What is the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA)?
ยท The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974 was originally intended to protect the confidentiality of student grades and records. Exceptions for release of records can be made “in connection with an emergency, [to] appropriate persons if the knowledge of such information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or others.” However, an unintended consequence of this law is that it creates a communication barrier where schools withhold information from parents. A further consequence is that school personnel, administrators, and teachers who have little or no training in mental health/mental illness are burdened with defining and determining if a student is at risk.
