Release of Education Records

North Central Missouri College (NCMC or the College) uses the following definitions in this policy.

Education records: any record maintained by the College directly related to a student, with the following exceptions:

• Records made by College employees which 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;
• Employment records unless the employment is contingent on the fact that the employee is a student;
• Records maintained by the College solely for law enforcement purposes;
• Records made, maintained and used by professionals or paraprofessionals (e.g., physician, psychiatrist, psychologist, or counselor) only in connection with treatment of a student, and disclosed only to individuals providing the treatment. Such health records may be reviewed by a physician or other appropriate professional of the student’s choice;
• Alumni records containing information about individuals after they are no longer students at the College.

Legitimate educational interest: A school official has a legitimate educational interest when the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her responsibility on behalf of the College, such as when the official is performing a task that is specific in his or her job description or by a contract agreement or other official appointment; performing a task related to a student’s education; performing a task related to the discipline of a student; or providing a service or benefit relating to the student or student’s family, such as health care, counseling, job placement, or financial aid.

School official: a person employed by the College in an administrative, supervisory, academic, research, or support staff position; individuals or entities with whom the College has contracted (e.g., an attorney or auditor, the State Council on Higher Education, the National Student Clearinghouse); individuals serving on the Board of Trustees; and students conducting College business (e.g., serving on official committees, working for the College, or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks).

Student: for the purpose of administering FERPA regulations, an individual who is enrolled in a course for college credit and whose attendance has been confirmed.

Types, Locations and Custodians of Education Records: The following is a list of the types of education records that North Central Missouri College maintains, their locations, and their custodians, with an e-mail link to each:

You have the right to inspect and review your education records within 45 days of the day the College receives a written request for access, any time after your matriculation. You should submit your written request, identifying as precisely as possible the record(s) you wish to review, to the College Registrar, Dean or other appropriate official records custodian. The College official will make arrangements for your review of the education records, or will advise you of the correct official to whom the request should be addressed. If you wish to have photocopies of all or a portion of your education records, for those items to which you have not waived your right of access, they will be provided at a cost of $.50 per copy.

Records not open to student review: In accordance with federal regulations, students do not have the right to review the following records:

• The financial records of the student’s parents or guardian
• Records connected with an application to attend North Central Missouri College if that application was denied
• Education records containing information about more than one student, in which case the College will permit access only to that part of the record which pertains to the inquiring student
• Those records which are excluded from the FERPA definition of education records

Right of the College to refuse to provide copies: North Central Missouri College reserves the right to deny copies if the transcripts or other records are not required to be made available under FERPA, if the student has an overdue financial obligation to the College or if there is an unresolved disciplinary action against the student.

Fee for copies of records: Academic transcripts must be requested in writing by the student whose record it is and the transcript fee must be paid. The fee for copies of other education records, whether in response to student-authorized requests or other requests allowed by law, is $.50 per copy.

You have the right to request amendment of your education records if you believe they are inaccurate or misleading. Write the college official responsible for the specific record, clearly identifying the part of the record you want changed, and specify why it is inaccurate or misleading. There is a separate process for grade appeals outlined in the NCMC college catalog.

The college official will reach a decision and inform you in a reasonable amount of time after receiving the request. If your request to amend the record is denied, you have the right to make a written request for a hearing. Hearings will be conducted by a committee appointed by the Dean of Student Services. The committee chairperson will notify you, reasonably in advance, of the date, place and time of the hearing should it be necessary.

If the hearing committee rules in favor of the amendment, the education record will be amended accordingly and you will be so informed. If the request for amendment is denied, you will have the opportunity to place with the education record a statement commenting on the information in the record or a statement setting forth any reason for disagreeing with the outcome of the hearing.

This statement will be maintained as part of the education record as long as the contested portion is maintained, and whenever a copy of the education record is sent to any party, your statement will be included.

Destruction of Records: Nothing in this policy requires the continued maintenance of any student record for any particular length of time. However, if under the terms of this policy you have requested access to your education record, the record will not be destroyed before the custodian has granted you access.

You have the right to consent to disclosures of personally identifiable information in your education records, except to the extent that FERPA or any superseding law authorizes disclosure without your consent. North Central Missouri College will disclose student education records only with the written consent of the student, except in certain situations where the College retains discretion under FERPA to disclose such records without consent, including the following:

1) to school officials who have a legitimate educational interest in the records. A school official is:

• a person employed by the College in an administrative, supervisory, academic, research, or support staff position;
• individuals or entities with whom the College has contracted (e.g., an attorney or auditor, the State Department of Higher Education, the National Student Clearinghouse);
• individuals serving on the Board of Trustees; and
• students conducting College business (e.g., serving on official committees, working for the College, or assisting a school official in performing his or her tasks). A school official has a legitimate educational interest when the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her responsibility on behalf of the College such as when the official is:
• performing a task that is specific in his or her job description or by a contract agreement or other official appointment;
• performing a task related to a student’s education;
• performing a task related to the discipline of a student; or h) providing a service or benefit relating to the student or student’s family, such as health care, counseling, job placement, or financial aid.

2) to authorized officials of the following entities, in connection with federal- or states supported education programs; the U.S. Department of Education; the U.S. Comptroller General; the U.S. Attorney General; or state and local educational authorities.
3) in connection with a student’s request for or receipt of financial aid, including determining the eligibility, amount or conditions of the financial aid or enforcing the terms and conditions of the aid.
4) when required by state law.
5) to state and local authorities to whom such information is specifically allowed to be reported or disclosed under state law in connection with the juvenile justice system.
6) to organizations conducting certain studies for educational purposes for or on behalf of the College.
7) to accrediting organizations, including individuals on visiting committees, if necessary to carry out their functions.
8) to comply with a judicial order or a lawfully issued subpoena, provided to College makes a reasonable attempt to notify you in advance of compliance (except in certain cases involving grand jury subpoenas) or, when the College is involved in a legal action with a parent or student, where disclosure is to the court, without a court order or subpoena, and is relevant for the College to proceed as plaintiff or to defend itself.
9) to appropriate parties in a health or safety emergency.
10) to organizations conducting studies for or on behalf of educational institutions.
11) to accrediting organizations (for accrediting purposes).
12) to parents/legal guardians when their children (under age 21) are found to have violated the alcohol or drug policy of the institution (Warner Amendment).
13) to parents/legal guardians of dependent students under age 24, when documentation is provided that student is a dependent (as defined by IRS code of 1986). Documentation is required with each release of information.
14) Personally identifiable information classified as Directory Information at NCMC.

• The following have been designated by North Central Missouri College as public or directory information.
  • Name
  • Address
  • E-mail address
  • Photograph
  • Date and place of birth
  • Major field of study
  • Full- or part-time enrollment status
  • Participation in officially recognized activities
  • Sports- weight and height of an athletic team member
  • Dates of attendance
  • Awards received
  • Most recent previous educational institution attended

North Central Missouri College does not define email addresses in bulk as Directory Information. Listings of multiple student email addresses are not produced for any purpose.

Directory information will not be released prior to the end of the enrollment period for the first semester of enrollment without the express, written permission of the student.

Currently enrolled students may withhold disclosure of directory information (on all or none basis) by notifying the Registrar at [email protected], before the end of the published Add/Drop period, that he or she does not want the directory information released. The non-disclosure request does not prevent the disclosure of information to College personnel with a legitimate educational interest. The non-disclosure request will remain in effect until the student rescinds the request in writing. A request in place at the time of graduation or at the time of leaving North Central Missouri College remains in effect in perpetuity.

The College will maintain, with the student’s education records, a record for each request and each disclosure, except:

• disclosures to the student himself or herself;
• disclosures pursuant to the written consent of the student;
• disclosures to instructional or administrative officials of North Central Missouri College;
• disclosures of directory information;
• disclosures pursuant to a Federal grand jury’s subpoena or other law enforcement subpoenas where the court or other agency issuing the subpoena has ordered the institution to not disclose the existence of the subpoena.

Deceased Students: NCMC will not release educational record information of deceased students for 25 years after their death unless authorized by the executor/executrix of the deceased student’s estate (or parents or next of kin if no executor/executrix has been appointed). Proof of death and relationship to the deceased may be required if not already recorded in the institution’s data files.

Educational Institution Requests: Requests for release of student academic records by other educational institutions will not be processed without a signed release and transcript fee from the student.

E-mail Requests: E-mail requests for release of non-directory information are not accepted.

Parental Requests: FERPA assigns rights to students once they reach 18 years of age or enroll at a postsecondary institution. A written release from the student is required to share information with others (except as noted in section above). The same guidelines apply for students dually enrolled in high school and NCMC.

Redisclosure of Information: Disclosure of personally identifiable information from North Central Missouri College is made 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 eligible student.

The officers, employees, and agents of a party that receives information may use the information, but only for the purposes for which the disclosure was made.

If North Central Missouri College determines that a third party improperly rediscloses personally identifiable information from education records, NCMC may not allow the third party access to personally identifiable information from education records for at least five years.

Release of Student Lists: North Central Missouri College does not release students lists to outside individuals or organizations, with the following exceptions:

• A person or company with whom the College has contracted institutional services
• U.S. or Missouri Department of Education for research purposes
• A recruiter for the United States Armed Services, as required in the Solomon Act

The College president may authorize the release of a student list when he feels a legitimate educational need exists.

Release to a Third Party: NCMC does not release educational records from other institutions to third parties. Students are directed to contact the originating institution for copies. Transcripts submitted to NCMC for admission and enrollment will not be returned to the student should their enrollment status change.

Spousal Requests: FERPA privacy and disclosure rights are assigned to the student. The spouse cannot authorize release of non-directory information contained in the student’s education records.

Information about the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act may be obtained in the office of the College Registrar or students may contact the
Student Privacy Policy Office
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue,
SW Washington, DC 20202-5920
[email protected]
https://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html
R: 08/2021