The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Innovation and Improvement explains that the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. Schools must have written permission from the parent or eligible student in order to release any information from a student's education record. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education. Parents or eligible students have the right to inspect and review the student's education records maintained by the school.

More commonly known name for the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974. The law gives parents and students (over age 18) the right to see, cor­rect, and control access to school records.

A federal law that regulates the management of student records and disclosure of information from those records.