Reading the case study on British supermodel Naomi Campbell and her suit against London’s Daily Mirror got me thinking about one particular afternoon I spent last summer. And with snow coming down outside as I type this, memories of warmer weather are a welcomed diversion this afternoon.
I mentioned in a previous blog entry that I work in education and how I sometimes have to wear a few different hats. One such hat is that of an academic adviser for newly enrolled part-time students. What exactly does that mean? Well, it means that I am their initial point of contact, and help them in choosing their first courses at the university as well as their major.
On that lovely afternoon last August, I was in a room on campus with only a few windows, listening to an important presentation on FERPA (the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act). And while I would have rather been outside enjoying the weather than listening to these high-priced lawyers ramble on and on, it did prove to be an informative and enlightening afternoon.
FERPA is a code of conduct of sorts for those who work in higher education. It involves the handling of sensitive and often time’s private information regarding students. This information can involve anything from grades and transcripts, to safety issues a student may have on campus. FERPA is designed to protect the rights and the privacy of the students. Grades, transcripts and any other materials that are addressed to the student are to be shared with only the student, and no one else. This becomes a tricky situation in that parents (many of whom are spending top dollar on their son or daughter’s education) often times feel that they have the “right” to access any of this information, or to even call an instructor or advisor to discuss their child’s academic performance.
Refer to this link to read the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act Regulations:
Privacy is a major issue these days, and in regards to Naomi Campbell’s situation, paparazzi meddling in the personal lives’ of celebrities is nothing new (just think of Princess Diana’s violent death, or even the onslaught of websites like TMZ and Perez Hilton). And while I don’t necessarily condone Campbell’s erratic behavior or her prima donna demeanor, kudos to her for trying taking the necessary steps to deal with a personal crisis and subsequently striking back at the press. I’m confident that drug rehabilitation centers abide by their own code of ethics to protect their patients privacy (especially famous ones), but the bigger issue comes when the celebrity sets foot off the property and are accosted by photographers.
Within the confines of an educational institution, FERPA protects college student’s privacy by giving them exclusive rights to their transcripts and records and other confidential information. Sadly, many parents bully their children into signing over their FERPA rights before the first semester of their freshman year even begins. From that point on, parents are privy to any and all information regarding their child on campus.
In that I deal primarily with part-time adult students, I (fortunately) have very little interaction with meddlesome parents. That said, there have been a handful of tricky situations in which I have found myself. There was one meddlesome mother that immediately comes to mind. Her child had attended other educational institutions previously, and had not fared well at all. So now the child was trying their luck with us, and mother was calling the shots from the get-go. I’d receive regular phonecalls from the mother checking on the child’s progress, and I’d even receive emails from the child’s email account which were sent from the mother (talk about a tremendous violation of privacy).
This was well before the FERPA training I had attended, but like the Sisela Bok model, I decided to consult my conscience and quickly realized that something just wasn’t right. I informed the meddlesome mother that I could not provide her with any information regarding her child’s progress (or lack thereof) at our university, and that my only correspondence on these matters heretofore would be with the student.
An individual’s right to privacy- whether it is a celebrity in the throes of a personal crisis or a fledgling college student trying to pass an English composition course- is something that is non-negotiable in my opinion. And as much as I would have rather of been outside on that balmy, dry and cloudless August afternoon, the FERPA training ultimately made me well-equipped to deal with meddlesome parents (in the unlikely event I come across any others).
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