Student newspapers are seeking to expand access to public records on crimes on campus

Cate Charron

Feb 1 2022

Indiana Daily Student

IU violated public access laws when it denied the Indiana Daily Student’s open records request for a student’s disciplinary record pertaining to sexual assault, according to the opinion of Luke Britt, the Indiana Public Access Counselor.

After the university denied access to such records, the IDS reported a complaint to the Indiana Public Access Counselor, which was received Nov. 1, 2021. The complaint said IU restricted the records and used disclosure exemptions incorrectly.

Generally, student records, both academic and disciplinary, are protected by a FERPA, which is a federal law limiting access to educational information. However, one FERPA exemption says that an institution can disclose disciplinary records when the student is the alleged perpetrator of a violent crime or a nonforcible sex offence.