FILE: JR
Cf: IFDA
STUDENT RECORDS
Parents and guardians have the right to inspect and review any school records dealing with their children. Students eighteen (18) years of age or older have the sole right to inspect and review their respective student records. Limited access to student records may also be granted certain school officials and others as outlined in this policy. Any access to, or disclosure and release of student information shall be in accordance with federal and state law and regulations.
DEFINITIONS
Aggregate data shall be defined as, for purposes of this policy, statistics and other information that relate to broad classes, groups, or categories from which it is not possible to distinguish the identities of individuals.
Disclosure shall mean to permit access to or the release, transfer, or other communication of personally identifiable information contained in education records by any means, including oral, written, or electronic means, to any party except the party identified as the party that provided or created the record.
Educational records shall be defined as records which are directly related to a student and are maintained by the School Board or school by a person acting for the School Board or school. Excluded from the term educational records are records of instructional, supervisory or administrative personnel which are in the sole possession of the maker and are not accessible or revealed to any other individual except a substitute.
Legitimate educational interest shall be defined as the interest that requires regular access for purposes of adding material, periodic review, filing new student data and/or removing inadequate, ambiguous, no longer relevant data; the interest having the educational wellbeing of the student in mind for purposes of continuing, improving or changing the education program of the student and the interest in which the person has a legitimate need to know.
Parent or legal guardian shall mean a student's parent, legal guardian, or other person or entity responsible for the student.
Personally identifiable information shall be defined as information about an individual that may be used on its own or with other information to identify, contact, or locate a single individual, including but not limited to the following:
Any information that can be used to distinguish or trace an individual's identity such as full name, social security number, date and place of birth, mother's maiden name, or biometric records.
Any other information that is linked or linkable to an individual such as medical, educational, financial, and employment information.
Two (2) or more pieces of information that separately or when linked together can be used to reasonably ascertain the identity of the person.
School official shall be defined as an administrator, supervisor, principal, support staff, or any person employed by or under contract to the School Board, or authorized volunteer, to perform a function or service on behalf of the School Board.
ANNUAL NOTIFICATION
All parents/guardians shall be notified annually of their rights under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) and applicable state law. Such notification shall be made annually by publication in student handbooks, newsletters, notification to student's home by students, by mail, or publication in the official journal or in such manner as deemed appropriate by the Plaquemines Parish School Board.
ACCESS TO RECORDS
In addition to the parent, legal guardian, or student (if the student is eighteen (18) years of age or over) access to student records may only be provided with proper authorization in accordance with the following:
A person employed in a public school or other person authorized by the Superintendent may be provided or have access to a student’s records.
Any person who is authorized by state law or the Superintendent to access a student’s records on a public school computer system, except a parent or legal guardian, shall maintain the confidentiality of any student information to which he/she has access. Failure to maintain the confidentiality of such information shall be punishable as provided in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:3914.
Except as provided below, no person or public or private entity shall access a public school computer system on which student information is stored. No official or employee of the School Board shall authorize access to such a computer system to any person or public or private entity except as authorized below.
The following persons may access a public school computer system on which student information for students at a particular school is stored:
A student who has reached the age of eighteen (18) or is judicially emancipated or emancipated by marriage and the parent or legal guardian of a student who is under the age of eighteen (18) and not emancipated. Such access shall be limited to information about the student. A student who has reached the age of eighteen (18) or is emancipated and the parent or legal guardian of a student who has not reached the age of eighteen and is not emancipated may authorize, in writing, another person to access such information.
A teacher of record. Such access shall be limited to information about his/her current students.
The school principal and school registrar.
A School Board employee employed at the school and designated by the principal. Such access shall be limited to student information necessary to perform his/her duties.
A person authorized by the Superintendent to maintain or repair the computer system or to provide services that the School Board would otherwise provide.
A person authorized by the state to audit student records.
The following persons may access a computer system of the School Board on which student information for students from throughout the system is stored:
The Superintendent.
A School Board employee designated by the Superintendent. Such access shall be limited to student information necessary to perform his/her duties.
