Introduction: The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (also known as the “Buckley Amendment”) is a federal law regarding the privacy of student records and obligations of the institution, primarily in the areas of release of the records and the access provided to these records. Any educational institution that receives funds under any program administered by the U.S. Secretary of Education is bound by FERPA requirements.
Under federal law, students have the right to obtain access to their education records and to prevent disclosure of records to third parties without authorization. In accordance with FERPA, Lafayette College will permit students to have access to specified records and will prevent release of records to third parties without personal authorization from the student except as noted in the regulations.
Policy on Student Records: Lafayette College seeks to teach students to become mature, reasoned, educated adults capable of defining and realizing their academic and personal developmental goals. To that end, the College practice is to regard students as the primary contact for interaction regarding information contained in student education records and to respect the confidentiality of that information. The College encourages students to act responsibly by communicating directly with their parents.
Under federal law, if College personnel determine that it is in the best interest of the student to disclose to a student’s parent(s) information from that student’s education record, the College may elect to do so after receiving proof of the student’s financial dependency on their parent(s) for federal income tax purposes. In these rare cases, the College practice is to communicate first, when possible, with the student regarding a parental request for information.
Students who are not dependent on their parent(s) for federal income tax purposes, and students who are dependent but wish to provide their parent(s) general access to their education record, may allow College personnel to share education record information with their parent(s) by signing a waiver. Waivers can be found on the registrar’s website or picked up in the Offices of the Registrar or the Office of Advising and Co-curricular Programs.
Students also may elect to have information from their education record shared with graduate schools, potential employers, or other third parties by signing a release that can be found on the registrar’s website or picked up in the Office of the Registrar or the Office of Advising and Co-curricular Programs.
Annual Notification: FERPA requires that the College provide notification annually to students of their rights under FERPA. The College provides this notification each semester through its publication of the course schedule that is distributed to all students. The annual notification includes the rights outlined below:
FERPA affords students certain rights with respect to their education records. These rights include:
U.S. Department of Education
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Definition of Education Records: Under FERPA, education records are defined as records that are directly related to a student and are maintained by an education agency or institution or by a party acting for the agency or institution. Education records can exist in any medium, including: typed, computer generated, videotape, audiotape, film, microfiche, and email, among others.
Education records do not include such things as sole possession records or notes, information obtained through personal knowledge that is not recorded, law enforcement records, employment records (when the student is also an employee), medical treatment records, or alumni records.
At Lafayette, the individuals or offices responsible for maintaining education records include the following:
Obtaining Access to Your Education Record: Students who wish to obtain access to their student record should submit to the registrar, dean, or other appropriate official a written request that identifies the record the student wishes to inspect. Within a reasonable amount of time, but no later than 45 days, the College official will make arrangements for access and notify the student of the time and place where the records may be inspected.
Students may not see letters of reference or recommendations for which they have waived their rights of review.
Students’ Rights to Amend Records: A student who wishes to ask the College to amend a record should write the College official responsible for the record, clearly identify the portion of the record that the student would like changed, and specify why it should be changed. If the College decides not to amend the record as requested, the College will notify the student in writing of the decision and the student’s right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to the student when notified of the right to a hearing.
It is appropriate to seek amendment of information that is inaccurate or misleading. This is not a grade grievance mechanism. For example, a student could question whether a grade has been entered incorrectly, but not the legitimacy of the grade itself.
Disclosure of Educational Records to School Officials: The College discloses information from the education records without a student’s prior written consent under the FERPA exception for disclosure to school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school official is a person employed by the College in an administrative, supervisory, academic or research, or support staff position (including law enforcement unit personnel and health staff); a person or company with whom the College has contracted as its agent to provide a service instead of using College employees or officials (such as an attorney, auditor, or collection agent); a person serving on the Board of Trustees; or a student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another school official in performing their tasks.
A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill their professional responsibilities for the College.
Upon request, the College also discloses education records without consent to officials of another school in which a student seeks or intends to enroll.
Disclosure of Directory Information: FERPA specifically identifies certain information called “directory information” that may be disclosed by the College without the consent of the student. Lafayette College considers the following to be directory information: Student’s name, College and home address and phone numbers, P.O. box number, email address, date of birth, photograph, dates of attendance, class year, degree program and major, adviser’s name, degrees and awards received, participation in College activities, and the weight and height of members of athletic teams.
Although this information is public in nature, students may request that their directory information be withheld and released only upon written authorization by completing the required form and submitting it annually to the Office of the Registrar.
Disclosure of Non-Directory Information: The College may, in specific instances and under strict limitations, release information from education records to individuals and/or agencies without the written consent of the students. Such persons are:
Parents of dependent students as defined in section 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
Lafayette also may release, without restriction, information that cannot be identified with particular students. An example of such data would be statistical information abstracted from education records. The College reserves the right not to provide copies of third-party documents.
