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Dear FERPA Professor,

We are a community college looking for some advice on our reverse transfer initiatives. Can our partners at the university include, as part of their annual FERPA notification to students, a statement that they will share selected records back to the community college for reverse transfer purposes, thereby giving the students the choice of opting out, rather than in?

Thanks,

Reve Herse

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Dear Reve,

The signed consent requirement at §99.30 of the FERPA regulations does not permit an institution to require students to opt out of a disclosure that would otherwise require a signed consent unless the disclosure meets one of the exceptions to signed consent, such as §99.31(a)(11). While the student must provide a signed consent, the consent can reside with another party, such as the community college, rather than the party providing the records. Alternatively, the university could have a box that the student checks which would permit the sharing of records for purposes of degree granting from the other institution.

I hope this is helpful advice for you as you move forward,

The FERPA Professor 

Please visit our Ask the FERPA Professor archives for more insight from the professor.

Please send your questions for the FERPA Professor to connect@aacrao.org.

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