FERPA

What right do parents have to see their college kids’ records? Not much. I’m Amy E. Feldman.

Students in South Africa were disciplined after several students urinated in the school’s long jump pit.  There’s a call no parent wants to receive.  If your kid is going off to college, you won’t get that call, though, because in what may be one of  Congress’ most naïve laws, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), says college students are considered responsible adults and they determine who gets their information, so parents can only get their child’s academic or financial records if the child signs a release form, even if you’re the one paying for the classes he’s oversleeping.

If students don’t consent, the college will not tell parents about disciplinary records unless the disclosure is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or others.  Now, you can contact the school’s medical center if you think your child needs help, or call him and ask, “hey, how’s school? How’s that long jump pit?  Dry, I hope?”