FERPA

At San Jacinto College, we understand the importance of keeping your educational records private and confidential. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) affords you, as an eligible student (18 years old or older attending a postsecondary institution), certain rights with respect to your education records. With this in mind, we want to make you aware of your rights under FERPA. These rights include:

1. The right to inspect and review your education records within 45 days after the day San Jacinto College receives a request for access. You should submit to your campus Office of Admissions, head of the academic department, or other appropriate official, a written request that identifies the record(s) you wish to inspect. A San Jacinto College official will make arrangements for access and notify you of the time and place where the records may be inspected. If the records are not maintained by the school official to whom the request was submitted, that official will advise you of the correct official to whom your request should be addressed.
2. The right to request the amendment of your education records that you believe is inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of your privacy rights under FERPA.
   1. If you wish to ask San Jacinto College to amend a record, you should write to the school official responsible for the record, clearly identify the part of the record you want changed, and specify why it should be changed.
   2. If San Jacinto College decides not to amend the record as requested, we will notify you in writing of the decision and your right to a hearing re­garding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to you when notified of the right to a hearing.
3. The right to be provided with written consent before San Jacinto College discloses personally identifiable information from your education records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent.
   
   1. San Jacinto College discloses education records without your prior written consent under the FERPA exception for disclosure to school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school official typically includes a person employed by San Jacinto College in an administrative, supervisory, academic, research, or support staff position (including law en­forcement unit personnel and health staff); a person serving on the Board of Trustees; or a student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance com­mittee.
   2. A school official also may include a volunteer or contractor outside of San Jacinto College who performs an institutional service of function, such as an attorney, auditor, collection agent, or a student volunteering to assist another school official in performing his or her tasks. The volunteer or contractor is under the direct control of the school with respect to the use and maintenance of personally identifiable information from education records. A school official typically has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an educa­tion record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibilities for San Jacinto College.
   3. Upon request, San Jacinto College may also disclose education records without consent to offi­cials of another school in which a student seeks or intends to enroll. Your San Jacinto College transcript may be sent to your transfer institution if you are later awarded a degree or certificate based on reverse transfer. 
4. The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by San Jacinto College to comply with the requirements of FERPA. The name and address of the office that administers FERPA is:
   Family Policy Compliance Office
   U.S. Department of Education
   400 Maryland Avenue, SW
   Washington, DC 20202
5. The College will release only directory information without your consent including high school dual credit/early admission students.  To see a list of items San Jacinto College considers directory information, and to learn more about how to withhold this information, see our FERPA directory information page. 

FERPA permits the disclosure of personally identifiable information from your education records, without your consent, if the disclosure meets certain conditions found in § 99.31 of the FERPA regulations. Except for disclosures to school officials, disclosures related to some judicial orders or lawfully issued subpoenas, disclosures of directory information, and disclosures to the student, § 99.32 of FERPA regulations requires the institution to record the disclosure. Eligible students have a right to inspect and review the record of disclosures. For a listing of these conditions, see our Exceptions page.