You asked for summaries of parent notification policies governing violation of alcohol policies at the University of Connecticut (UConn) and schools in the Connecticut State University System.

UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT

UConn does not have a policy for notifying parents of students who violate its alcohol policy. According to the university’s legislative liaison, Al Wilson, a task force studying the issue of alcohol and drug abuse at the university, has discussed and, in all likelihood, will recommend such a policy. Its report is due in March.

SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT STATE UNIVERSITY (SCSU)

SCSU’s parent notification policy, adopted in 2000, authorizes the dean to determine when and how to notify parents or guardians of (1) students under age 21 who have committed serious violations of the university’s alcohol or drug policy and (2) students, including those over age 21, who violate the policies repeatedly. Two or more drug or alcohol violations constitute reasonable cause for notifying a student’s parents.

Serious violations include any that

1. harmed or posed a threat of harm to people or property;

2. resulted in an arrest and the student being taken into custody;

3. resulted in or could result in suspension, dismissal from the residence halls, or both; or

4. resulted in the violator becoming physically ill, requiring medical intervention as a result of consumption of alcohol or drugs, or both.

Whenever possible, students are given prior notice that their parents will be notified.

WESTERN CONNECTICUT STATE UNIVERSITY (WCSU)

WCSU will notify by mail parents or guardians of students under age 21 who violate its drug or alcohol policy more than once during a 12-month period. The university will also send a notice after a first violation that involved (1) significant property damage, (2) reckless disregard for the safety of the student or others, or (3) other serious university policy violations. The hearing officer, in conjunction with the dean of student affairs, determines if parents or guardians should be contacted after a first violation.

If a student under age 21 is taken to a hospital for a drug or alcohol problem, the university informs the parents or guardians by telephone and asks them to retrieve the student from the hospital. He cannot return to the residence halls or resume classes until he and his parents or guardians meet with the dean to discuss the incident and assistance options available from the university.

CENTRAL CONNECTICUT STATE UNIVERSITY (CCSU)

CCSU generally will not contact students’ parents for minor conduct violations, including most first-time alcohol violations. Its policy is to encourage students to inform their parents. The university “will notify parents where it is appropriate to do so in its discretion and within the bounds of legal limitations. ” It will notify parents of any alcohol or other drug use violation that results in a need for medical intervention, even if it is the student’s first violation.

EASTERN CONNECTICUT STATE UNIVERSITY

Students who violate the alcohol or drug policy may be required to see the university's alcohol and other drug support services' coordinator, who may, among other things, require them to complete an alcohol education program. Violators under age 21 must discuss the violation with their parents or guardians, who must telephone the university by a certain date to confirm the discussion. If the university does not receive confirmation, it notifies the parents or guardians of the violation in writing.

FEDERAL LAW

Disclosure of student information by colleges is governed by the federal Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). FERPA generally prohibits a college from disclosing any information from a student's educational records without the student's written consent. It allows (but does not require) colleges to disclose information to a student's parents if they claim him as a dependent on their federal income tax returns or if disclosure is in connection with a health or safety emergency. It also permits colleges to disclose to parents a student's violation of laws or college rules concerning alcohol or drug use or possession if the student is under age 21 and the violation is the subject of college disciplinary proceedings.

Both federal and state laws require colleges to disclose campus crime information and statistics. Federal law also allows colleges to disclose the results of disciplinary proceedings against students accused of violent or “nonforcible” sex crimes.

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Attachments: All available policies are attached.

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