2.4 STUDENT RECORD FILES
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The University of Illinois Laboratory High School will maintain two sets of school records for each student: a permanent record and a temporary record. The permanent record includes:
• Basic identifying information, including student’s and parent’s names and addresses, birth date and place, and gender
• Academic transcripts, including grades, graduation date, grade level achieved and scores on college entrance exams
• Attendance records
Permanent records are maintained for not less than 60 years after the student has transferred, graduated or otherwise permanently withdrawn from the school.
The temporary record may include:
• Family background
• Accident and health reports
• Information pertaining to release of this record
• Honors and awards
• School-sponsored activities and athletics
• Intelligence and aptitude scores
• Psychological reports
• Achievement test results (may include elementary and secondary level test results)
• Participation in extracurricular activities
• Honors and awards
• Teacher anecdotal records
• Disciplinary information
• Special education files
• Verified reports or information from non-educational persons, agencies, or organizations
• Verified information of clear relevance to the student’s education
• Information pertaining to release of this record
Temporary records are maintained for at least 5 years after the student has transferred, graduated or otherwise permanently withdrawn from the school. Information in the temporary record will indicate authorship and date. Temporary records that may be of assistance to a student with disabilities who graduates or permanently withdraws, may, after 5 years, be transferred to the parent(s)/guardians(s) or to the student, if the student has succeeded to the rights of the parent(s)/guardian(s).
The Building Principal is responsible for the maintenance, retention, or destruction of a student’s permanent or temporary records. Student records shall be reviewed at least every 4 years, or upon a student’s change in attendance centers, whichever occurs first, to verify entries and correct inaccurate information.
University High School may not require students or their parent(s)/guardian(s) to provide social security numbers for identification purposes. Absent a court order or subpoena, school officials do not provide educational records to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. However, the school will comply with an ex parte court order requiring it to permit the US Attorney General or designee to have access to a student’s school records without notice to or the consent of the student’s parent(s)/guardian(s).
School student records are confidential and information from them shall not be released other than as provided by law. Allowing students to grade each other’s papers does not violate FERPA; such student work is not a “school record” until it is recorded by the teacher. Owasso ISD No I-0II v Falvo, 122 S. Ct. 934 (2002). A photography of an unnamed student is not a school record because the student is not individually identified. The school shall obtain the consent of a student’s parents/guardians before publishing a photograph or videotape of the student in which the student is identified. Disclosure is permitted without consent to school officials with legitimate educational or administrative interests. A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional or administrative responsibility. A school official is a person employed by the school as an administrator, supervisor, instructor, or support staff member (including health or medical staff and law enforcement unit personnel); a person or company with whom the school has contracted to perform a special task (such as an attorney, auditor, medical consultant, or therapist); or a parent/guardian or student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks. A record showing those persons who have accessed the student record shall be kept on the inside of the students file. It will include: name of person, date, purpose for accessing the file, signature of the file clerk. A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibility.
The Student Records Act provides that student records and information may be released and disclosed to a parent or to any party designated as a representative by a parent. A divorce or a change in custody alone does not change the right of every parent to receive a copy of the child’s school records. The only basis sufficient to deny records to a parent is a court order that specifically states that the parent may not receive the records. This might be done in an order of protection, a divorce decree, a child custody agreement, or a separation agreement. Only an order signed by a judge and specifically stating that particular parent may not have records is sufficient to deny a parent access to records.
State and federal laws grant students and parent(s)/guardian(s) certain rights, including the right to inspect, copy and challenge their child’s school records. The information contained in school student records shall be kept current, accurate, clear and relevant. All information maintained concerning a student receiving special education services shall be directly related to the provision of services to that child. The school may release directory information as permitted by law, but parent(s)/guardian(s) shall have the right to object to the release of information regarding their child.
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Illinois Student Records Act afford parent(s)/guardian(s) and eligible students over 18 years of age certain rights with respect to the student’s educational records: When the student reachers 18 years of age, graduates from high school, marries, or enters military service, all rights and privileges accorded to the parent(s)/guardian(s) becomes exclusively those of the student.
1. The right to inspect and copy the student’s educational records within 15 school days of the day the school receives a request for access. University High School may charge $ .35 per page for copying information in a student’s record. No parent/guardian or student shall be precluded from copying information because of financial hardship. These rights of inspection are denied to any person against who an order of protection has been entered concerning a student
Parent(s)/guardian(s) or eligible student(s) should submit to the Assistant Director a written request that identifies the record(s) they wish to inspect. The Assistant Director will make arrangements for access and notify the parent(s)/guardian(s) or eligible student of the time and place where the records may be inspected. The rights contained in this section are denied to any person against whom an order of protection has been entered concerning a student [105 ILCS 5/10-22.3c, 105 ILCS 10/5a, and 750 ILCS 60/214(b)(15)].
2. The right to request the amendment of the student’s education records that the parent(s)/guardian(s) or eligible student believes are inaccurate, misleading, irrelevant, or improper.
A parent(s)/guardian(s) or eligible student has the right to challenge any entry in a student’s school records except for academic grades. If the challenge is made at the time the student’s school records are being forwarded to another school to which the student is transferring, then parents shall not have the right to challenge references in those records to expulsions or out-of-school suspensions. Challenges to any other entry in the school student records can be made on the basis of: 1) accuracy; 2) relevance; or 3) propriety.
Parents(s)/guardian(s) or eligible students wishing to challenge an entry should submit to the Assistant Director a written request that identifies the part of the record they want changed and specify the reason. The Assistant Director will review the request and meet with the parent(s)/guardian(s) and/or eligible student within 15 school days of receipt of the request. The written decision of the Assistant Director will be transmitted to the parent(s)/guardian(s) or eligible student no later than 10 days after the conclusion of the meeting. The Assistant Director’s decision shall be one of the following:
• To retain the challenged contents of the student record;
• To remove the challenged contents of the student record;
• To change, clarify or add to the challenged contents of the student record.
The parent(s)/guardian(s) or eligible student may appeal the decision of the Assistant Director in writing to the Provost’s office within 20 school days after such a decision is transmitted.
The parent(s)/guardian(s) or eligible student may appeal the decision of the Provost’s office to the Regional Superintendent within 20 school days after such a decision is transmitted.
3. The right to a copy of any school student record proposed to be destroyed or deleted.
4. The right to prohibit the release of directory information concerning the parents’/guardians’ child.
The school may disclose “Directory Information” to the public unless a student specifically requests otherwise on the “Pupil Information Form” enclosed in the registration package, that some or all of the information not be released. Directory information includes:
• Name
• Address and phone number
• E-mail address
• Gender
• Grade level
• Birth date and place
• Parents’/guardians’ names, addresses, and phone numbers
• Locker number
• Academic awards, degrees, and honors
• Information related to school-sponsored activities, organizations, and athletics
• Major field of study
• Period of attendance in school
No other information in the student’s educational records will be released to the public without the student’s written authorization to do so, unless the student has previously waived his or her right to access and release the information.
Any parent/guardian or eligible student may prohibit the release of any or all of the above information by delivering a written objection to the Assistant Director when registering.
5. The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by the school to comply with the requirements of FERPA.
Family Policy Compliance OfficE
U.S. Department of
Education
400
Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20202-4605
n Release of Student Name — A recent law requires University High School and all schools to release the names, addresses and phone numbers of the senior students to requesting military units. If you do NOT want the name of your child released, you must notify University High School in writing, using the form available at registration, to withhold this information from any military unit.