The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974, commonly called the Buckley Amendment, is a federal law that protects the privacy of education records. FERPA prohibits a school from disclosing student education records, or personally identifiable information from education records, without a parent or eligible student’s consent. An education record includes any record that directly relates to a student that is created or maintained by a school.
Whether a student attends a high school and turns 18 or is under 18 years old during the attending academic year before graduation, the student’s parent(s) still retains the rights under FERPA. The high school student’s parent(s) may inspect and review any records held by the high school. The high school may disclose personally identifiable information from the student’s education records to the student’s parent(s) without the eligible student’s consent if the student is a dependent for tax purposes under the IRS rules.
In accordance with FERPA, disclosure of student information, including financial and academic, is restricted. In addition, releasing information other than “directory information” to anyone other than the student’s parent(s) requires written consent from the student’s parent(s).
Xavier Academy retains the right to release “directory information” without prior consent from the student’s parent(s). Xavier Academy considers the following information to be “directory information”:
- Name, phone number, mailing address, and email address.
- Date and place of birth.
- Year in high school.
- Prior educational institution attended.
- Courses of study.
- Dates of school attendance and status.
- Scholarships, student aid, and awards received.
- Weight and height of members of athletic teams.
- Participation in officially recognized activities and sports.
If you have academic concerns for your student, please contact the Registrar at 832-533-2652 ext. 1004.
