Why Is Ferpa Important

Earning an education could cost you for your entire life, especially if you do not apply for the various types of financial aid. After earning their degree, several students do not earn enough money with the field they have chosen to pay off their debt, making the degree seem pointless. Families that pay for their children’s tuition often wonder, like Linda Lee, if their child is getting what they pay for. Parents pay for the tuition because they do not want their children to miss out on the “college experience.” However, when their child fails to make the right decisions or simply acts their age, it leaves the family wondering if they have made a

In the article “College Kids Have Too Much Privacy,” Michele Willins explains how FERPA, a program that means parents have no right to know how their children are doing in school, is not only hurting college students’ future but also how frightening it can be to oblivious parents who have no idea about this privacy policy. Even the best students can be academically challenged when they go to college. Parents would have no idea that their child is struggling because he or she has succeeded in school thus far. Even if college students are not the best in a school setting, the parents would have no idea if he or she is failing out of classes because officials are not allowed to let the parents know. This marks a major flaw in the FERPA organization.

Privacy was once taken for granted in public education, but now through the 1974 law, Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act it is pushed to the forefront of the minds of every educator in the United States (Cossler, 2010). This law has paved the way for many lawsuits regarding privacy of student’s records, which have left teachers scared, undereducated and unaware of certain regulations of the law. FERPA laws provide protections for students, but also allow access of all student records to the student’s custodial parents, which in some situations has cause problems and in some cases have specifically brought clarifications of the law. Has the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act provided the much needed privacy for students

The second discrepancy with Fleming’s article is the role that schools, especially universities, should play in protecting students’ privacy online. The fact that Fleming lists multiple examples of minors being hurt by poor social networking decisions has nothing to do with the topic suggested in her title “Youthful Indiscretions: Should Colleges Protect Social Network Users from Themselves and Others?” This is a red herring fallacy that appeals to the reader’s emotions yet has nothing to do with the writer’s original topic. Protecting minors online is a separate issue in itself in which parents and likely schools should be involved. On the contrary, for college students, the FERPA policies under which Fleming says a university employee must adhere to are meant to protect

Coming from a 2013 study, published in Anxiety, Coping and Stress stated, “Those with greater financial strain perceived more stress, had more symptoms of depression, anxiety, and ill health.” There are many existing highly stressful situations that cause college students to drop out. Students that depend on themselves, with no help from their families are more likely to drop out due to financial issues. A survey conducted by Public Agenda reported by New York Times reveals that students who are receiving financial help from their families have sixty three percent graduation rate, exceeding the forty two percent of those who graduate and pay for college on their own. This proves

$10,510, that’s how much less a high school dropout earns annually than an individual with a high school diploma according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. A dropout is less likely to be employed, more likely to be incarcerated and more likely to live in poverty. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, due to incarceration, less paid in taxes and other factors a high school dropout costs taxpayers $292,000 over their lifetime. The financial costs alone should be enough to find ways to increase graduation rates. Research has shown early predictors of dropout are parental education level and early low literacy in the child. Families from one generation to another have a difficult time escaping poverty and families from one generation to another have difficulty improving literacy

FERPA is an act which regulates the student information and gives the access only to the authorized students. For maintaining such regulations there are policies and procedures which help to govern the act. The following are the policies and procedures,

The need for this program is crucial, Patricia Gandara explains in her article, Special Topic/The Latino Education Crisis, that the Hispanic population is the fastest growing minority in the United States and educational youth population but are the most poorly educated of all the main racial groups in the United States. (Gandara, 2010). She also explains in her article that the US Census Bureau estimates that by the year 2021 one in four students in the United States will be of Hispanic descent. (Gandara, 2010). An article from the Pew Research Center written by Mark Lopez, explains

Of the four documents discussed, FERPA is one that is more of a personal preference rather than a necessity. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974 was designed to protect the privacy of educational records, establish the rights of students to inspect and review their educational records, and it also provides control over the release of educational record information.

“In a recent poll, up to 15 percent of parents don’t plan to contribute anything to their child’s education. And much more, some 27 percent, believe that students should cover most of the cost on their own.” This quote was from Molly Pennington, Rita Kirshstein, Carrie Hagen, Dawn Papandrea, Vielka Cecilia Hoy, and Kevin Brosnan’s article Paying for College When Your Parents Can’t or Won’t in 2015. There should be an option for these kids whose parents aren’t participating in the college expense so I interviewed Alexis Hurt, a financial assistance counselor at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, MO, on October 18, 2016, at 3:30 pm.

FERPA, also known as the Buckley Amendment, is the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Originally passed by Congress in 1974, this Act prohibits the improper disclosure of any personally identifiable information pertaining to education records. These records may include financial account details, class schedules, grades, or any personal information. FERPA grants the parents of a student under the age of 18, or the eligible student over the age of 18, or those who are attending a post-secondary school, the right to access, amend, or disclose education records. For a school to disclose any information pertaining to a student’s education record, the eligible student must provide written consent. However, there are some exceptions to this

Children's Privacy Act of 1998. (n.d.). Retrieved January 17, 2012, from Federal Trade Commision: http://www.ftc.gov/ogc/coppa1.htm

One downside would be that some kids just won’t listen to the app if they get it. A notification to tell them to “rethink what they just said” won’t do enough for them. Personal assistance and guidance is what some people need to control themselves on social media and in the real world. ReThink is just an app, and apps eventually get deleted, that is a big downside because some people run out of storage on their phone and they manage it by deleting unwanted apps and photos. At some point in downloading the app, the bombardment of notifications will make the user mad and they will eventually delete it. In conclusion, there are pros and cons to getting the ReThink app and everyone should get it to reflect on what they’re

1. More and more students have to pay for college on their own, or with little assistance from their parents. Learning how to live on one’s own and today’s complicated financial world is stressful, and it’s no wonder that some students would rather drop out and get a job rather than continue studing.

Many people drop out because they struggle to pay for their education. Erin Shankie wrote in her article, “At the forefront of reasons for college dropout is the cost—and not just the cost of tuition, but the costs of books, materials, transportation, and housing” (Shankie). Students drop out because it’s tough try to focus on school and pass classes when you have to worry about how to get to school, what are they going to eat for dinner, and trying to find a way to pay for living