Mary Bland, Registrar
B.A., M.P.A., Kent State University

Elizabeth M. Embick, Associate Registrar
B.A., Ohio Northern University;
M.Ed., Kent State University

Jennifer Pappa, Assistant Registrar
B.S., Franklin University

The Office of the Registrar pledges to maintain the highest level of academic integrity and ethical behavior, delivering exceptional administrative service to all individuals. The office commits to the integrity, confidentiality, and security of institutional records; to the development and implementation of effective policies and management systems; and to the accurate interpretation of such information to all constituencies.

Registrar's Office Website

Services Provided by the Registrar’s Office

The registrar’s office provides many services to the College, including the following:

  • Enrollment verification
  • Transcripts
  • Verification of good standing
  • Registration and class schedule
  • Declaration of major, minor, and advisor
  • Processing of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, and all transfer credit
  • Processing grade mailers upon student request
On This Page

Academic Records

Hiram College is committed to the protection and confidentiality of student educational records, adhering closely to the guidelines established by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), a federal legislation established to regulate access and maintenance of student educational records.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) affords certain rights to students in respect to their education records, including the right to inspect their education records; to request an amendment of the records that the student believes are inaccurate; and to control disclosures of their records except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent. It is important to note that all rights to access move to the student when that student (regardless of age) is in a post-secondary educational institution; parents, spouses, and significant others have no inherent right to access student education records. Education records, for the most part and with certain exceptions, include all records maintained in any medium which can identify the student.

Please visit the registrar’s office website or see below to view Hiram’s Annual Notification to Students regarding their FERPA rights and the exceptions to the requirement of prior student consent for release of student record information.

Directory Information

Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), Hiram College may release, on an unlimited basis, a student’s directory information, which is defined as that information not generally considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if disclosed. Directory information includes:

  • Student’s name
  • Local and permanent addresses
  • Email address
  • Telephone listing
  • Date of birth
  • Dates of attendance
  • Class level (undergraduate/graduate, first-year, sophomore, etc.)
  • Degrees conferred
  • Honors and awards received
  • Major field(s) of study
  • Participation in officially recognized activities and sports
  • Weight and height of members of athletic teams
  • Final theses/Capstones titles
  • Photograph
  • Most recent previous educational agency or institution attended

Hiram students may withhold the release of their directory information by notifying the registrar within the first week of the fall semester using the Request to Withhold Directory Information form available in the registrar’s office or on our website. Such a request to withhold information remains in effect until revoked in writing by the student, regardless of whether the student is a current, withdrawn, or graduated student. Please note that such a request is binding for all of the above directory information listing and to all parties other than for those exceptions allowed under the Act. 

  • The registrar’s office will release such records if the College receives a valid subpoena requesting such records.
  • The registrar’s office may choose to release such records with the written authorization of the executor of the deceased student’s estate or next of kin, if an executor has not been appointed. Such individual would need to provide proof of the student’s death (i.e., death certificate or obituary notice). The request will be reviewed by the registrar and the academic dean of the college, or their designates, who will make the determination on a case-by-case basis.  Requests should be sent to Hiram College Registrar’s Office, PO Box 67, Hiram, OH 44234.

Students should carefully consider the consequences of any decision made to withhold directory information as any future requests for such information (even those received after graduation) from other schools, prospective employers or other persons or organizations will be refused. Hiram College will honor the request to withhold all directory information, but cannot assume responsibility to contact the student every time a request is received. Regardless of the effect upon the student, Hiram College assumes no liability for honoring the student’s instructions that such information be withheld. Any questions can be directed to the registrar’s office, Student Service Suite, Teachout-Price Building, or PO Box 67, Hiram OH 44234; 330.569.5210.

Annual Notification of Student Rights Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

In accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), students enrolled at Hiram College are hereby notified of their rights to their education records:

1. Students have the right to inspect and review their education records within 45 days of the day Hiram College receives a request for access. Students should submit to the Office of the Registrar written requests that identify the record(s) they wish to inspect. The registrar will make arrangements for access and notify the student of the time and place where the records may be inspected. If the records are not maintained by the registrar's office, the student shall be advised of the correct official to whom the request should be addressed.

a. A student is defined as any person for whom an education record is maintained by Hiram College and who has begun attending classes at Hiram College.

b. In general, an education record is defined as any records in any medium directly related to a student and maintained by the institution or by a party acting for the institution. An education record is any record in handwriting, print, tape, microfilm, electronic file or other medium maintained by Hiram College.

The following exemptions are not part of the education record or subject to this Act:

i. Personal records maintained by the College staff/faculty if kept in the sole possessions of that individual, and the information is not accessible or revealed to any other person, e.g. faculty grade book, advising file.

ii. Employment records not contingent on the student’s enrollment.  (Therefore, student worker records, evaluations, files are part of a student’s education record).

iii. Law enforcement records that are created by a law enforcement agency for that purpose.

iv. Medical and psychological records used solely for treatment.

v. Alumni records containing information relating to a person after that person is no longer a student at Hiram.

