Academic Policies

Messiah College respects student rights guaranteed by law and appropriate to a private, Christian, educational setting. Messiah College maintains student records under the guidelines of the Family Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), which gives enrolled students the right to inspect their "educational records" and to restrict the release of those records. Educational records are defined generally as records, files, documents, and other materials maintained by the College which contain information directly related to the student and from which a student can be individually identified. Examples include academic records, student account records, and many records maintained by Student Life. Educational records do not include personal records of instructors or administrators, medical records, financial records of parents, or Public Safety records created for the purpose of law enforcement.

Educational records will be released to parents/guardians only with the written consent of the student or upon written evidence that the student has been declared as a dependent on the parent/guardian's most recent income tax return.

FERPA permits the College to release "directory information" without student consent to anyone requesting information unless a student instructs the College not to release such information. Directory information at Messiah College includes a student's name, home address, campus address, home telephone number, high school attended, campus telephone number, campus e-mail address, photograph (available only on the college's internal, secure, online system), dates of attendance, degree for which a student is a candidate, academic major, academic awards or honors, birth date, class year, full-time/part-time status, and weight and height for members of athletic teams.

Messiah College's policy regarding access to college records is set forth in full in the Student Handbook.