Professor,
On page 14 of the AACRAO 2012 FERPA Guide, it states:
"A student cannot use the right to opt out of directory information to remain anonymous in the classroom, either in person or in a distance education classroom."
So I have a situation on my campus and I’m wondering if the above would apply to it. A student enrolls in a course and is listed on Blackboard for that class under Professor X. However, Professor X teaches another section of that course also and now wants, for simplicity’s sake, to combine the two different classes on Blackboard. In such a case, one class would be able to see the roll for both their own section and the other class section. Is this covered under the above FERPA statement?
Respectfully,
Quint S. Henshell
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Quint,
The language concerns the student who has opted out of disclosures under the "directory information" exception to signed consent. This permits the institution to identify that student in the class that the student is attending, but an institution could not use this limitation on the student to then permit the disclosure of the attendance information to another class.
I hope this is helpful in responding to your inquiry.
The FERPA Professor
Join the Professor (LeRoy Rooker) for the session "FERPA & Reverse Transfer: The Last Word" and the preconference workshop "Registrar 101 & FERPA" at the AACRAO Technology and Transfer Conference, July 10-12, 2016, in Anaheim, California. Discover more here.