FAMILY EDUCATIONAL RIGHTS & PRIVACY ACT (FERPA)
	Notification of Rights under FERPA

Geary County Schools

Notice for Directory Information

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), a Federal law, requires that Geary County Schools, USD 475, with certain exceptions, obtain your written consent prior to the disclosure of personally identifiable information from your child’s education records. However, USD 475 may disclose appropriately designated "directory information" without written consent, unless you have advised the District to the contrary in accordance with District procedures.

The primary purpose of directory information is to allow the Geary County Unified School District to include this type of information from your child’s education records in certain school publications. Examples include:

• Honor roll or other recognition lists;
• Graduation programs;
• Sports activity sheets, such as for wrestling, showing weight and height of team members;
• A program, showing your student’s role in a school production;
• The annual yearbook.

Directory information, which is information that is generally not considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if released, can also be disclosed to outside organizations without a parent’s prior written consent. Outside organizations include, but are not limited to, companies that manufacture class rings or publish yearbooks. In addition, two federal laws require local educational agencies (LEAs) receiving assistance, under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to provide military recruiters, upon request, with three directory information categories – names, addresses and telephone listings –unless parents have advised the LEA that they do not want their student’s information disclosed without prior written consent. *

If you do not want the Geary County School District to disclose directory information from your child’s education records without your prior written consent, you must notify the District in writing to the Superintendent no later than 10 days after enrollment. Geary County USD 475 has designated the following information as directory information:

• Student’s name 
• Address
• Date & place of birth 
• Dates of attendance 
• Grade Level 
• Telephone Listing 
• Electronic mail address 
• Participation in officially recognized activities and sports
• Weight and  height of members of athletic teams
• Degrees, honors, and awards received
• Photograph
• The most recent educational agency or institution attended
• Major field of study
• Student work and/or video tapes of student participation in instruction and/or school related activities

Updated 10/08/2007