Student education records are confidential documents protected by a privacy protection law known as the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Educational records, as defined by FERPA, include all records that schools or education agencies maintain about students.
The Nebraska State College System (NSCS) has established a comprehensive written policy regarding a student’s rights to review education records, seek to amend those records, and to limit disclosure of information from records consistent with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). The following information summarizes the rights and protection under this policy:
- A student has the right to inspect, review, and challenge information contained in his/her educational records. "Educational Records" include transcripts, credentials, files, documents and other information directly related to academic or professional performance that are maintained by various school officials of Wayne State.
- A student does NOT have access to records maintained by a psychiatrist, psychologist, or professional counselor in connection with treatment. These records may, however, be reviewed by a physician or other appropriate professional of the student’s choosing.
- A student may not have access to financial declarations or records that parents file in connection with financial aid applications, confidential letters, and statements of recommendation placed in the educational records before Jan. 1, 1975, counseling or psychiatric referral information, or to any record which the student has waived the right to access (for example, a "closed" placement file).
View NSCS Policy 3650 for more information
Disclosure of information
No one outside the institution shall have access to nor will the institution disclose any information from a student’s educational records without the written consent of the student, except authorized personnel within the institution in which the student seeks to enroll, persons or organizations providing student financial aid, accrediting agencies carrying out their accreditation function, law enforcement agencies of Nebraska where such student is under investigation by such agencies and the agency shows that such data is necessary for the investigation, persons in compliance with a judicial order, and to persons in an emergency order to protect the health or safety of students or other persons.
If you wish to authorize the Student Financial Services office to release and discuss your student account information with anyone other than yourself, you will need to grant Parent/Guest Access by selecting the Parent/Guest Access button in the ‘My Links’ section on the Profile tab in WildcatsOnline.
Note: This may include, but is not limited to your parents, legal guardians, and/or any third-party making payments on your behalf.
Directory information
FERPA protects a student's right to privacy. The law does allow the College to share, without written permission of the student, "directory information," unless the student has indicated that he/she desires this information be restricted from release without consent.
WSC defines the following student information as public directory information:
- student name
- college or permanent address
- college email address
- phone number
- year in college
- program of study
- degrees, honors, and awards received
- enrollment status (e.g., undergraduate or graduate, full-time or part-time)
- dates of attendance (only beginning and end dates of semesters)
- date of graduation
- most recent previous educational agency or institution attended
- participation in officially recognized activities and sports
- weight, height, and photographs of athletic team members
Students have the right to prevent directory information from being released by enacting a FERPA hold through WildcatsOnline. Directory information will remain restricted until a student changes their restriction status through WildcatsOnline.
Please note that a FERPA hold restricts announcements of honors and awards, including the Dean’s List and commencement program, along with the ability for employers to verify student degree information.
Disciplinary records
Records of student disciplinary proceedings are maintained separately from academic records. Information from these records will not be made available to unauthorized persons within the College or to any person outside the College without the expressed written consent of the student involved (or the parents of dependent students) except as allowed by FERPA, under legal compulsion, or where the safety of others is involved.
Note: Records with names deleted and kept confidential will be made available for governmental or College-approved research.