Hospital Education Program Student Records
Generally
All information regarding students and their families shall be collected and maintained under safeguards of privacy established by federal and state laws or regulations. All records maintained by the Hospital Education Program (HEP) are kept in strict confidentiality in compliance with both the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA).
An accurate and complete individual record shall be maintained for each student in grades pre-K-12 enrolled in the Richmond Hospital Education Program and any Post Graduate students seen by the program during their stay. All data (confidential) shall be considered the student's official records. No statement in this Policy or any implementing regulations shall be construed by employees as negating their responsibility for reporting child abuse or neglect cases as required by Code of Va., Virginia § 63.2-1509.
All personnel authorized access to student records shall be informed of this Policy and its implementing regulations. Strict adherence shall be considered a condition of employment by the Hospital Education Program.
Custodian(s) of Student Records
The employee responsible for the in-service education of records maintenance personnel and the collection, security, use, disclosure, periodic evaluation, transfer and destruction of scholastic records data shall be designated as custodian of student records. For the Hospital Education Program, this is the Records Retention Specialist/Assistant Director.
Records of attendance, school work completed, and grades earned during enrollment with the Hospital Education Program are sent to parents and/or legal guardians and the student’s local school division upon discharge. Records of services provided to the student, contacts, assessments, and evaluations are maintained in the Student Data Records Management System.
Notification of Records Policies and Regulations
Generally
The policies and regulations pertinent to student records are posted in this notice for access by any and all interested parties on the Richmond Hospital Education Program website which is available and accessible online and at each school administrative office, media center (library), and the central office.
Parents/Legal Guardians/Eligible Students
Each admission, HEP personnel will notify eligible students, the parents and/or legal guardians of minor students in attendance and eligible students in attendance of their rights as established under FERPA including policies and regulations for access to student records. Such notification is provided when signing Educational Release forms for attendance within the HEP.
Notification here provides information related to:
The types and location of student records and information maintained therein;
The title and address of the employee responsible for the maintenance of scholastic records, the parties to whom data may be disclosed, and the purpose for disclosure;
The policy for reviewing and expunging scholastic records;
The policies and regulations for disclosure of data from scholastic records;
The right to challenge the content of scholastic records and to file with the Office of Family Compliance, U.S. Department of Education, a complaint concerning an alleged failure by the Hospital Education Program to comply with the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA);
The fee for reproducing copies of scholastic records; (.20 cents per page, each side)
The data designated as directory information; and
The right to obtain, upon payment of the appropriate fee, a copy of policies and regulations on the management of the student records and the location of same.
Access to Student Records
HEP Employees including Office Staff, Therapists, Teachers, and Educational Consultants have access to student records, additionally the Records Retention Specialist and technical support personnel for the HEP Data Management System have limited access to student records; access to specific student records is provided to authorized entities only when the individual requesting access has a legitimate educational interest in the disclosed information;
Other licensed personnel shall have access to these records if the custodians of scholastic records determine they have a legitimate educational interest in requesting such access. The criterion for determining "legitimate educational interest" shall be the student's welfare. Licensed personnel who copy data from student records shall protect the confidentiality of such data. This includes, but is not limited to, local education agency staff and personnel of the student’s home school division and individuals specified by parent(s) or legal guardians within the student’s signed Educational Release Form.
Parent(s), Legal Guardian(s), and students who have reached the age of 18 may request copies of any and all records still maintained by the HEP at any time. Record Retention Schedules from the Library of Virginia have established timelines for destruction of student records. The HEP follows these established Record Retention Schedules.
The Library of Virginia's record retention and disposition schedules can be found at: http://www.lva.virginia.gov/agencies/records/sched_local/index.htm
To request a record(s) for a specific student while still maintained under established Record Retention Schedules, contact: rblackshear@rhep.org
Or write: Records Request
P.O. Box 980484
Richmond, Virginia 23298-0484
Or call; (804) 828-0426 and request to speak with Ms. Renee Blackshear
Classified Personnel
Classified personnel assigned to duties within the facility where student records are maintained shall have access to such records only with the prior approval of the custodian of scholastic records. Students and paraprofessional employees shall not be assigned clerical duties where they may have access to scholastic records.
In-service Education
The custodian of student records shall supervise an in-service education program for employees having access to these records. The core documents for the program shall be this Policy and its implementing regulations.
Employee Access Roster
Custodians of scholastic records shall maintain an up-to-date roster of division employees within their facility having access to scholastic records. These rosters shall be made available for public inspection.
Parents/Legal Guardians/Eligible Students
The custodian of student records shall permit parents and/or legal guardians of minor students or eligible students to inspect and review such records. Compliance with requests shall be made without unnecessary delay and in no case more than forty-five (45) calendar days after the request has been made in accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act [20 U.S.C. § 1232(g)] and related regulations. In the case of requests made by parents, legal guardians or eligible students for records of students with disabilities, compliance with such request shall be made prior to any meeting for a student identified under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
The custodian of student records may presume that both parents have the authority to inspect and review records relating to the minor student unless the HEP has been advised that either parent does not have the authority under applicable state laws governing such matters as guardianship, separation, divorce or Child Protective Services.
Student (under eighteen) who is Subject of Record
Transfer of rights to review scholastic records from the parent/legal guardian to an eligible student happens when the student reaches eighteen (18) years of age. Parents or legal guardians who continue to claim the student as a tax dependent may continue to access the eligible student’s scholastic record.
