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Key takeaways:
- FERPA applies to schools, school districts, and tertiary institutions that receive funding from the U.S. Department of Education.
- If schools work with tutoring providers, FERPA responsibilities can extend to those providers under the law’s “school official” exception.
- Schools might share student information with tutoring providers without parental consent in some situations, but only under strict, educational conditions.
- Because schools are primarily accountable for protecting student records, they must very carefully evaluate tutoring platforms and vendors that they work with.
- Parents have the right to access and request corrections to their child’s education records, and those rights transfer to students once they become eligible under FERPA.
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, is a federal law that gives parents rights over their children’s educational records. Once those students turn 18, those same rights are extended to the students themselves.
According to the U.S. Department of Education’s Student Privacy Policy Office, FERPA gives parents the right to:
- Access their child’s education records
- Request corrections to inaccurate or misleading information
- Control when and how their child’s personally identifiable information from those records can be shared
For schools, FERPA dictates how students’ educational records and transcripts can be collected, stored, shared, and protected. This means that FERPA will prove especially important whenever a school works with third-party services, including online tutoring providers and educational technology platforms.
If your tutoring organization works with schools, school districts, colleges, or universities, it’s essential that your tutoring platform supports FERPA compliance. Pencil Spaces is an all-in-one virtual classroom built with privacy and security in mind. It serves to help schools, tutoring organizations, and independent tutors deliver online learning without needing to worry about meeting the data protection standards that educational institutions expect.
Not only is Pencil Spaces FERPA-compliant, but it also meets several other industry-recognized security standards, including COPPA, SOC 2 Type II, HIPAA, and GDPR. Combined with secure virtual classrooms, robust administrative controls, and a commitment to never selling user data, it gives educators confidence that student information is handled responsibly.
What are the FERPA requirements?
The U.S. Department of Education defines education records quite broadly: the term refers to any such records that are directly related to a student and that are maintained by a school or by someone acting on the school’s behalf. Based on this definition, FERPA requirements will include:
- Grades and report cards
- Attendance records
- Test results
- Disciplinary records
- Information generated or gathered via online learning platforms
In the vast majority of cases, a school will need to obtain written consent from parents (or the student themself, if they’re over 18-years old) before disclosing personally identifiable information from a student’s education records.
However, it’s important to note that FERPA also includes several exceptions that allow schools to share information without consent in specific circumstances. One of the most important exceptions that relates to tutoring organizations is the school official exception.
As the Department of Education explains, the school official exception allows schools to share educational records with certain third-party providers that are performing services on the school’s behalf.
Does FERPA apply to tutors?
FERPA does not apply to tutors or tutoring organizations directly. Rather, it applies to educational agencies and institutions that receive funding from programs that have been administered by the U.S. Department of Education.
This would include public schools, school districts, and most colleges and universities; it would not extend to independent tutors or private tutoring businesses that operate on their own. This changes, however, as soon as a tutoring provider starts to work directly with a school.
That is, should a school hire an external tutoring company in order to provide services that the school would otherwise perform itself, FERPA may then permit the school to share student records under its school official exception. However, for that exception to be permissible, the tutoring provider must:
- Perform a service that the school would otherwise provide
- Remain under the school’s direct control regarding how student information is used and maintained
- Use the information only for the educational purpose for which it was shared
This exception is what allows many school-funded tutoring programs to operate without the need for parental consent every time student records need to be shared.
The most important point under this FERPA definition is that the school is still primarily responsible for ensuring that students’ information is protected. This means that a tutoring platform cannot receive education records for the sake of convenience, nor because it’s widely used; the platform must always meet FERPA’s requirements and handle student data according to the school’s instructions.
When schools vet tutoring platforms, FERPA compliance is usually one of the first requirements they look for. Pencil Spaces’ virtual classroom is FERPA-compliant, easy to use, and trusted by educators in the U.S. and around the world.
FERPA vs. COPPA
FERPA and COPPA are often mentioned together, as they both serve primarily to protect students’ privacy. However, these acts regulate two distinct things.
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, sets all rules with regard to schools’ handling and sharing of students’ private educational records and transcripts.
The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA, on the other hand, regulates how websites, apps, and online services collect personal information from children under the age of 13. This includes requirements around parental consent, privacy notices, and data security.
For tutoring platforms that work directly with schools, colleges, or universities, it’s often the case that both laws apply. FERPA would govern all education records shared by the school, whereas COPPA would apply if the platform collects any information directly from children 13-years old or younger.
If you'd like a deeper look at how COPPA compliance works, who it applies to, what websites and online learning platforms need to do, and what it means for tutors and schools, read our complete guide: What is COPPA?
Frequently Asked Questions
Would a private tutor be breaking the law by not following FERPA?
No, as FERPA doesn’t apply directly to private tutoring businesses or independent tutors. Typically, a tutor wouldn’t take on any FERPA-related responsibilities unless they’re providing services on behalf of a school that is covered by the law.
Do parents have to give consent before a school refers their child to a tutoring program?
Not always. If the school shares students’ educational records under FERPA’s school official exception, then parental consent usually isn’t required. For this exception to apply, however, the tutoring provider needs to satisfy its conditions. And in many cases, schools may still choose to communicate with parents about the arrangement.
What happens if a tutoring platform doesn’t follow FERPA?
FERPA’s enforcement is primarily directed toward educational institutions, rather than vendors themselves. As such, should a tutoring provider fail to meet their FERPA requirements, the institution may terminate the relationship, as serious compliance failures could threaten the school’s federal funding. This is why schools must carefully evaluate the privacy and security practices of the vendors they choose.
Pencil Spaces is certified FERPA, COPPA, SOC2, HIPAA, and GDPR-compliant. It never sells user data, and it maintains the level of accountability schools and parents expect from any platform young students use. Visit our Privacy page to learn more, or sign up for a free demo today.
This article is for general informational purposes and isn’t legal advice. Tutoring organizations should consult an attorney to confirm their specific FERPA obligations.
