as long as the disclosure is for purposes related to the students’ enrollment or transfer.
A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibilities for the University.
- The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by HUHS to comply with FERPA requirements in the instance that a complaint cannot be resolved within the University.
Students who wish to file a complaint under FERPA should do so in writing to the Family Policy Compliance Office, sending pertinent information concerning any allegations to the following address:
Family Policy Compliance Office
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20202-5901
1-202-260-3887
Personally identifiable information (PII) includes all information not defined as directory information and may not be released except under the special conditions described below without a signed and dated written consent of the student.
A written consent must:
- Specify the records that may be disclosed
- State the purpose of the disclosure
- Identify the party or class of parties to whom the disclosure may be made
When a disclosure is made:
- If an eligible student (or parent) requests, the student (or parent) will be provided with a copy of the records disclosed.
- Also, if a parent of a noneligible student requests, the parent will be provided a copy of the records disclosed
Signed and dated written consent may include a record and signature in electronic form that:
- Identifies and authenticates a particular person as the source of the consent in the electronic consent
- Indicates that person’s approval of the information contained in the electronic consent.
Consent is not required for the disclosure of PII to the following parties:
- School officials with legitimate educational interest
- State and local officials
- Accrediting agencies
- U.S. Comptroller General, U.S. Attorney General, U.S. Department of Education
- Authorized organizations conducting educational research
- Alleged victim of a crime
- Parent of a dependent student as defined by the IRS
- Parent of a student under 21 regarding the violation of a law regarding alcohol or drug abuse
DIRECTORY INFORMATION
Release of student directory information is also permitted by FERPA. HUHS identifies “directory” information as name, address, telephone number, email address, date and place of birth, honors and awards, dates of attendance, major field of study, enrollment status, previous institutions attended, photograph, or other comparable information.
Students may control the release of directory information by completing the Request to Revoke Directory Information Release form. Upon receipt of this form, a Privacy Hold will be placed on the student’s record.
HEALTH AND SAFETY EXCEPTION
A health and safety exception permits the disclosure of personally identifiable information from a student’s record in case of an immediate threat to the health or safety of students or other individuals.
HUHS will follow the provisions outlined in the regulations as follows:
The university will disclose personally identifiable information from an education record to appropriate parties in connection with an emergency if knowledge of the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals.
DISTRIBUTION AND CONTACT INFORMATION
Information concerning student rights under the FERPA law are distributed to students annually via the Notice of Availability of Institutional and Financial Aid Information. Please contact the Registrar with any additional questions or concerns about this policy.
Contact Information
Registrar
118 Legacy View Way
Knoxville, TN 37918
865-524-8079 ext. 1003
registrar@huhs.edu
Contact Us
Please contact the Office of the Registrar at 865-524-8079 extension 3 or registrar@huhs.edu if you have any additional questions or concerns about our privacy policy.
We accept the following forms by email, fax and mail.