A person authorized by the Superintendent to maintain or repair the computer system or to provide services that the school system would otherwise provide.
A person authorized by the state to audit student records.
A public or private entity with whom the School Board has contracted for student and other educational services. Pursuant to such a contract, student information, including personally identifiable information and cumulative records, may be transferred to computers operated and maintained by the entity for such purpose. Such a contract shall be in accordance with the requirements of La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:3914.
Persons permitted access to a student’s records shall only have access to those education records in which they have a legitimate educational interest. Proper administrative regulations and procedures shall be maintained to ensure compliance with this provision.
The School Board shall maintain a record of each request for access to, and each disclosure from, records of each student in accordance with federal regulations. The School Board shall maintain such a record with the education records of the student for as long as the records are maintained.
DISCLOSURE OF STUDENT INFORMATION
No official or employee of the School Board shall provide personally identifiable student information to any member of the School Board or to any other person or public or private entity, except such an official or employee may, in accordance with applicable state and federal law:
Provide a student's identification number and aggregate data to the School Board, the Louisiana Department of Education, or the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) solely for the purpose of satisfying state and federal reporting requirements.
Provide to the Louisiana Department of Education, for the purpose of satisfying state and federal assessment, auditing, funding, monitoring, program administration, and state accountability requirements, information from which enough personally identifiable information has been removed such that the remaining information does not identify a student and there is no basis to believe that the information alone can be used to identify a student.
Provide personally identifiable information regarding a particular student to any person or public or private entity if the sharing of the particular information with the particular recipient of the information has been authorized in writing by the parent or legal guardian of the student, or by a student who has reached the age of legal majority, or if the information is provided to a person authorized by the state, including the legislative auditor, to audit processes including student enrollment counts. Any recipient of such information shall maintain the confidentiality of such information. Any person who knowingly and willingly fails to maintain the confidentiality of such information shall be subject to the penalties provided in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:3914.
Provide for the transfer of student information pursuant to the provisions of La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:112.
With limited exception as allowed by state or federal law or regulation, any redisclosure and/or release of personally identifiable information shall require a legitimate educational interest of the recipient.
Release of Student Information
In accordance with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, schools shall honor the requests of military recruiters for names, addresses and phone numbers of high school students, unless parents have specified that such information not be released to such recruiters.
In accordance with La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:112, the principal of a public elementary or secondary school shall provide for the transfer of the education records, including special education records, if applicable, of any current or former student at his/her school upon the written request of any authorized person on behalf of a public or nonpublic elementary or secondary school, or an educational facility operated within any correctional or health facility, whether within or outside the state of Louisiana, where such student has become enrolled or is seeking enrollment. Under no circumstances may a school or school district refuse to promptly transfer the records of any child withdrawing or transferring from the school. Transfer of records, whether by mail or otherwise, shall occur no later than ten (10) business days from the date of receipt of a written request.
Student records shall be furnished in compliance with judicial orders or pursuant to any lawfully issued subpoena if the parents, legal guardian and students are notified in advance.
Once the parent, guardian, or student of majority age has granted permission for collection of certain data in accordance with La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:3914, such data shall be disclosed solely for purposes of processing a student’s application to a Louisiana postsecondary education institution or to the Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance for receipt of financial aid.
The School Board may disclose personally identifiable information from student records to appropriate parties, including the parents of a student 18 years old or older, in connection with an emergency, if knowledge of the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals.
The School Board and employees may disclose education records or information from education records, without the consent of the parent or guardian of the student who is the subject of the records, to certain law enforcement. Disclosure of such records or information shall be in accordance with the following provisions:
Disclosure of education records or information from education records shall only be made to state or local law enforcement officials or to other officials within the juvenile justice system. Verification of the official's position may need to be made before the disclosure of records or information.
The disclosure of the education record or information must relate to the ability of the juvenile justice system to serve, prior to adjudication, the student whose records or information is to be disclosed.
The officials to whom the records or the information are disclosed shall certify in writing that that person, and any agency or organization with which that person is affiliated, shall keep the personally identifiable portions of the records or the information confidential and shall not disclose the personally identifiable portions of the records or the information to any person, agency, or organization except a person, agency, or organization within the juvenile justice system having an independent right to the information.
