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University of Wyoming

Confidentiality and You, the UDSS student
 

One of UDSS' goals is to protect your privacy.  Our policy is to ensure that both the documentation you provide our office about your disability and other information related to you is held in strictest confidence.

UDSS requests documentation for the purposes of verifying that your condition(s) is a disability defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, and to assist us in working with you to form a plan to accommodate your disability-related needs in the learning environment at the University.

Your UDSS student file contains your application and the documentation you provided us.  It also contains our own notes pertaining to our interaction with you and the services that we have facilitated.  According to FERPA (The Family and Educational Rights and Privacy Act) you have a right to access your file.  If you are ever interested in seeing your file, you may make arrangements with your UDSS coordinator to view it.  A pre-arranged appointment is necessary, so please plan ahead.

UDSS retains your file for seven (7) years after your last semester at UW.  At that time, the file is shredded.  Because files are not retained indefinitely, we encourage you to obtain and keep copies of your documentation for future use.

In regards to confidentiality issues, we have established some guidelines:

Within our office, only appropriate personnel have access to your file.  Any information regarding your disability is confidential and will be discussed with other UW personnel only if they have a legitimate educational interest, as stated under FERPA.

Situations may arise in which your UDSS coordinator may share some disability-related information about you in circumstances related to legitimate educational interest or in an emergency.  We may provide faculty or staff with information that will help them help you.  We will not give others access to your UDSS file, nor will we share copies of the documentation that you have provided us without your written permission.  If faculty members or other have more specific questions which we feel would be better addressed by you, we will encourage them to talk to you.

If you have any questions regarding confidentiality and your rights, please contact your coordinator.

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