5500R

STUDENT RECORDS REGULATION

It is recognized that the confidentiality of pupil records must be maintained. The following necessary procedures have been adopted to guarantee the protection of pupil records.

Section 1. Pursuant to the "Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974" it shall be the policy of this school district with respect to parents of a student under 18 years of age and with respect to students 18 years of age or older to permit such persons to inspect and review any and all official records, files and data directly related to their children (themselves), including all materials that are incorporated into each student's cumulative record folder, and intended for school use or to be available to parties outside the school or school system, and specifically including, but not necessarily limited to, identifying data, academic work completed, level of achievement (grades, standardized achievement test scores), attendance data, scores on standardized intelligence, aptitude, and psychological tests, interest inventory results, health data, family background information, teacher or counselor ratings and observations, and verified reports of serious or recurrent behavior patterns.

Section 2. Parents of a student under 18 years of age or a student 18 years of age or older shall have an opportunity for a hearing to challenge the content of their child's (their own) school records, to insure that the records are not inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy or other rights of students, and to provide an opportunity for the correction or deletion of any such inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise inappropriate data contained therein.

Section 3. In order to implement the rights provided for in Sections 1 and 2 hereof, the following procedures are adopted:

1. A parent of a student under 18 years of age or a student 18 years or older shall make a request for access to a child's (their own) school records, in writing, to the Superintendent of Schools. Upon receipt of such request, arrangements shall be made to provide access to such records within thirty (30) days after the request has been received.

2. A parent of a student under 18 years of age or a student 18 years of age or older, who wishes to challenge the contents of their child's school records, shall submit a request, in writing, identifying the record or records which they believe to be inaccurate, misleading or otherwise in violation of the privacy or other rights of the student together with a statement with the reasons for their challenge to the record to the Superintendent.

3. Upon receipt of a written challenge, the Superintendent shall provide a written response indicating either that he/she finds the challenged record inaccurate, misleading or otherwise in violation and it will be corrected or deleted, or that he/she finds no basis for correcting or deleting the record in question, but that the parent or student will be given an opportunity for a hearing. Such written response by the Superintendent shall be provided the parent or student within fourteen (14) days after receipt of the written challenge. Said response shall also outline the procedures to be followed with respect to a hearing, if desired by the parent or student.

4. Within fourteen (14) days of receipt of the response from the Superintendent a parent or student may request, in writing, that a hearing be held to review the determination of the Superintendent.

Section 4. Student records, and any material contained herein which is personally identifiable, are confidential and may not be released or made available to persons other than parents or students without the written consent of parents of students 18 years of age or younger. Such records and material may be made available without the written consent of parents or students in the following cases:

1. being made available to other school officials, including teachers within the district who have legitimate educational interests;

2. being made available to officials of another school in which the student intends to enroll, if the parents or student are notified of the transfer of records, are given a copy if they desire one, and have an opportunity for a hearing to challenge the content of the records;

3. being made available to authorized representatives of certain designated federal and state agencies, including state educational authorities, for the purpose of the audit and in connection with the enforcement of federal legal requirements;

4. being made available in connection with a student's application for or receipt of financial aid; and

5. being made available pursuant to court order or subpoena, after notification to the parent or student.

Section 5. Whenever a student record or any material contained therein is to be made available to third persons, other than those covered by the exceptions indicated in Section 4 hereof, the parent of a student under 18 years of age or a student 18 years of age or older must file a written consent to such action and any third party to whom such records have been made available must sign a written statement that he will not further release such records without the consent of the parent or student.

Section 6. All persons requesting access to such records except for those persons provided for in subdivision 1 of Section 4 hereof, state agencies provided for in subdivision 3 of Section 4 hereof and those persons provided for in subdivision 5 of Section 4 hereof shall be required to sign a written form which indicates a legitimate educational or other interest that such person has in inspecting the records. Such form shall be kept with the student's file. See Exhibit 5500-E.2.

Section 7. Whenever the district is requested to forward a student's school records, including health records, to a neighboring public school district within this BOCES, the following procedures shall be followed:

1. A student's school records, including health records, shall be forwarded to the neighboring public school district from which such a request is made upon the receipt of a request by the appropriate administrator of the requesting district in accordance with current district policy.

2. The prior written consent of the student's parent(s) shall not be necessary. However, upon the forwarding of the student's records, the parent(s) of the student shall be notified in writing that the records have been transferred.

Such notice shall be by certified letter, return receipt requested and such letter shall be forwarded to the parent(s) not later than the close of business of the day upon which the student's records are forwarded to the neighboring district.

Section 8. All instructional material, including teachers' manuals, which are used in connection with a research or experimental program must be available for inspection by the parents or guardians of the children engaged in such program. "Research or experimentation program or project" is defined as a program or project

"designed to explore or develop new or unproven teaching methods or techniques."

Section 9. A letter shall be sent to parents of students under 18 years of age and to students 18 years of age or older informing them of their rights pursuant to the "Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974." See Exhibit 5500-E.1.

Adoption date: January 1, 1993
Reviewed on:    February 10, 2004