Under the new Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) policy effective December 31, 2024, CAES can no longer publish certain types of student directory information on our public websites. View the complete message from UGA’s Office of the Registrar.
Student directory information NO LONGER ALLOWED on CAES websites:
- Student phone number(s)
- Email or physical address(es)
- UGA photograph
- Faculty mentor as part of thesis/dissertation title
- Employment title and contact information
How is CAES addressing this policy change?
For student information listed in the CAES Personnel Directory:
Data Custodians for each department, center, unit, or lab are responsible for removing the above-listed content from the personnel database UNLESS you have obtained permission from individual students to use their information.
For student information listed on individual CAES websites:
If you manage a CAES website and student information is listed on your site, you are responsible for removing that content UNLESS you have obtained permission from individual students to use their information. The Office of Information Technology is auditing our websites now, and we will send communication to sites that display the above-listed student information.
Additional guidance on this policy change will be communicated by the CAES Office of Academics and Faculty Affairs.
Message from UGA’s Office of the Registrar
In compliance with a new policy adopted by the University System of Georgia, all USG institutions now have a unified definition of directory information under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) effective December 31, 2024. This new definition is outlined in USG Academic and Student Affairs Handbook Section 3.2.1 “USG FERPA Notification and Directory Information Policy.”
Under FERPA, directory information is defined as information that, if released, would not be considered a violation of a student’s privacy and may be disclosed without a student’s prior written consent unless the student has opted out of such disclosure.
Per the USG policy, the University of Georgia has designated the following categories of information as directory information:
- Student’s name
- Hometown
- Institution-assigned email address. Under this category, an institution-assigned email may be disclosed without consent only to other, current students. In addition, students may not request email listings of the entire student body or segments thereof, except for academic purposes.
- Major field of study
- Enrollment status (e.g., full-time, part-time)
- Participation in officially recognized activities and sports
- Dates of attendance
- Degrees, honors, and awards received
- Thesis/dissertation title
- The most recent educational institution attended
- Height and weight of athletes
- Class level
The following categories of information are no longer defined as directory information:
- Phone number(s)
- Address(es)
- UGA photograph
- Faculty mentor as part of thesis/dissertation title
- Employment title and contact information
Please note that institution-assigned email addresses (an individual’s uga.edu email address) may only be disclosed as directory information to other, current students. This means that student uga.edu email addresses may no longer be disclosed publicly or to outside third parties unless in accordance with the student’s consent or an applicable exception under FERPA. Keep in mind that student email addresses may continue to be disclosed within the University between employees who have a legitimate educational interest in sharing such information.
As a result of this change in the definition of directory information, there may be circumstances where students will be asked by departments, schools, and colleges to provide consent for the disclosure of information that previously was defined as directory information. For example, a department may display on their website the email addresses and photographs of their graduate students. The department may request the graduate students’ consent to continue to display such information.
An updated annual notification of student rights under FERPA will be circulated via email in the coming days. This annual notification will include the updated definition of directory information along with information regarding the process of opting out of such disclosure.
Additional guidance will also be provided to faculty and staff via email in the coming days on how to comply with these changes to the definition of directory information.
For assistance with questions related to directory information, please contact the Office of the Registrar at reghelp@uga.edu.
Need help with your website?
If you need help with addressing this policy on your CAES website, please contact us at caesweb@uga.edu.
