Student Rights & Security
Rights Under Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
At UT Arlington, FERPA rights apply to a student. A student is a person who has been admitted and is registered, regardless of the person's age.
Under FERPA, a student has a right to:
- inspect his or her education records within 45 days of the request;
- require that the University obtain his or her prior written consent before releasing personally identifiable information from education records;
- request that corrections be made to education records if the student believes the records are inaccurate or misleading or otherwise in violation of the student’s privacy rights under FERPA.
- file a complaint with the Department of Education concerning an alleged failure by the institution to comply with FERPA.
Rights Under the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy
In compliance with the federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act(formerly the Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act; P.L. 101-542, as amended), the University of Texas at Arlington publishes specified campus crime statistics and campus security policies through the Office of the Chief of the University Police.
Other Student Rights
Grievances Other Than Grades
In attempting to resolve any student grievance, the student must first make a serious effort to resolve the matter with the individual with whom the grievance originated. Grievances involving matters other than grades are appealed to the department chair or office director, then to the Vice Provost for Academic Analytics and Operations. Appeals to the Vice Provost must be submitted in writing on an appeal form available in academic departments.
Information on grievance procedures related to grades is available in the Grades and Grading section of the catalog.
Seeking Exceptions to GRADUATE Policies
A student may petition for exceptions to published graduate policy by submitting a petition. The Graduate Advisor and the departmental Committee on Graduate Studies Chair will evaluate the petition and send it to the Dean for final decision. Limited exceptions to some rules may be approved if the facts presented by the petitioner are fully justified in the views of the Graduate Advisor, Committee on Graduate Studies Chair, and Dean. All petitions must be submitted on the petition form available online .
Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act
Campus security and safety guidelines: In case of emergency or to report a crime in progress, contact the UT Arlington Police at (817) 272-3003. For all other security and safety issues, dial (817) 272-3381 or visit the Campus Police homepage .
Campus security policies: In compliance with the federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, formerly the Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act (P.L. 101-542, as amended), the University of Texas at Arlington publishes specified campus crime statistics and campus security policies through the Office of the Chief of the University Police.
Campus security policies include:
- Procedures for reporting criminal actions or other emergencies occurring on campus.
- Policies concerning security of and access to campus facilities, including campus residences; campus law enforcement authority and responsibilities.
- A description of programs designed to inform students and employees about the prevention of crimes, and campus security procedures.
- The policy of monitoring and recording of students’ criminal activity occurring at off-campus locations of student organizations officially recognized by the institution.
- The policy regarding the possession, use and sale of alcoholic beverages and illegal drugs, and enforcement of federal and state drug and drinking laws.
- A description of drug or alcohol-abuse education programs.
- Sexual assault programs to prevent sex offenses, and procedures to follow when a sex offense occurs.
- Policy on emergency response and emergency notification procedures involving immediate threat and campus evacuation.
- Missing student information
- Fire and life safety policies and procedures
- Gang free zones and consequences of engaging in organized criminal activities in these zones
- Campus-wide emergency notification procedures in case of immediate threat or campus evacuation (MavAlert )
To learn more how to prevent crime or to respond to emergency situations, visit the website http://www.uta.edu/campus-ops/police/emergency-management .
Crime statistics may be accessed on the University Police Web site at http://www.uta.edu/campus-ops/police .
Gang-free zones: To promote campus safety and deter crime, premises owned, rented or leaded by The University of Texas at Arlington, and areas within 1,000 feet of the premises are "gang-free" zones. Certain criminal offenses, including those involving gang-related crimes, will be enhanced to the next highest category of offense if committed in a gang-free zone by an individual 17 years or older. See Texas Penal Code, Section 71.028 .
Missing student notification policy: If a member of the University community has reason to believe that a student who resides in on-campus housing is missing, he or she should immediately notify the UT Arlington Police Department at 817-272-3381. Students residing in on-campus housing have the option to identify confidentially an individual to be contacted by UT Arlington in the event the student is determined to be missing for more than 24 hours. Contact information will be accessible only to authorized campus officials and law enforcement and will not be disclosed outside of a missing person investigation. To designate a confidential contact, contact Apartment and Residence Life at (817) 272-2926. More details can be found in the Annual Campus Fire and Safety Report .
False alarms reports: Since Sept. 1, 2013, Section 42.06(b) of the Texas Penal Code mandates that the penalty for the offense of making a false alarm or report involving a public or private institution of higher education is a state jail felony.
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
FERPA, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, is a federal law that pertains to the release of and access to student education records. In compliance with FERPA, the University of Texas at Arlington does not disclose personally identifiable information contained in student education records, except as authorized by law.
Also known as the Buckley Amendment, this law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the US Department of Education. UT Arlington has established policies relating to the accessibility of student information in its custody. These are described below.
Under FERPA, a student has a right to:
- inspect his or her education records within 45 days of the request;
- require that the University obtain his or her prior written consent before releasing personally identifiable information from education records;
- request that corrections be made to education records if the student believes the records are inaccurate or misleading or otherwise in violation of the student’s privacy rights under FERPA.
- file a complaint with the Department of Education concerning an alleged failure by the institution to comply with FERPA.
At UT Arlington, FERPA rights apply to a student. A student is a person who has been admitted and is registered, regardless of the person's age.
FERPA applies both to the education record and to the personally identifiable information within the record, which is called directory-type information . At UT Arlington, an education record is defined as any information recorded in any way, including but not limited to handwriting, print, tape, film, microfilm, microfiche, and digital image. A student does not have a right under FERPA to inspect information that is not an education record .
UT Arlington students have the right to provide written consent before the University discloses personally identifiable information from the student’s education records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent.
The University of Texas at Arlington will disclose information from a student’s education record without the written consent of the student in specified instances . This includes to persons employed by the University in an administrative, supervisory, academic, or support staff position (including law enforcement unit and health staff); a person or company with whom the University has a contract or affiliation (such as an attorney, auditor, collection agent or clinical facility); a member of the UT System Board of Regents; or a person assisting another university official in performing his or her tasks; who needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibility. For a full listing, please see UT Arlington's FERPA page .
UT Arlington uses safe methods to identify and authenticate the identity of students, parents, school officials and all other parties before disclosing education records.
Consult the FERPA webpage at http://wweb.uta.edu/aao/recordsandregistration/content/student_services/ferpa.aspx for additional information.