Third Parties
The custodian of records may permit the following third parties to access student records in accordance with applicable state and federal laws:
A person designated in writing by either parent or legal guardian of the student if the student is less than eighteen years of age or as designated by an eligible student (eighteen years of age or older);
State or local law-enforcement or correctional personnel, including a law-enforcement officer, probation officer, parole officer or administrator, or a member of a parole board, seeking information in the course of his duties;
An agency caseworker or other representative of a State or local child welfare agency, or tribal organization (as defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act [25 U.S.C. 450(b)], who has the right to access a student's case plan, as defined and determined by the State or tribal organization, when such agency or organization is legally responsible, in accordance with State or tribal law, for the care and protection of the student. Any agency caseworker or other representative of a State or local child welfare agency or tribal organization (as referenced above) who does not meet the requirements outlined above, must obtain a written release from the parent, guardian, or eligible student (eighteen years of age or older) authorizing access to such student records. The release must specify the records to be released, the reasons for such release, and to who the records are to be released.
For the purpose of furthering the ability of the juvenile justice system to effectively serve the pupil prior to adjudication:
1) Attorneys for the Commonwealth;
2) Court services units;
3) Juvenile detention centers or group homes;
4) Mental and medical health agencies;
5) State and local children and family service agencies;
6) The Department of Juvenile Justice; and
7) The staff of such agencies.
For purposes of this section, "group home" means a “juvenile residential facility that is a community based, home-like single dwelling, or its acceptable equivalent, other than the private home of the operator, and does not exceed the capacity approved by the regulatory authority” and "juvenile detention center" means “a local, regional, or state, publicly or privately operated secure custody facility that houses individuals who are ordered to be detained pursuant to the Code of Virginia. This term does not include juvenile correctional centers.”
Prior to disclosure of any such scholastic records, the persons to whom the records are to be disclosed shall certify in writing to the custodian of records that the information will not be disclosed to any other party, except as provided under state law, without the prior written consent of the parent of the student or by such student if the student is eighteen years of age or older. Private agencies or private individuals must provide a written release or authorization from the student's parents specifying the records to be released, the reasons for such release, and to who the records are to be released.
The custodian of records shall release student records in accordance with a Federal grand jury subpoena, any other subpoena issued for a law enforcement purpose, a judicial order, or any lawfully issued subpoena, that lawfully requires disclosure of such records and shall notify the parents, legal guardian or eligible student of such disclosure as required by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act [20 U.S.C. § 1232(g)] and related regulations.
The custodian of records shall permit a guardian ad litem or counsel for the child appointed pursuant to Code of Virginia § 16.1-266 to inspect and copy, without the consent of the child or his parents, any records relating to the child whom the guardian or counsel represents, upon presentation by the guardian ad litem of a copy of the court order appointing them or a court order specifically allowing them such access.
Amendment of Scholastic Records Content
The parent, legal guardian or eligible student who believes that information in the student's record is inaccurate, misleading or violates the privacy or other rights of the student may request that the custodian who maintains the record amend such record. Upon receipt of such request the custodian shall be responsible for administering the subsequent procedures as established in Virginia Department of Education. Consistent with federal law and regulation, each school shall annually notify parents, legal guardians, or eligible students currently enrolled in attendance of their rights under the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. § 1232(g)) and related regulations. This notification shall be provided upon signing the Educational Release form initially or annually, for provision of services by the HEP.
Content and Disclosure of Student Directory Information as specified by State policies and procedures may be provided without consent of the parent(s), student, or legal guardian(s) pursuant to FERPA and includes the parent/student’s name, local address, local telephone number, and email address when such disclosure is from an authorized entity with a legitimate educational interest (i.e. Local Education Agencies).
Periodic Evaluation of Scholastic Records
The custodian of student records shall annually review the contents of these records for the purpose of removing data no longer educationally useful as directed in the Commonwealth of Virginia Records Retention and Disposition Schedules related to specific records. Record retention periods are established by Library of Virginia Records Management Office and timelines for destruction are posted in available Records Retention Schedules. At any time, parent(s), legal guardian(s), and students who have reached the age of majority may request copies of any and all records maintained by the HEP.
To request records prior to scheduled retention periods, e-mail rblackshear@rhep.org After record retention periods have expired, student records will be purged in compliance with established Retention schedules and no longer available for release.
Transfer of Student Records
Some student records are transferred to local school divisions upon discharge as directed in State Operated Program regulations and policies. These may be available from the student's local school division. Cumulative (long term) records for students enrolled at the Hospital Education Program, Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, Brook Road Campus are maintained by the student's local school division as a provision of a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) and not State Operated Programs as defined in Regulations Governing Special Education Programs for Children with Disabilities in Virginia.
Legal References:
Code of Virginia § 16.1-266, as amended, Appointment of counsel and guardian ad litem.
Code of Virginia § 22.1-130.1, as amended. Access to high schools and high school students for military recruiters.
Code of Virginia § 22.1-20, as amended. Retention of pupil personnel records.
Code of Virginia § 22.1-287, as amended. Limitations on access to records.
Code of Virginia § 22.1-287.1, as amended. Directory information.
Code of Virginia § 22.1-288.2, as amended. Receipt, dissemination and maintenance of records of certain law-enforcement information.
Code of Virginia §22.1-289, as amended. Transfer and management of scholastic records; disclosure of information in court notices; penalty
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. 20 USC § 1230, 1232 g, 34 CFR Part 99, as amended.
Information on FERPA can be found at www2.ed.gov/ferpa
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 information can be found at http://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/
Regulations Governing Special Education for Children with Disabilities in Virginia information can be found
at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/special_ed/regulations/state/regs_speced_disability_va.pdf
Virginia Board of Education Regulation, 8 VAC 20-150-20, as amended. Management of Scholastic Record.
Virginia Department of Corrections Regulation, 6VAC35-41-10, as amended. Definitions.
Virginia Department of Corrections Regulation, 6VAC35-101-10. Suspected child abuse or neglect.
Updated 7/23