FERPA is an acronym for the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g, 34 CFR 99). Congress enacted FERPA, also referred to as the “Buckley Amendment,” in 1974. FERPA mandates that schools, including colleges and universities, maintain students’ records in a certain way. Students must be allowed to inspect and review their education records and request the amendment of records that are inaccurate or misleading. Schools are also restricted from disclosing student records except in limited circumstances which will be described later in this tutorial.

Parents/Spouses and FERPA

• When a student reaches the age of 18 or begins attending a postsecondary institution regardless of age, FERPA rights transfer from the parent to the student
• Parents/spouses may obtain directory information at the discretion of the institution
• Parents may obtain non-directory information (grades, GPA, etc.) if
  • The student is a dependent for federal income tax purposes
  • The disclosure is in connection with a health/safety emergency and knowledge of the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals
  • The student has violated any federal, state or local law, or rule or policy of the institution, governing the use or possession of alcohol or a controlled substance, if the institution determines that the student has committed a disciplinary violation regarding that use or possession and the student is under 21 at the time of disclosure
• The spouse of a student has no rights under FERPA to access the student’s education record without the student’s written consent

Parental Options and Access

One of the most common parental requests is to access financial information including tuition and tax forms. The trivial solution is to obtain the login information directly from your student. However, the other option is to have your student add you as an Authorized User to their account. They can do this by logging into iRoar (iroar.clemson.edu) and navigating to Student Billing | My Bill. From there, they can click the Authorized Users link in the top menu. By adding your email address they can allow you to view billing statements, 1098-T tax statements, and payment history.

 

If you have more questions, email ITHELP@clemson.edu or call 864-656-3494.