As a faculty member, why do I need to pay special attention to student information (grades, assignments)?
According to the Category 1 Standards and FERPA, the following information is among the data that would be considered Category 1 and must be secured appropriately:
"Grades (including test scores, assignments, and class grades)"
In addition, even lists of other student information like name and email address may be Category 1 if the student has requested that they not be revealed (they will have an asterisk to the left of their name in CLIPS).
Where should faculty store student information?
Blackboard
- Best place for current grade information
- Put info directly into Blackboard where possible
- Stored for 2 years
WebSpace
- Current quota 1 GB
- Options for securely sending data
- Review Webspace Best Practices on the web for requirements for Category 1 compliance
Austin Disk Server
- e.g. \\disk.austin.utexas.edu\root\engr\<your department>\faculty\<your eid>
- Access to this folder is restricted to your account
- Contact your IT Staff to insure that your computer has been secured properly for connecting to these sensitive files
Where should I NOT keep student information?
Contact your IT Staff if you store any grade or assignment information on:
- Personally owned computers
- Local CPU Hard Drives (whether desktop of laptop)
- Thumb/Flash Drives
- External USB Hard Drives
- TA's computers
Please consult Extended List of Category-I Data for additional information or contact the UT FERPA office.