Student Records

In District 33, all records, except health, reports of individual testing, records of other student services, and suspension are kept in the student's cumulative folder. Health records are maintained in the Health Services Office. Records of case study evaluation testing and other student services are kept in the Student Services Department, with copies also maintained in the principal's office. Suspension records are maintained in the principal's office at each school and the Superintendent's Office.

Authorized District 33 personnel who have access to the student records are the principal of the school the child attends, teachers working with the student, and instructional or student services personnel or administrators involved in serving the child. The records of students enrolled in public or private school programs outside the school district are made available to personnel who work with the students in those programs. The laws also specify certain state and federal officials who may have access to the files if the use of the records is consistent with fulfilling their responsibilities.

Questions about student records should be directed to the principal of your child's school or to the Student Services Department at 620-293-2000. All student records may be examined by the child’s parent(s)/guardian(s), who may also obtain copies. A parent/guardian wishing to read the records or obtain copies must make a written Consent for Release of Information request to the District Records Custodian, Sherri Massa massas@wego33.org, or the Records Specialist, Yesenia Castillo, castilloy@wego33.org.

Rights Concerning School Student Records
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

Rights Concerning School Student Records

This notice contains a description of your and your child’s rights concerning school student records. A school student record is any writing or other recorded information concerning a student and by which a student may be individually identified that is maintained by a school or at its direction or by a school employee, regardless of how or where the information is stored, except for certain records kept in a staff member’s sole possession; records maintained by law enforcement officers working in the school; video and other electronic recordings that are created in part for law enforcement, security, or safety reasons or purposes; and electronic recordings made on school buses. The District maintains two types of school records for each student: permanent and temporary.

The permanent record includes:

Basic identifying information, including the student’s name and address, birth date and place, gender, and the names and addresses of the student’s parents/guardians.
Evidence is required under the Missing Children Records Act. 325 ILCS 50/5(b)(1).
Academic transcripts, including grades, graduation date, and grade level achieved;
The unique student identifier was assigned and used by the Ill. State Board of Education Student Information System (SIS);
Attendance record.
Health record defined by the Ill. State Board of Education (ISBE) as “medical documentation necessary for enrollment and proof of dental examinations, as may be required under Section 27-8.1 of the School Code.”
Record of release of permanent record information that includes each of the following:
- The nature and substance of the information released;
- The name and signature of the official records custodian releasing such information;
- The name and capacity of the requesting person and the purpose for the request;
- The date of release and
- A copy of any consent to a release.

If not maintained in the temporary record, the permanent record may include:

Honors and awards received.
Information concerning participation in school-sponsored activities or athletics or offices held in school-sponsored organizations.
All information not required to be kept in the student's permanent record is kept in the student's temporary record and must include:
Record of release of temporary record information that includes the same information as listed above for the record of release of permanent records.
Scores received on the State assessment tests administered in the elementary grade levels (that is, kindergarten through grade 8).
Completed home language survey.
Information regarding serious disciplinary infractions (that is, those involving drugs, weapons, or bodily harm to another) that resulted in expulsion, suspension, or the imposition of punishment or sanction.
Any final finding report received from a Child Protective Service Unit provided to the school under the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act; no report other than what is required under Section 8.6 of that Act (325 ILCS 5/8.6) shall be placed in the student record.
Health-related information, defined by the ISBE as “current documentation of a student's health information, not otherwise governed by the Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act or other privacy laws, that includes identifying information, health history, results of mandated testing and screenings, medication dispensation records and logs, e.g., glucose readings, long-term medications administered during school hours, documentation regarding a student athlete and his or her parent/guardian's acknowledgement of the District's concussion policy adopted under 105 ILCS 5/22-80 and other health-related information that is relevant to school participation, e.g., nursing services plan, failed screenings, yearly sports physical exams, interim health histories for sports.”
Accident report, defined by the ISBE as “documentation of any reportable student accident that results in an injury to a student, occurring on the way to or from school or on school grounds, at a school athletic event or when a student is participating in a school program or school-sponsored activity or on a school bus and that is severe enough to cause the student not to be in attendance for one-half day or more or requires medical treatment other than first aid. The accident report shall include identifying information, nature of injury, days lost, cause of injury, location of accident, medical treatment given to the student at the time of the accident, or if the school nurse has referred the student for a medical evaluation, regardless of whether the parent or guardian, student (if 18 years or older), or an unaccompanied homeless youth … has followed through on that request.”
Any documentation of a student’s transfer, including records indicating the school or school district to which the student transferred.
Information contained in related service logs maintained by the District for a student with an individualized education program under 105 ILCS 5/14-8.02f(d), amended by P.A. 101-643, including for speech and language services, occupational therapy services, physical therapy services, school social work services, school counseling services, school psychology services, and school nursing services.

