[Glossary](https://telxpress.com/glossary/) / Security & compliance # FERPA **FERPA** (the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) is the federal law that protects the privacy of student education records and gives parents and eligible students rights to inspect and correct them. - Security & compliance - Updated October 11, 2026 - Written by the Telxpress advisory team 01 In depth ## What it is, why it matters and *what to ask a vendor* FERPA (20 U.S.C. section 1232g) applies to schools, districts, colleges and other institutions that receive federal education funds. It limits disclosure of personally identifiable information from education records without consent, with defined exceptions, and it reaches the vendors a school uses when they act as school officials under the institution's control. For a school adding technology, FERPA shapes what a front-office AI agent may say to a caller, where call recordings and transcripts are stored, and which cloud services may hold student information. Younger students bring COPPA considerations too. A growing school or network of campuses needs one policy, not a different answer per site. Ask a vendor whether they will act under your direct control as a school official, where data is stored, how identity is verified before information is given out over the phone, how long records are kept and how deletion requests are met. Confirm the arrangement with your district's counsel or privacy officer. 02 Related terms ## Terms that usually come up *alongside it* - Security & compliance ### [HIPAA business associate agreement](https://telxpress.com/glossary/hipaa-business-associate-agreement/) A HIPAA business associate agreement (BAA) is the written contract a healthcare provider must have with any vendor that creates, receives, stores or transmits protected health information on its behalf. - AI ### [AI governance policy](https://telxpress.com/glossary/ai-governance-policy/) An AI governance policy is the written set of rules a business adopts for how AI tools may be used, what data they may touch, who approves them and how their output is checked. - Security & compliance ### [Call recording consent](https://telxpress.com/glossary/call-recording-consent/) Call recording consent is the permission the law requires before a phone call is recorded; in California, every party to a confidential call must be told and agree, which is often called two-party consent. - Security & compliance ### [Access control](https://telxpress.com/glossary/access-control/) Access control is the system of electronic locks, readers, credentials and management software that decides who may enter which door and when, and records every entry, replacing keys that cannot be revoked. 03 At Telxpress ## Where this shows up *at Telxpress* The pages and articles where this term does real work: what we advise, build and support. - Industry ### [AI & Business Technology for Education](https://telxpress.com/industries/education/) AI use cases for schools and campuses, FERPA and COPPA considerations, and the classroom AV, networks and phones we install and support. - Page ### [Conference Room AV & Digital Signage](https://telxpress.com/solutions/business-technology/audio-visual/) Conference rooms, displays, video conferencing, digital signage and sound systems designed for AI-enabled meetings and installed by our Irvine team. - Page ### [Donya AI Voice Agent: Never Miss a Call](https://telxpress.com/solutions/ai/voice-agent/) Donya answers every call 24/7, qualifies leads and books appointments. Call the demo line to hear it. Built and run by Telxpress. 04 Sources ## Public *references* The standard or law this definition rests on, as published by its owner. Fetched and checked on the review date above. - [U.S. Department of Education: FERPA (Protecting Student Privacy)](https://studentprivacy.ed.gov/ferpa) studentprivacy.ed.gov - [20 U.S.C. 1232g, Family educational and privacy rights (Cornell LII)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/20/1232g) law.cornell.edu Next step ## Want This Applied *to Your Business?* Book a free 30-minute AI readiness consultation. You'll leave with three AI opportunities specific to your business, whether you work with us or not. [Book My Free Consultation](https://telxpress.com/book/) [Take the Free AI Readiness Assessment](https://telxpress.com/ai-readiness/) [Or call 24/7: (949) 861-4500](tel:+19498614500) Last reviewed: October 11, 2026. Published by Telxpress, Irvine, CA.