Graduate Assistantship Confidentiality Guidelines

Maintaining confidentiality and respecting intellectual property

Undergraduate or graduate assistants may have access to student and faculty personal information that includes but is not limited to transcripts, applications, personnel files, personal and institutional information, grades, other written materials or electronic files, as well as conversations about confidential information. Assistants may also be responsible for working with and handling the intellectual property of other students, faculty, or staff and may have to sign a non-disclosure agreement.

Per federal and state laws, and RISD’s institutional policies, assistants are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of all personal information and preventing its misuse, as well as respecting and protecting the intellectual property rights of students, faculty, and their colleagues. Note that all such private and protected information should be accessed and used solely to facilitate performance of legitimate job functions. Failure to maintain confidentiality and respect intellectual property, intentional or otherwise, may result in termination of the assistantship, and/or disciplinary action. This responsibility remains in effect during and after any assistantship assignments.

Anyone with access to student or faculty personal information and intellectual property is required to:

Not use, inappropriately share/disclose, permit use, or collaborate in the use of such information in unauthorized ways.
Not seek personal benefit or permit others to benefit personally by any confidential information or intellectual property which has come to them by virtue of their assignment.
Not to exhibit or divulge the contents of any record, report, or intellectual property to any person except in the conduct of their work assignment in accordance with RISD policy.
Not to knowingly include or cause to be included in any record or report a false, inaccurate or misleading entry.
To immediately report any violation of this code to one’s supervisor.

General guidelines for teaching assistant confidentiality concerns

Copy link to section

When you return materials to students, ensure that grades and comments are not visible to others.
Return work in supervised conditions that ensure that students pick up only their own work (unless you have received written permission for an exception from a classmate).
Retain unclaimed student work.
Arrange for secure destruction of unclaimed work.

Copy link to section

clearly explain how assignment grades will be posted and accessed at the beginning of class and after completion of assignments
post assignment grades on Canvas so students can access their own grades and are receiving consistent updates on their progress in the course
any requests for the release of academic/personal information to a third party (e.g., a parent) should be referred to your supervisor, or, if you are faculty of record, addressed only with the written consent of the student
if you must email grades, only use your risd.edu email

Copy link to section

inform students at the beginning of class how personal information, including attendance, will be collected and used
attendance should be taken either by the faculty of record or the teaching assistant

Copy link to section

for group work, ensure that only the minimum personal information necessary to the completion of the work is shared (i.e. email addresses or phone numbers, but not home address)
do not ask students to circulate lists with personal information

Copy link to section

advise students at the start of the course on email practices and expected etiquette (timing (e.g. late-night messages, expected window of response time, etc. and tone of messages).
set the expectation that class correspondence should take place through official RISD email accounts
avoid “reply all” responses whenever practical/appropriate
maintain a professional tone at all time

Copy link to section

Only access and collect information essential to the fulfillment of your job.

Copy link to section

ensure that you do not delete emails to and from students related to your assistantship
all records fall under FERPA and can be requested and released (and so they have to withstand public scrutiny)
maintain organized, clear records that are safe and protected from access by third parties
destroy personal information no longer needed for your work

Copy link to section

In the case of emergencies, health and safety issues trump privacy and assistants are responsible for communicating the issue to the direct supervisor as well as to the appropriate office (e.g. Public Safety, Counseling and Psychological Services, etc).
On a need-to-know basis and/or with a student’s written consent, you may share a student’s personal information with a student’s advisor.

Relevant policies

Student Code of Conduct

Student Code of Conduct for Remote Learning

Confidentiality Agreement

Protecting Student Privacy While Using Online Educational Resources

Notice of Student Rights with Respect to FERPA

FERPA Basics

FERPA and Virtual Learning

Student Code of Conduct

Student Code of Conduct for Remote Learning

Confidentiality Agreement

Protecting Student Privacy While Using Online Educational Resources

Notice of Student Rights with Respect to FERPA

FERPA Basics

FERPA and Virtual Learning

New and Incoming Students

Living at RISD

Finding Community

Health and Wellness

Academic Support

Graduate Assistantship Confidentiality Guidelines

Maintaining confidentiality and respecting intellectual property

General guidelines for teaching assistant confidentiality concerns

Assignments

Student grades

Student attendance

Group work signup

Email correspondence

Student records

Record keeping

Disclosure of student information

Relevant policies