Amanda Haddock

A 2009 amendment clarified that a student cannot be “anonymous” in class, even in a distance learning environment. Therefore, although personally identifiable information related to the student’s progress cannot be disclosed, it is appropriate that contact information be shared for participation in online discussions.

FERPA does not apply to students upon graduation and therefore, the institution would be allowed to release the resume to prospective employers without the FERPA documentation requirements. However, an institution may choose to document such sharing to demonstrate efforts to support graduates with career assistance.

I learned that each institution may have specific considerations when developing policies and procedures related to FERPA and privacy in general. The delivery method (online, classroom), programs of study (medical, legal), additional requirements (labs, externships), student population (dependent, independent) and other factors may come into play.

Found it very interesting that if a student or eligible parent wishes to contest information within an educational record, the institution must consider the request and respond within a reasonable time period indicating if the record will be amended or not.

Factors such as the severity of the incident, the frequency of the incident, the number of victims, the past conduct of the perpetrator, and other factors that are relevant to effectively remedying a hostile environment should be considered in determining the severity of the sanction.

Credibility should be evaluated as objectively as possible and based on a variety of factors including, but not limited to, the person’s demeanor, motivation for or interest in the situation, level of detail provided or not provided, corroboration or contradiction of details through other witnesses or through physical evidence, inconsistency or consistency of past and current statements, and other factors.

When interacting with victims, the Title IX Coordinator must be sensitive not to discourage reporting to either the institution or police; have a basic understanding of the psychology of trauma resulting from sexual violence; and actively assist in preventing any retaliation against students or employees who report an alleged act of sexual harassment or who are involved in a disciplinary proceeding.

All prevention programming, whether primary or ongoing, must include training on all of the institution’s policies and procedures for reporting and responding to VAWA crimes, and all of the required components of an institution’s disciplinary proceedings

The instructor does not have to create every rubric for every course. Students can also be involved in creating assessment rubrics. Bringing students into the assessment process can enhance student motivation, interest, and performance. 

A rubric should be fair to all students independent of racial, cultural, gender, or other biases. A good rubric is reliable if two raters using the rubric to rate the same work assign similar scores; in other words, raters should be in agreement. A rubric is reliable also if the rating actually represents what students can do.