The following guidelines encourage practices that will help you avoid plagiarism when working on writing projects. Many college assignments require that you draw on outside sources to build your argument, establish your credibility, and demonstrate your knowledge of the subject. Using these outside sources correctly requires careful attention to how you are appropriating them from the original source and how you are integrating them into your own work. The following tips will help you write plagiarism-free papers in which all of your sources are acknowledged.
Procrastination Can Lead to Plagiarism: Waiting until the last minute to write a document will increase the likelihood that you do not cite sources in an acceptable manner. It might also increase the temptation to lift material from others and claim it as your own in a last-ditch effort to finish the assignment. Avoiding procrastination is key to avoiding plagiarism. If you do not think you will finish an assignment by the due date, contact your professor. It is far better to be penalized on a single project than it is to engage in a last-minute act of academic dishonesty in hopes of completing an assignment, an act that could ultimately result in expulsion from Lafayette. Assistance and strategies to effectively deal with procrastination are available through the College Counseling Center as well as the Academic Tutoring and Training Information Center (ATTIC).
Take Meticulous Notes: As you read material to prepare for writing, take meticulous notes and record where the notes came from as you work. This will decrease the likelihood that you inadvertently use the ideas from something you have read and then forget to cite them. Careful note taking means recording full bibliographic information for the source and noting whether the copied material is quoted, paraphrased, or summarized. If you copy and paste material directly, it needs to be quoted, and you need to include all of the relevant bibliographic information.
Use the Appropriate Citation System: While many students learned the MLA citation style in high school English class (the citation system of the Modern Language Association), in college you will often be expected to use a different citation system depending on the discipline for which you are writing. For example, you may be expected to use APA style for a psychology course or Chicago style for a history course. Each citation system has its own guidelines for citing material. You will need to consult the appropriate style guide to learn the system, and they are available in the library.
Follow a Key Guideline to Avoid Plagiarism: Although citation systems differ, there is one principle to which all systems adhere: You must write in a way so that your reader always knows when she is reading your ideas and when she is reading the ideas of others that you have appropriated
to complete your paper.
For the most up to date information on motor vehicle and traffic regulations, please see the Public Safety Parking, Transportation and LCAT Shuttle Services website.
OFFICE OF RESIDENCE LIFE
TERMS OF CONTRACT FOR COLLEGE-OWNED OFF-CAMPUS RESIDENCES
As a residential college, Lafayette believes in the value of students living and learning together for all years of their enrollment. All students are required to live in College-owned or affiliated campus housing unless approved to reside in private off-campus housing or commute from their parent/guardian’s home.
Housing contracts for the current academic year can be found on the Office of Residence Life’s website, here.
The Student Government constitution, including bylaws, also can be found on studentgovernment.lafayette.edu.
Vendors wishing to solicit in Farinon College Center or in partnership with a student organization should contact the Office of Student Involvement. Vendors wishing to solicit in academic buildings, on campus grounds, or anywhere else on campus should contact the dean of students.
III. The dean of students or his representative maintains sole discretion of providing approval to vendors. The following criteria will serve in part as a basis for this decision:
The following guidelines for solicitation will be in effect for all registered vendors:
The above guidelines also apply to all non-College-related vendors with permits.
The following regulations govern the distribution of literature (including posting of fliers, advertisements, announcements and other signs) by members of the Lafayette community:
General Conditions for All Temporary Signage
Distribution of literature must not interfere with the educational mission or activities of Lafayette College or result in interference with the programs of the College.
The dean of students or representative may limit the time, place, or manner for distribution of literature and will work to ensure the protection of free speech.
All posters, advertisements, announcements and other signs must include the date of the program or a remove-by date. Postings without such a date will be removed immediately.
Signs may not advertise alcohol or illegal substances.
Postings must not obscure pre-existing postings.
All advertisements on campus must include identifying information of the sponsoring organization (i.e. logo, name, etc). Event advertisements must include date, time, and location of the event.
All advertisements should be removed within 24 hours of their expiration.
All off-campus, non-College job postings must be directed to the Office of Career Services.
Signs must be attached using materials that will not damage property and in concert with any building-specific policies (e.g., Farinon College Center or Residence Life posting policies).
All advertisements must comply with the College non-discrimination policy.
Postings (of any kind) are not permitted on:
Staff in Public Safety, Facilities, and Campus Life, as well as other officials of the College have authority to remove signs in violation of Lafayette posting procedures and to remove expired signs. On-going program flyers are permitted to remain on the bulletin boards until the program is completed or the end of an academic semester, whichever is first.
The form and content of publicity will not be restricted, unless the material is illegal or obscene in content, or does not adhere to College policies on protected speech. Improper postings may result in loss of posting privilege and/or responsibility for damages. The distribution of literature on College property by outside individuals or entities is prohibited unless advance permission is granted by the dean of students.
The stipulations above are not intended to prohibit the distribution of information by Lafayette College. Requests for permission to distribute literature on campus should be directed to the dean of students.
Farinon College Center Posting Policy
Requests for permission to distribute literature within Farinon College Center should be directed to the director of Student Involvement.
Within Farinon College Center: