FERPA cited in name refusal
UM system refused to give the names of 12 applicants.
Published April 27, 2007
Six candidates remain for the student representative to the UM system Board of Curators, and the Intercampus Student Council has not decided whether it will release the names of the three finalists it will send to the governor.
In response to an open-records request sent by The Maneater on April 17, UM system Custodian of Records David Russell stated in an e-mail that the names would not be released because the Federal Education Rights to Privacy Act prohibits information about students from being released.
But the FERPA act states that "directory" information, including names, addresses and phone numbers can be released.
"Information contained within the student applications is protected from disclosure by the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, and so I must respectfully decline this portion of your request," Russell stated in the e-mail dated April 20.
As requested, Russell did release copies of e-mail correspondence between members of the Intercampus Student Council that related to the search for the student representative, but the names of students were blacked out.
On Thursday, Russell said student directory information could be released under FERPA, but information that specifically identifies individual students' activities could not be released.
"In your request, when you're asking for nomination packets, almost everything in there would have the potential of giving away the students identity," Russell said. "If a student is interested in a position in an organization at the university, that information is protected from disclosure."
Mark Goodman, the executive director of the Student Press Law Center, said according to FERPA, schools could release student honors and awards.
"Otherwise, it would be a FERPA violation if a school were to publish the names of football players or player statistics," he said. "Clearly information about students can be released."
Goodman said the only way a student's directory information can be withheld is if the student or the student's parents request the information not be released.
ISC, which is comprised of the student body presidents and vice presidents from each of the UM system campuses; the chairperson of the Associated Students of the University of Missouri; and the student representative to the Board of Curators, is in the process of wading through applications for the next student representative.
The next representative will come from MU, and 12 MU students submitted applications for the position. The council is in the process of selecting three applicants to submit to Gov. Matt Blunt, who will then make the final appointment. The council refused to release names of the applicants.
ISC Chairman Nicholas Koechig said Russell told the council not to release the names because of FERPA. Koechig said ISC has not decided whether to release the names of the three nominees that will be submitted to Blunt.
ISC will meet with six semi-finalist applicants on Sunday for final interviews, Koechig said. The group will then decide whether to release the nominees' names or just send them to the governor.
Goodman said he's seen many instances in which universities attempt to cite FERPA to withhold information from the media.
"This is obviously a very important position of authority," he said. "The idea that the university could deny all public access to those being considered for this position by relying on FERPA is very troubling. Schools have realized that FERPA is a good catchall when they don't want to give out information. It's an excuse they can try to use."
Goodman said because FERPA was vaguely written, confusion surrounds what can be released.
"It was vaguely written in part based on the confusion between the authority federal law has to release records maintained by a state industry," Goodman said. "Because of the confusion, universities try to get away with more than is protected. In the vast cases where universities have been taken to court for citing information protected under FERPA, they've lost."
Russell said FERPA protects students' privacy.
"It's my job to protect student identities and personal details that people might be trying to get at," Russell said. "It's even more important in this day of great sensitivity to protect the personal privacy of individuals on college campuses."
