Discussion List for campus-based and allied personnel working to end gender-based violence on campus.

["S. Daniel Carter" <>]

on 10/24/07 1:48 PM, 

 at 

 wrote:

> I agree that campus police could release to a second victim...I was arguing
> and still am that administrators would be bound by FERPA on doing the  same.

This is not necessarily so. The February 16, 2006 letter from the Family
Policy Compliance Office regarding Montgomery County Public Schools clearly
states that "information that is obtained through personal knowledge or
observation, and not from an education record, is not protected from
disclosure under FERPA." This remains the case "even if education records
exist which contain that information."

So, for example, if a Dean of Students has personally received verbal
reports from multiple victims that a particular student has sexually
assaulted them they possess "personal knowledge" of these accusations. Based
on the Montgomery County letter, as well as personal conversations with
LeRoy Rooker, it is my understanding that this Dean would be free to share
that information as they deemed necessary, including with each of the
victims, without implicating any FERPA rights so long as they rely upon
their own memory rather than a record of the report that personally
identifies the accused student (which may or may not even exist).

I also do not believe that administrators would necessarily be precluded
from sharing information from campus or local law enforcement records even
if they happen to have a confidential copy in their possession. If they
relied upon a copy maintained by their office then FERPA would be implicated
but if they viewed a copy at the local or campus police office or were
verbally briefed on it by the police they would have knowledge of that
information independent of the FERPA attached copy in the possession of
their office.

There are also a number of exceptions that might apply to information
gleaned from otherwise protected records. There is the previously discussed
health & safety exception. There is also the provision, 34 CFR Part
99.31(a)(14), that would permit public disclosure if the institution had
determined that the accused student had previously "committed a violation of
the institution's rules or policies" relative to an alleged crime of
violence - such as sexual assault. So if an accused student had previously
been disciplined for rape that fact would, under FERPA, be disclosable to a
later victim.

********************************
S. Daniel Carter
Senior Vice President
Security On Campus, Inc.
http://www.securityoncampus.org/
e-mail: