Your Privacy Rights: Questions and Answers
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What is the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)? | A federal law that protects your educational records and provides you with the following rights:
|
| What are educational records? | Any information or data recorded in any medium that is directly related to a student. |
| What are NOT educational records | Employee records (unless employment is contingent upon student status) Private notes Law enforcement records Physician, psychiatrist, psychologist records Alumni records (collected after student leaves) |
| What is "Directory Information?" | Student data which is considered to be public information and may be made available to those who request it. This category includes: name, mailing address, preferred phone number, email address, photograph, degrees and awards received, previous institution attended, dates of attendance, height and weight of athletes, participation in activities and sports. However, for the student's privacy and protection, Cal Poly only releases address and phone number to university related entities. |
| What is "Locator Information?" | Includes only: name, mailing address, preferred phone number, email address. Again, Cal Poly closely holds address for the student's privacy and protection. |
| Can I place a privacy restriction on "Directory Information" or "Locator Information?" | Yes, as a result:
|
| What is the difference between a "Directory" and "Locator" restriction"" | A "Directory Information" restriction blocks Cal Poly from verifying any data without your signature. A "Locator Information" restriction allows the University to verify your degree and dates of attendance without your signature. |
| What information is included in the on-line Directory and the ASI Student Directory? | If no privacy restriction exists, both directories include: name, email address and major. The ASI Student Directory also includes preferred phone number. |
| With my FERPA restriction set, can my information ever be shared without my consent? | Yes, FERPA includes these exceptions:
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| What is the default privacy restriction setting at Cal Poly? | The default is UNPROTECTED. No Directory Information is protected unless you set a restriction. |
| What happens after I leave Cal Poly? | If you have a privacy restriction on your record when you leave Cal Poly it will stay with your record into the future. IMPORTANT: A "Directory Information" restriction will block Cal Poly from verifying your attendance or degree to prospective employers without your signature. |
| How do I check or change my privacy restriction status? | Go to my.calpoly.edu ; Personal Info tab. |
| How do I request to review my education records? | Check out our FERPA Policy & procedure page |
* ~ PUBLIC INFORMATION
"Directory Information" may be disclosed by the university at its discretion. You have a choice of protecting all or part of this data. There are two categories that may be restricted: all "Directory Information" and "Locator Information."