2. Students have the right to request that the College amend an education record that the student believes to be inaccurate. Students should write to the registrar, clearly identifying the part of the record they want changed and specifying why it is inaccurate. If Hiram College decides not to amend the record as requested by the student, the student shall be notified of the decision and advised as to their right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to the student when notified of the right to a hearing.

3. Students have the right to provide written consent before Hiram College discloses personally identifiable information contained in the student's education records, except to the extent that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent. One exception which permits disclosure without consent is disclosure to school officials with legitimate educational interests.

a. A school official is a person employed by Hiram College in an administrative, supervisory, academic, research, or support staff position (including law enforcement personnel and health staff); a person or company with whom Hiram College has contracted (such as an attorney, auditor, collection agent, degree conferral agent, document managing agent, and placement sites for internship, clinical, or similar student work/study opportunities); a person serving on the Board of Trustees; a student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another school official in performing their tasks; consultants, volunteers or other outside parties to whom Hiram College has outsourced institutional services or functions that it would otherwise use employees to perform. A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill their professional responsibility.

b. As allowed within FERPA guidelines, Hiram College may disclose education records without consent to officials of another school, upon request, in which a student seeks or intends to enroll.

4. Students have the right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by Hiram College to comply with the requirements of FERPA. The name and address of the Office that administers FERPA is: Family Policy Compliance Office, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC, 20202-4605.

5. At its discretion, Hiram College may provide directory information in accordance with the provisions of the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act. Directory information is defined as that information which would not generally be considered harmful or invasive of privacy if disclosed. Designated directory information at Hiram College includes the following: student name, permanent address, local address, temporary address, electronic mail address, telephone number(s), date of birth, dates of attendance, class level (undergraduate/graduate, first-year, sophomore, etc.), degrees conferred, honors and awards received, major field(s) of study, participation in officially recognized activities and sports, weight and height of athletic team members, final theses/capstones, photograph, most recent previous educational agency or institution attended.

Students may withhold directory information by notifying the registrar in writing within the first week of the academic semester the request is to become effective. (A request form to withhold directory information is available in the registrar’s office). Please note that such withholding requests are binding for all information to all parties other than for those exceptions allowed under the Act. Students should carefully consider the consequences of any decision made to withhold directory information as any future requests for such information from other schools, prospective employers or other persons or organizations will be refused. Hiram College will honor the request to withhold all directory information, but cannot assume responsibility to contact the student every time a request is received. Regardless of the effect upon the student, Hiram College assumes no liability for honoring the student’s instructions that such information be withheld.

Documentation of FERPA violations is maintained in the Office of the Registrar and in the Office of the Vice President and Dean of the College.

6.As of January 3, 2012, the U.S. Department of Education's FERPA regulations expand the circumstances under which your education records and personally identifiable information (PII) contained in such records — including your Social Security number, grades, or other private information — may be accessed without your consent. First, the U.S. Comptroller General, the U.S. Attorney General, the U.S. Secretary of Education, or state and local education authorities ("Federal and State Authorities") may allow access to your records and PII without your consent to any third party designated by a Federal or State Authority to evaluate a federal- or state-supported education program. The evaluation may relate to any program that is "principally engaged in the provision of education," such as early childhood education and job training, as well as any program that is administered by an education agency or institution. Second, Federal and State Authorities may allow access to your education records and PII without your consent to researchers performing certain types of studies, in certain cases even when we object to or do not request such research. Federal and State Authorities must obtain certain use-restriction and data security promises from the entities that they authorize to receive your PII, but the Authorities need not maintain direct control over such entities. In addition, in connection with Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems, State Authorities may collect, compile, permanently retain, and share without your consent PII from your education records, and they may track your participation in education and other programs by linking such PII to other personal information about you that they obtain from other Federal or State data sources, including workforce development, unemployment insurance, child welfare, juvenile justice, military service, and migrant student records systems.

Academic Records of Deceased Students

Upon a student’s death, education records are no longer protected under FERPA. As such, the disposition of records pertaining to a deceased individual is not a FERPA issue but a matter of institutional policy. Hiram College maintains full discretion in deciding whether, and under what conditions, education records of deceased students should be disclosed.

In general, the College will not release education records but may do so under the following conditions:

  • The registrar’s office will release such records if the College receives a valid subpoena requesting such records.
  • The registrar’s office may choose to release such records with the written authorization of the executor of the deceased student’s estate or next of kin, if an executor has not been appointed. Such individual would need to provide proof of the student’s death (i.e., death certificate or obituary notice). The request will be reviewed by the registrar and the academic dean of the college, or their designates, who will make the determination on a case-by-case basis. Requests should be sent to Hiram College Registrar’s Office, PO Box 67, Hiram, OH 44234.