• To form and civilly express opinions on issues without jeopardizing their relationship with the instructor.
• To be evaluated based on academic merit and performance and not on matters irrelevant to that performance.

STUDENT ACADEMIC GRIEVANCE

The student academic grievance process aims to provide a prompt and equitable resolution for any student who believes a college decision or action was unfair or has adversely affected their status, rights, or privileges. The student must make a reasonable effort to resolve the issue on an informal basis. Within 30 days, the student must meet with the Department Chairperson and may be required to complete a written statement about the grievance.

If there is no satisfactory resolution, the student then forwards the written statement to the Dean of Academic Development, who will submit the statement to the Ad Hoc Committee on Student Concerns. This committee acts as advisor to the Dean of Academic Development, who is responsible for final resolution of the problem. For further information or copies of the Student Grievance Procedures, contact the Office of the Dean of Academic Development.

STUDENT HOUSING GRIEVANCE

The student housing grievance process aims to provide a prompt and equitable resolution for any student who believes a decision or action by FIDM Housing has adversely affected their status, rights, or privileges. The student must first make a reasonable effort to resolve the issue on an informal basis with the Resident Advisor. If there is no satisfactory resolution, the student(s) should provide a written statement about the grievance to the Housing staff. The FIDM Housing staff may arrange a meeting with the student(s) for further investigation of grievances filed. Should a student concern remain unresolved, the student then forwards the written complaint to the Vice President of Admissions who will consult with the FIDM Housing Committee and provide final resolution.

STUDENT WORK

FIDM is proud of the work produced by its students and reserves the right to photograph, publish, display, or retain work done by students and alumni. Final projects must be picked up no later than the first two weeks of the next quarter. After that time, the projects become the property of FIDM.

STUDENTS' EDUCATION RECORDS & FERPA POLICY

Student files reside permanently on the system database. Transcripts are generated on demand.

The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99) is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education. FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising complies with FERPA regulations.

The term "education records" is defined as those records that contain information directly related to a student and which are maintained by an educational agency or institution or by a party acting for the agency or institution.

A student who attends a postsecondary institution is an "eligible student" with the following rights:

• The right to review their educational records.
• The right to seek to have the records amended for correction of the contents of these records.
• The right to a formal hearing if seeking the correction of these records.
• The right to have control over the disclosure of personally identifiable information from the records (except in certain circumstances addressed below.)
• The right to file a complaint with the Department of Education if the institution fails to comply with FERPA policies.

Student Privacy Policy

U.S. Department of Education

400 Maryland Ave SW

Washington, DC 20202-8520

Students who wish to access and review their records may do so by submitting a written request to the Vice President of Education. An appointment for the student to review the requested record will be made within 45 days of the request: a College official will be present at the time of the review.

Under FERPA, an eligible student has the right to request that inaccurate or misleading information in their education records be amended. FIDM will consider the student's request. If FIDM decides not to amend a record in accordance with an eligible student's request, FIDM will inform the student of their right to a hearing on the matter. If, because if the hearing, FIDM still decides not to amend the record, the eligible student has the right to insert a statement in the record setting forth their views.

Under FERPA, a school may not generally disclose personally identifiable information from an eligible student's education records to a third party unless the eligible student has provided written consent. However, there are a number of exceptions. The following is a non-exclusive list of FERPA exemptions that permit disclosure without student consent:

• Disclosure to school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school official is defined as a person employed by FIDM in an administrative, supervisory, academic, research, or support staff position (including law enforcement unit personnel, health staff, and counselors); a person or company with whom FIDM has contracted as its agent to provide a service instead of using Institute employees or officials (such as an attorney, auditor, information technology contractor, consultant, or collection agent); or assisting