By Angela Wallace
As sophomore Jennie Lund shuffles through a pile of chemistry homework and quizzes left by professors in wooden boxes, she glances occasionally at the grades written at the top of each paper.
It doesn?t bother her to see her classmates? scores, or to have others see her scores, she says.
?Other classes have file folders that you can look through at the beginning or end of class, but this is easier way to pick up papers,? she said. ?It doesn?t bug me, but it?s just a practicality.?
But practicality may be a violation if the students did not sign a release allowing their professor to return papers in a wooden box system.
?There is always that option for privacy to return papers and pickup papers in the professor?s office,? she says.
That privacy option falls under the federal law known as FERPA, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.
Lund, a chemical engineering student, is among thousands of students who encounter privacy issues, but few know what the acronym FERPA is or what it does for them.
Congress passed FERPA in 1974 to give students certain rights over their records while they attend postsecondary schools. While faculty can be given access to students? records like grades, family members cannot be given access without the consent of the student.
?FERPA is a protection for students? academic records,? said Carrie Jenkins, university spokesperson. ?They are very helpful guidelines and set a standard of law for us. It does limit us when people call, like the media, for information on a student, particularly the Honor Code. We have to be careful following FERPA.?
Ages and grades are part of educational records; however, Jenkins said the school can confirm if a student is enrolled because its public information.
Although FERPA has been around for over 30 years, it is still widely unknown.
?I don?t know what that [FERPA] is,? said Jeff Bullock, a senior from Houston majoring in biology. ?I?ve known kids that have accessed information for personal use. I feel like it?s a violation of privacy. Information is money. Companies get their information to make money and then turn around and sell it.?
Despite its unfamiliarity, university officials have tried to promote awareness about this issue that affects both faculty and students. Compliant with FERPA laws, officials inform students about federal privacy rights in a number of ways. In fact, BYU officials have sent a FERPA training DVD to department chairs across campus, hoping BYU faculty will watch and learn about the privacy law?s requirements.
One of the most common violations of FERPA happens when professors leave graded papers in folders or lying outside their office door. Because grades are considered confidential information, FERPA laws prohibit this practice despite the convenience.
?We send an e-mail to students annually about FERPA and post it on our catalog and class schedules,? said Jearlene Leishman, assistant registrar in BYU?s Registrar?s Office. ?We felt that because everything?s going electronic these days, we need to be proactive in sending e-mails. Some students write back and are confused about just the e-mail we send, and we direct them to resources and our Web site about FERPA.?
Perhaps students remember getting an e-mail at the beginning of fall semester regarding this law, which places the safety and accessibility of educational records in the student?s power.
Roadblocks protecting privacy
While some information remains public for directory purposes (such as addresses, majors and class standing), students can withdraw any items from directory information by either written notification or a visit to the Registrar?s Office with no fee required.
In fact, Leishman said about 200 students take control over their records in this way, but they do see some roadblocks.
?There are some hurdles they have to jump over later, especially when they?re interviewing for jobs,? Leishman said. ?When students are nervous about giving us information and want to keep things confidential, we have to tell employers that we don?t have any information on that individual. There can be negative consequences, so students must understand even though they may be nervous.?
On the other hand, most students easily volunteer such information on Route Y.
?I like people getting a hold of me,? Bullock said. ?I don?t mind having my address and phone number, but the more personal information is too much, like class standing.?
While educators and parents have free reign over students? records in primary and secondary schools, FERPA laws offer more protection to university students. In addition, although BYU is a private university, it shares the same privacy laws including FERPA as public universities do, Jenkins said.
While violations periodically occur at BYU, problems with educational records are a problem on college campuses all over the nation.
?I think across the board it?s a problem at universities,? Leishman said. ?These violations and complaints aren?t unusual.?
In fact, after some investigation by advanced reporting students, possible violations were found in the JKHB and HFAC including graded papers in accessible folders outside of professor offices. Although university officials don?t proactively audit and act as a FERPA police on campus, they take action against issues and increase awareness to maintain FERPA compliancy.
?We don?t do audits or anything, but we do investigate violations that aren?t FERPA compliant,? Leishman said. ?If there are people who are not doing things right, we are happy to address them and send another memo.?
PRACTICALITY, PRIVACY DUKE IT OUT IN BENSON BUILDING”S WOODEN BOXES
Concerns on campus with Benson Building boxes
One common concern raised with FERPA issues comes from the open, wooden boxes in the Benson Building where students pick up and turn in homework, quizzes and test to their chemistry professors
Although on the surface this practice may look sketchy, chemistry professors? practice complies with FERPA laws.
?In one class, we use these boxes, but we sign a release for permission to give our homework back in these boxes,? said Jennie Lund, a sophomore from San Diego, majoring in chemical engineering. ?We also use the last four digits of our student ID to post grades, and the boxes are in alphabetical order of our names? I would feel better if my name and code were not on the same sheet of paper.?
After two years of using these boxes in the chemistry department, Lund also said she?s pretty used to it and has learned to deal with this system.
?This is my fourth semester here in the chemistry department, so it?s an everyday thing,? Lund said. ?It doesn?t bug me, but it?s just a practicality. Other classes have file folders that you can look through at the beginning or end of class, but this is easier way to pick up papers. There is always that option for privacy to return papers and pickup papers in the professor?s office.?
While some students may oppose the option of signing a release before using this system, others could care less about any privacy issues. In fact, Christopher Smith, a freshman exercise science major from South Jordan, said it is an incentive for students to perform well in these classes.
?It doesn?t bother me at all,? Smith said. ?It?s my first semester here, and I think it?s better motivation to get good grades. I haven?t heard much [complaints] from anybody. The grades are posted on our tests, exams, homework and quizzes. We can sign a paper to do this. I think everyone did, but I only know five or six people.?
Although students deal mostly their educational records, faculty can also help ensure the safety and privacy of their students. Perhaps both faculty and students alike can combine to better promote FERPA compliance on campus and increase the amount of awareness about privacy policies.
?I think there?s a lot of ignorance,? Leishman said. ?We send memos to our faculty, but they may be our biggest violators. We try to inform them and train new employees as well. I think students should help faculty by being aware of what faculty are doing with their records. They can say, ?I?m not comfortable with this,? so that they can realize it is a violation of FERPA. To be legal is the minimal standard, but the next step is best practice.?
