Related Policies and Guidelines

 TBR Policy 03.02.03.00 Confidentiality of Student Records

 TBR Policy 1.08.04.00 Personally Identifiable Information (PII)

 TBR Policy 2.05.00.00 Distance Education

The purpose of this policy is to (1) ensure that Northeast State Community College operates in compliance with the provisions of the United States Federal Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA), Public Law 110-315 concerning the verification of student identity in distance education, and (2) provide procedures on protecting the privacy of students enrolled in distance education courses.

Verification of Student Identity in Distance Education Courses

Upon admittance to Northeast State, each student shall receive unique login credentials for the College’s secure learning management system. The utilization of a secure learning management system with unique login credentials for each student, including students enrolled in Internet and/or other distance education credit offerings, shall facilitate the verification of student identity and protect student privacy.

Moreover, some distance education courses may require that students meet in person periodically throughout the academic term. These in-person sessions may be for scheduled class meetings, on-ground labs, tests, proctored exams, etc. A student may be required to present a photo identification at these on-campus sessions. Other methods and technologies may be used to verify student identity, as appropriate.

Fees Associated with the Verification of Student Identity in Distance Education Courses

Northeast State students are not charged additional fees to cover the cost of identity verification for any distance education courses, including Internet courses.

Student Privacy

Student privacy protection shall include, but may not be limited to, (1) the issuance of a unique student identification number and password for each student,( 2) the use of the institution’s official learning management system for the transmission of graded assignments and confidential materials between the faculty member and student while in a distance learning environment, (3) adherence to FERPA, and (4) mandatory on-campus sessions for hybrid Internet and ITV course sections, during which individual student meetings may be conducted.

Additionally, the College’s distance education faculty shall continually work with academic deans, the Academic Computing Manager, and campus review committees to develop and implement methods to ensure the quality and integrity of Northeast State distance education courses, to include mechanisms to verify student identity and protect the privacy of students.