Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

What is FERPA?

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) is a US federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. Among other things, FERPA gives students certain rights with respect to their education records, including:

The right to inspect and review the student's education records within 45 days of the date the University receives a request for access.
The right to request the amendment of the student's education records that the student believes are inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the student's privacy rights under FERPA.
The right to consent to disclosures of personally identifiable information contained in the student's education records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent.
The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by the University to comply with the requirements of FERPA.

Sharing Information with Parents

Stanford is permitted to disclose information drawn from education records to parents if one or more parent claims the student as a dependent for federal tax purposes. Some laws, especially those relating to medical and mental health care, prohibit the disclosure of information without the student's consent, even where the student is a tax dependent.