Access to College Records

[LifeIsWonderful]

It appears that getting access or copies to college school records for children under 18 (17 in this case) is harder than I thought. I know I have rights to this information, even as a non-custodial parent, however, there appears to be a lot of conflicting information on the internet.

According to Public Law 93-380, and specifically Sec. 438, parents have a right to this information.

I have seen many web pages for colleges that state parents have this right if their children are under 18, and/or if the children are dependents on one of the parents' taxes. Many even state this right is because of PL 93-380. However, I have also seen just as many websites state the parents do not have this right. I even found a FERPA brocure that states parenets "may" have access if they school permits it, but that the schools are not obligated to give this access.

So which is it?

I know non-custodial parents paying child support for adult children in school have rights to college records. So how can someone say a non-custodial parent paying child support for a minor child does not have this same right?

Here is what the privacy policy at my child's college says:

Confidentiality
Students 18 years of age or older and the parents of students who are under 18 years of age have certain rights with respect to student records under Public Law 93-380. These include:
•The right to inspect the educational records of the student.
•The right to challenge the accuracy of the records if they are believed to be misleading or to violate privacy or other rights of the student.

However, this same school is saying I can't have student records without the permission of the student. How can they go against their own policy???

As for the NJ, she doesn't want access. She already gets to see everything that our child shows her. She knows that if she has access, our parenting plan allows me the same access as her. So she is saying she won't ask for access. She's doing this just to stop me from having the same right.

I wonder what she could possibly be hiding??

*LifeIsWonderful*

[BartSimpson]

There is great distance between you and the child, yes?

What do you expect to find in those college records?

What will it matter?

[LifeIsWonderful]

Actually, we live very close. I don't see her any more because of the NJ's interferrence about 1 1/2 years ago. She is a problem child. My hands were tied when she was at my house. If I did something as simple as taking her cell phone away, NJ would just tell her run away and go back to her house, and then she would tell me I can't see her anymore. Being my adopted child, actually belonging to the NJ, I reallized there was nothing I could do. I couldn't be a father and the stress she caused by playing parents against each other, made things just too hard on everyone.

Now she is in trouble. Quit school without telling anyone, and violating probabtion with the use of drugs. She then ran away for like the 5th time in the last year.

I want my child's records because I have the right to have them. I need to know how to enforse these rights before my other children get to this point.

What will I find? Who knows? Maybe the ex had her lie about financials. It's kind of hard to believe she got grants when the ex is getting $70k a year from me. The fact that my child dropped out without anyone knowing, tells me the mother isn't really paying attension. I wonder when she dropped out. Maybe she dropped out in the Spring. Maybe she failed most of her classes. When she turns 18, they may want me to pay for college, along with child support. These records may give me a reason to not have to pay for additional college expences on top of child support.

*LifeIsWonderful*

[BartSimpson]

I'm not going to agree with you on the records and your rights - but mostly because you are spinning your wheels and not doing yourself any good.

Useless waste of energy chasing the college records of your daughter, sir. She doing drugs, drinking, on probation, and likely has an older boyfriend who is best described as a bad boy.

She's not in college.

[LifeIsWonderful]

Well Bart, I'm actually looking for people that know something about this topic. I'm not really concerned about whether you think I'm spinning my wheels or wasting my time. I am not giving up on any more of my rights as a father. So unless I really don't have rights, I will continue to fight for the rights I have.

Does anyone have some useful information about this topic?

*LifeIsWonderful*

[Trevor]

Not sure what else you're looking for at the school. If the school refuses you information to which you are entitled, then hire a lawyer and subpoena the records. But if the kid's no longer in school, all you'll discover is when the kid dropped out (or was kicked out) and what were the grades up to that point. If that's worth the several hundred dollars it'll cost to get it, then have at it.

[newwife]

The issue with things like this, you have the right.
However, the people in the office think if they give you the information they may get into trouble.
When you work with so much private information-you can be very paranoid-and opinionated.
Here's my suggestion.

Go somewhere else at the school.
Perhaps go to a counselor or social worker of some kind at the school. tell them you are concerned about your daughter-and you think this information will be useful in confronting her and getting her the help she needs. that might work.

if you go after the (i don't want to pay child support for college in the future) routine-you'll lose.
or if you mention you think NJ had her lie about income to get grants-you will lose. (and my father made 100K, and i still got grants, there are reasons she still gets assistance-don't jump to conclusions.)

get someone on your side first. and if they say no, don't get angry. thank them and ask who else you can talk to.

[Southern.Putter]

To the OP, you're really focused on the wrong thing here and are looking in the wrong direction. Your daughter dropped out or was forced out of school. Having the records won't change that fact at all.

Also, every kid is different. Your others might walk a completely different path in college. There's not much that you'll learn from the dropout's transcript that will help you in that regard. Seriously.

On the other hand, working on your relationship with your kids will do wonders for your ability to help them succeed in college. It will also be far more rewarding than "tilting at windmills" in the college's bureaucracy. The folks that work at the college could care less about you.

If you're really worried about being forced to pay for other kids' nonperformance in college in the future under court order, you need to ask the judge to put some "daddy scholarship" terms into your decree/orders. Here's the thread you need to read:

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=30979

Good luck!