Sara Meshreky

I enjoyed reading how important faculty involvement is during orientation. I also found it helpful that faculty should include personal information to allow students to see the instructors as a person and "approachable". My question would be, should all representatives of other departments include this personal touch in their presentations, such as financial aid, student services, etc.?

It is so helpful to learn about the reality that students face buyer's remorse. This is especially helpful in planning orientation. I plan to use this by trying to implement Student Services more in the orientation and welcoming process when students come in.   

Something I found helpful in this module was the mention of peer mentors during orientation and the students' first year. I intend to bring this information to the attention of my director in hopes of including our peer tutors as part of orientation. 

I agree with many in stating that I was not aware of the Solomon Act. It's also important to note how much social media and online education has impacted the FERPA guidelines and how adminstration needs to double check to ensure they are protecting students' privacy.

FERPA has many aspects that protects former students, alumni and deceased students. New hire and continuous employee training is neccessary to ensure students are protected. Additionally, a student who is employed by an educational institute does not have full access to their own student records. 

FERPA policies need to be known to both students and administration. Best practices / policies that are set in place can be set by the university as long as the students are aware. Written documentation of student release is also crucial. 

It's important to note that it's our responsibility to protect student's information, especially when dealing with online classes and requests. I intend to apply this by double checking any requests and verifying who the students want to disclose information to. I also found it interesting that the instuttion can rewrite compliance guidelines and policies if they become noncompliant.