FERPA
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
By an act of Congress, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) protects the privacy of the student's educational record. In order to be in compliance with FERPA, we require the student's Confirmation Number before releasing any personally identifiable or educational information to the student, counselors, or parents. High school students: By supplying your high school's ACT code, you give BYU Independent Study permission to inform your high school of your activity and grades in the course[s].
When the student turns 18 years old, or enters a post-secondary institution at any age, the rights under FERPA transfer from the parents to the student. If the student is enrolled in BYU Independent Study's non university-level courses and is 18 years old or older or is enrolled in BYU Independent Study’s University courses, regardless of age, we cannot release educational records to anyone other than the student. Parents, spouses, siblings, or friends do not have access to the student’s educational records unless the student provides signed permission granting a specified person rights to access his or her records. However, if the parent can provide proof that the student was claimed as a dependent in the previous income tax year, the parent may have access to the student’s educational records.
If the student was claimed as a dependent in the previous income tax year, proof may be attached to the form that is returned. Proof of Tax Dependency must be provided each time information is requested from the student's educational records.