Any other provisions necessary to comply with federal law or rules.
A record of all authorizations for release of information shall be maintained by the School Board and all such authorizations shall be included in the student’s records.
REVIEW OF STUDENT RECORDS BY THE PARENT
Schools shall provide for the review of student records by parents or guardians, or any student eighteen (18) years of age or older. Parents and students shall be given notification of their right to review the student records.
Access to school records shall not be denied to a parent solely because he/she is not the child’s custodial or domiciliary parent.
The parent or legal guardian of a student shall be provided access to student records upon written request to the principal maintaining those records within the school system no more than forty-five (45) days after the date of receipt of the request.
The parent, legal guardian or student, if the student is eighteen (18) or over, shall, upon written request to the principal maintaining those records, have the opportunity to receive an interpretation of those records, have the right to question those data, and if a difference of opinion is noted, shall be permitted to file a letter in said cumulative folder stating their position. If further challenge is made to the record, the parent, legal guardian, or student if 18 or older, may request a hearing.
If, as a result of the hearing, the School Board decides that the information is inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights of the student, it shall:
Amend the record accordingly; and
Inform the parent or eligible student in writing.
If, as a result of the hearing, the School Board decides that the information in the education record is not inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights of the student, it shall inform the parent or eligible student of the right to place a statement in the record commenting on the contested information in the record or stating why he or she disagrees with the decision of the School Board or both.
The hearing shall be held within a reasonable time after receipt of the request for the hearing from the parent or eligible student.
The hearing shall be conducted by the Superintendent. At the hearing the parent or student eighteen (18) or over shall be given a full and fair opportunity to present evidence relevant to issues raised. The parent or student may, at his/her own expense, be assisted or represented by one or more individuals of his or her own choice, including an attorney.
The Superintendent shall make his/her decision in writing within a reasonable period of time after the hearing. The decision must be based solely on the evidence presented at the hearing, and must include a summary of the evidence and the reasons for the decision. The decision shall be communicated to the school and parent in writing within ten (10) working days following the date of the hearing.
CONFIDENTIALITY
In collecting appraisal information the counselor can justify an invasion of another's privacy only if the information will be used by the school in a way that is helpful to the student. When a counselor asks the student or parent to reveal personal information in the course of interviewing, testing, or other inventory, or when the student divulges such information of his/her own accord, the counselor shall make certain that the student is aware of the purpose of this information and the way it will be used.
The counselor must determine the difference in data that describe student behavior and data that describe personality. This latter kind of information will be shared by the school only with the student, his/her parents, and those persons who will use the information for the professional purpose of helping the student.
Where students specifically request that certain information be kept in confidence, or where such intent may reasonably be interpreted from the content of the counseling interview or the context of the relationship, the counselor shall reveal such information only under exceptional circumstances such as imminent danger to life. All other information revealed in the course of a counseling relationship is considered confidential, and the counselor shall reveal such information to other professional workers in the school only when there is a specific reason for doing so and where the purpose is clearly to help the student. He/she shall exercise judgment in determining the extent to which he/she is able to communicate to others a feeling for the student without revealing specifics.
Procedure for the Handling of Confidential Materials
Confidential materials are herein defined as follows:
All confidential materials shall be kept in the individual school office in confidential files. The principal assumes responsibility for the confidentiality of these materials.
COMPLETION OF STUDENT RECORDS
CUMULATIVE FOLDERS will be kept in the school office. They should be filled as soon as grades and other information are available. Each student should be given advice concerning his/her schedule after homeroom teachers check the cumulative folder. Each homeroom teacher shall be responsible for securing transcripts of all new students, both elementary and high school. Verbal information concerning grades of new students shall not be accepted. A complete program of studies for four (4) years of high school should be in each student's cumulative folder. Where folders are incomplete, teachers must complete same, however, if it appears that a teacher has neglected his or her work, which causes unnecessary work to the homeroom teacher, the principal should be notified. Every blank should be properly filled and the student's full name should be correct. Folders should not be tied together when placed in the file cabinet and should be arranged alphabetically, either boys and girls separately, or together.
A cumulative record shall be maintained for each student from his/her entrance into school though the twelfth grade. Such records pertaining to the individual student may be used only for the benefit, promotion or welfare of the student. Provisions shall be made for including at least the following:
Personal and family date including certification of name and date of birth
Test data, including aptitude, interests, personality and social adjustment ratings
Medical reports
All achievement records, as determined by tests and teacher evaluations
Anecdotal reports
Psychological reports
Student questionnaires
Records of conferences
Copies of correspondence with parents and other concerning the student
Other records which may contribute to understanding of the student
Post-school records
All material in each cumulative record shall be treated as confidential and shall be directly accessible only to the professional staff of the schools and to the student's parents or guardian. Such information demands judicious use and should always contribute to the welfare of the individuals under consideration. Upon the request of the parents, all tests will be translated into meaningful terms for their benefit, and emphasis will be placed upon the relationships of all known factors influencing the educational development of the student.
Transfer of Cumulative Records
When the student transfers to another school, within the parish, the cumulative record is issued and sent to the receiving principal by the student's current principal.
When the student transfers to another school, outside the school system, the sending principal shall give to the student a letter indicating grade level, age, date of leaving and other pertinent placement information. A copy of the cumulative records of transcript shall be mailed upon request by the receiving principal.
When the student graduates from high school, the regular cumulative record shall be retained at the high school.
Request for Cumulative Records
At the time a student transfers to a school from outside the parish a request shall be made to the school system requesting all records on the student (cumulative records health records test scores, etc).
Name of Student
For a variety of reasons parents or guardian desire to have their children called other than their legal surnames. This is permissible but shall be done only when it has been ascertained that it is the request of the legal guardian. However, for future verification and identification, the legal name shall also be included on any permanent type records.
HEALTH RECORDS. Accurate health records must be kept up to date by homeroom teachers for each student and in one folder for each grade or section. All students should be carefully screened by teachers for vision, hearing, and any abnormalities. Screening results should be reported to the office for the attention of the Plaquemines Parish Health Unit. Accurate charts of height and weight should be maintained. When necessary, teachers should instruct students in practical health habits such as table manners, eating proper foods, use of toilets and drinking fountains, etc.
ATTENDANCE REPORTS are due each nine-weeks. Divided grades will combine their attendance and send one total to the office. Errors should be avoided. Teachers shall complete report immediately at the end of each nine-weeks grading period according to Plaquemines Parish School calendar. Attendance reports should be recorded at the end of each nine-weeks period on the back of page 1 of the green register book.
GREEN REGISTERS should be carefully filled and should be kept up to date with grades and other information recorded as soon as it becomes available. Principals shall verify completeness of this information no later than mid-term.
BOOK CARDS. Book cards shall be completed by the homeroom teacher for every child. These cards are to be kept in the principal's office. The teacher must make a note on the book card of the condition of the book issued. Cards shall be completed by teachers of the various subjects in high school as the books are issued. Cards shall then be returned to the homeroom teacher who will check and turn them in to the office. When a student is dropped, the book card should be given to the student. The book number should be written on the card.
PHOTOGRAPHING OF STUDENTS
The principal shall have the option to contract or not to contract with any reputable photography company to provide student photographing services. These services shall be provided to interested students at their own expense.
The school should keep a current photograph of the student in his/her cumulative folder.
| Revised: December, 2009 | Revised: July 9, 2013 |
| Revised: April, 2010 | Revised: November 2, 2015 |
| Adopted: November 1, 2010 |
Ref: 20 USC 1232 (g-i) (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act)
20 USC 7908 (Armed Forces Recruiter Access to Student Information)
34 CFR 99.1-99.67 (Family Educational Rights and Privacy - Federal Regulations)
La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§9:351, 17:81, 17:112, 17:221.3, 17:3914, 44:4, 44:4.1, 44:31, 44:32
La. Civil Code, Art. 131, Art. 134, Art. 250
Board minutes, 11-1-10, 7-9-13, 11-2-15
Plaquemines Parish School Board