The educational records of students are protected by the provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Annually, Beulah Heights University will inform students of these guidelines and of their rights under FERPA and the Department of Education's FERPA regulations, with which BHU is in full compliance, by placing a notice about them in the Student's Handbook, the university catalogue, and the University Web Site.
This act was designed to protect the privacy of educational records, to establish the right of students to inspect and review their educational records, and to provide guidelines for the correction of inaccurate or misleading data through informal and formal hearings. The policy and procedures used by Beulah Heights University for compliance with the provisions of the act are explained in detail on the university’s website at www.beulah.edu. Further information may be provided by the Office of the Registrar.
BHU complies with the student’s right to inspect and review the student’s education records within 45 days after the day Beulah Heights University receives a request for access. A written request that identifies the record(s) the student wishes to inspect must be submitted to the Office of the Registrar. Arrangements will be made for the viewing of such record. All records, once submitted to the university becomes official property of the university and will not be released with proper request.
Students requesting for other entities’ (such as parents or guardians, etc.) access to student record information must complete a signed authorization or release form detailing to whom consent is given, as well as the time period to be allotted. If no specified time period is given, consent will be honored by the institution for one academic year only. The consent form may be obtained through any administrative office of Beulah Heights University and must be submitted to the Office of the Registrar upon completion.
FERPA permits the public release of what is termed “directory information.” This information includes the following: the student’s name, all addresses (including email) and telephone number, photograph, date and place of birth, declared majors and minors, dates of attendance, class standing (freshman, sophomore, junior, senior, graduate), degrees and awards received, and the most recent previous educational agency or institution attended by the student. For Beulah Heights University’s purposes, a signed student authorization or release form is requested from all parties requesting student education records, with the exception of government agencies as it relates to federal funding, and disclosures related to some judicial orders or lawfully issued subpoenas.
A request for nondisclosure of the “directory information” must be filed with the Office of the Registrar and will be honored by the institution for only one academic year, whether or not the student is currently registered. Upon the death of a student, all privacy holds are removed.
After a student has observed BHU’s policy and procedures for reviewing, correcting or amending the record, he/she has the right to file a complaint with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act office concerning alleged failures by Beulah Heights University to comply with the act.