FERPA FAQs

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I am a parent/guardian of a High School dual enrollment student and need help logging into, navigating, and/or processing transactions in my student’s LBCC student portal. What do I do? 

College officials may only assist the LBCC student with access to their LBCC student portal as it contains records covered under FERPA.  Students must act on their own behalf.

Parents or guardians of students are not permitted to enroll, drop, or add classes on the student’s behalf. In addition, parents/guardians of dual enrollment students cannot request enrollment or academic information from LBCC Admissions & Records department or Academic Instructors.  

What is Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)? 

As a result of being an LBCC student, being officially enrolled in an institution of higher education, educational records are protected by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974. Regardless of a student’s age, they must act on their own behalf. 

Parents/guardians of the college student are not permitted to enroll, drop, or add classes on behalf of the student. The same applies to requesting transcripts, grade verifications or academic progress. College records can only be released to parents/guardians with the student’s written permission and completion of the FERPA Consent to Release form.  

Visit the U.S. Department of Education website for more information about the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974. 

What is the FERPA Consent to Release Form?  

With the student’s written permission and completion of the FERPA Consent to Release form, students can waive access to parent/guardian to only the following: 

  • Disciplinary Records 
  • Financial Aid  
  • Transcripts
  • Recommendations for Employment or Admission to Other Schools 
  • Student Financial Services 
  • All of the above 
  • Other 

To request a FERPA Consent to Release form, please contact the ECI Team (earlycollege@lbcce.edu) or LBCC Admissions and Records (admissions@lbcc.edu)  

To submit, the student must be present and submit in person to the LBCC Admissions and Records department with a valid ID (LBCC, High School or government ID is valid).  

As a parent/guardian, can I contact my student’s instructor about performance, course content, assignments, and/or grading policy? 

Under FERPA, instructors cannot discuss student performance or other student-related issues with parents/guardians, including progress or grades.  

Instructors work directly with students, in accordance with the course syllabus, agreed upon between the student and instructor. The student can find the course content, objectives, assignments, a general guide to the pacing of the course, and information about how grades will be determined in the course syllabus.  

The ECI Team highly encourages students to reach out to LBCC faculty via email or during office hours. This can increase a student’s soft skills and success in their course.  

For additional support, please check in with ECI Team (earlycollege@lbcc.edu)  

 If I am a parent/guardian, how do I obtain access to pay my child’s fees?   

A student is responsible for all fees, however, financial support or payment information can be provided by parents/guardians.  

In-person:

  • LBCC students must be present with the parent/guardian  
  • LBCC students can provide parent/guardian payment information to Cashier’s Office 

Online:

  • LBCC student must access their VIKING Student System  
  • Click “Student Account”  
  • LBCC student can provide parent/guardian payment information