The temporary record may include:

Family background information
Intelligence test scores, group and individual
Aptitude test scores
Reports of psychological evaluations, including information on intelligence, personality, and academic information obtained through test administration, observation, or interviews
Elementary and secondary achievement level test results
Participation in extracurricular activities, including any offices held in school-sponsored clubs or organizations
Honors and awards received
Teacher anecdotal records
Other disciplinary information
Special education records
Records associated with plans developed under section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
Verified reports or information from non-educational persons, agencies, or organizations of clear relevance to the student’s education

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Ill. School Student Records Act (ISSRA) affords parents/guardians and students over 18 years of age (eligible students) certain rights with respect to the student’s school records. They are:

The right to inspect and copy the student’s education records within 10 business days after the date the District receives a request for access.
The degree of access a student has to his or her records depends on the student’s age. Students less than 18 years of age have the right to inspect and copy only their permanent record. Students 18 years of age or older have access and copy rights to both permanent and temporary records.
Parents/guardians or students should submit to the Building Principal (or appropriate school official) a written request that identifies the record(s) they wish to inspect. The Principal will make arrangements for access and notify the parent(s)/guardian(s) or student of the time and place where the records may be inspected.
The District shall make the records available to inspect and copy within 10 business days, unless the District extends the response timeline to 15 business days in accordance with ISSRA. The District may charge $.35 per page for copying but no one will be denied their right to copies of their records for inability to pay this cost.
These rights are denied to any person against whom an order of protection has been entered concerning a student. 105 ILCS 5/10-22.3c and 10/5(a); 750 ILCS 60/214(b)(15).

Disclosure without consent is permitted to school officials with legitimate educational or administrative interests. A school official is a person employed by the District as an administrator, supervisor, instructor, or support staff member (including health or medical staff and law enforcement unit personnel); a person serving on the School Board. A school official may also include a volunteer, contractor, or consultant who, while not employed by the school, performs an institutional service or function for which the school would otherwise use its own employees and who is under the direct control of the school with respect to the use and maintenance of personally identifiable information from education records (such as an attorney, auditor, medical consultant, therapist, or educational technology vendor); or any parents/guardians or student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks. Individual board members do not have a right to see student records merely by virtue of their office unless they have a current demonstrable educational or administrative interest in the student and seeing his or her record(s) would be in furtherance of the interest.
A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibility or contractual obligations with the District. Upon request, the District discloses education records without consent to officials of another school district in which a student has enrolled or intends to enroll, as well as to any person as specifically required by State or federal law. Before information is released to these individuals, the parents/guardians will receive prior written notice of the nature and substance of the information, and an opportunity to inspect, copy, and challenge such records.
When a challenge is made at the time the student’s records are being forwarded to another school to which the student is transferring, there is no right to challenge: (1) academic grades, or (2) references to expulsions or out-of-school suspensions.
Disclosure is also permitted without consent to: any person for research, statistical reporting or planning, provided that no student or parent(s)/guardian(s) can be identified; to another school district that overlaps attendance boundaries with the District, if the District has entered into an intergovernmental agreement that allows for sharing of student records and information with the other district; any person named in a court order; appropriate persons if the knowledge of such information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other persons; and juvenile authorities when necessary for the discharge of their official duties who request information before adjudication of the student.

The right to a copy of any school student record proposed to be destroyed or deleted.

The permanent record is maintained for at least 60 years after the student transfers, graduates, or permanently withdraws. The temporary record is maintained for at least five years after the student transfers, graduates, or permanently withdraws. Temporary records that may be of assistance to a student with a disability who graduates or permanently withdraws, may, after five years, be transferred to the parent(s)/guardian(s) or to the student, if the student has succeeded to the rights of the parent(s)/guardian(s). Student temporary records are reviewed every four years or upon a student’s change in attendance centers, whichever occurs first.

The name and address of the Office that administers FERPA is:
U.S. Department of Education
Student Privacy Policy Office
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington DC 20202-8520