The U.S. Department of Education closely monitors universities to determine whether an institution is providing Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) training for its employees with access to student records. Accrediting agencies also want reassurance that institutions are fulfilling this expectation. With a rise in complaints filed with the Department of Education regarding unauthorized disclosure of student information in recent years, Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED) has proactively decided to implement a systematic university-wide online training program to avoid potential unauthorized disclosures of student information.
All faculty and staff who have or who will have access to student records, either electronic or hardcopy, are required to complete a brief (30-45 minute) FERPA Compliance Training program inclusive of a knowledge test that must be completed with a minimum score of 70%. The need for other clinical/experiential faculty and/or support staff to engage in FERPA training will be assessed on an individual basis dependent on student data need.
Access to confidential student records in Banner, ARGOS, and/or any other software utilized by the university (e.g., Vovici, OASIS, AIMS, etc.) will be contingent upon completing this brief training and test. The deadline for completing FERPA training is June 8, which represents the close of the spring 2018 semester. All new hires who will have access to student record data will complete FERPA training as part of the initial employment process. Faculty and staff will renew FERPA training every two years.
The FERPA on-line training materials and test for all non-clinical/experiential teaching faculty and staff is expected to be available via the NEOMED Success Center starting Monday, April 23. An email will be forthcoming in the next several days prompting you to complete the training.
The Office of Enrollment Services has also posted FERPA Q&A’s for Staff and Faculty on their website for use as a FERPA information supplement and reminder tool.
For further information regarding FERPA Compliance Training, please contact the Registrar via email: Registrar@neomed.edu.