Faculty are often asked to write letters of recommendation or to respond to reference checks for UHD students or alumni. However, releasing any information without a waiver related to an individual’s academic record, performance in your class, or even whether they were enrolled in your class, is a violation of FERPA.

If you are approached by a student to write a letter of recommendation, fill out a recommendation form, or orally provide a recommendation, you may need to have the student fill out a FERPA release form. If the student sends you a form where there is a statement indicating that the student is providing permission for information to be released about them, then you do not need a separate form. If no such language is present, then the UH Office of the General Counsel provides a form for you to give to students to provide the written permission required.

You should provide the form to the student so that they can provide permissions either for a specific instance or for blanket permissions for the future if they need another reference from you later. Once filled out, the student should return the form to you, and you should keep this form for at least five years.

Please note that a form must filled out even if the recommendation is for an internal UHD scholarship, job, etc.

 

The UH form can be accessed at the following link: Reference Request and FERPA Release Waiver