Policies & Procedures

A CLARIFICATION FOR INSTRUCTORS

As a faculty member at New York University, you may have access to certain student information that is protected by the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), as well as by the University’s Policy on Personal Identification Numbers.  Below is some key information you should know about these University policies:

1. A student’s personally identifiable information is not to be disclosed or displayed publicly, nor to be posted  on University electronic information or data systems.

2. Personally identifiable information includes, but is not limited to:

   • University identification (UID) numbers

   • Email addresses

   • Contact information (telephone and address)

3. The following documents, which you might acquire, contain personally identifiable information:

   • Class lists

   • University/school forms

   • Other University documents

WHAT THESE POLICIES MEAN, IN MORE SPECIFIC TERMS:

• Access to Academic Records: As a course instructor, you are not entitled to access your student’s academic records (transcript, degree progress, etc.). This information may be accessed by the student’s adviser, but not by instructors;

• Collecting Contact Info: You should not pass around a single sheet of paper in class where all the students have written their contact information (phone, email address, etc.). Instead, collect contact information on individual sheets or cards. Students should share their personal information with each other only voluntarily and on their own.

• Discussing Students: You may discuss a student’s personal information only with (a) the student, or (b) University officials who have a legitimate educational interest in having that information; do not discuss the student’s performance or other information with parents or other outsiders, unless the student has given you express permission.

• Returning Assignments: Don’t leave papers, tests, or other assignments in a pile to be picked up. Instead, they must be put in individual envelopes or in a secure place where the secretary has to retrieve the specific paper for a student (who, if not known, should show an ID).

• Emailing Students: When sending a mass email to all students in your class, use the blind copy (Bcc) function rather than the carbon copy (Cc) function, since student emails are directory information for limited purposes only. Furthermore, official business with students or with other University faculty, administrators or staff about students should be conducted only through an NYU email account. If conducted through a personal email account, it will also be subject to FERPA review by students.

• Using TurnItIn: If using an anti-plagiarism service, you must remove the student’s name, ID number, or any other personally identifiable information before submitting the paper. For further guidance on creating student-submitted TurnItIn assignments, read the TurnItIn guidelines for faculty members.

• Posting Grades: Don’t post grades by name, social security number, or University ID number.

• Destroying Personal Information: When you are no longer a student’s instructor, you should destroy the personal information you have about him or her.

*NOTE: For adviser-specific FERPA information, please see The Role of the Faculty Advisor in Advising Basics.

Gallatin students are expected to uphold the Gallatin School’s policy on Academic Integrity and Student Conduct.  Failure to uphold this policy will result in disciplinary measures in accordance with the Student Conduct & Grade Grievance Rules of the Gallatin School.

See Gallatin's Syllabus Guidelines for a statement to include in your syllabus, and additional guidelines. Faculty who suspect students of using Generative AI without permission can consult the AI and Coursework and other guidance provided by NYU's Teaching with Generative AI.

Procedure for handling suspected cases of plagiarism

• Briefly, all cases of suspected plagiarism should be reported to the Associate Dean for Student Affairs, Patrick McCreery (patrick.mccreery@nyu.edu). Faculty may also consult with the Associate Dean about appropriate penalties and resolutions.

• See Student Conduct & Grade Grievance Rules for details.

You may have occasion to give assignments in your classes that ask your students to conduct first-hand research or projects with human subjects: interviews, observations, experiments, professional activities, etc. There are often very good pedagogical reasons for these assignments, so we encourage you to use them whenever they are appropriate. But it is also very important for you to instruct your students fully about the ethical guidelines regarding research on human subjects. NYU and the Gallatin School are committed to the principle that none of our educational activities, whether instructional or scholarly, should cause any harm to the people whom we are studying. This code applies particularly strongly to children and to anyone with mental or physical disabilities, but in fact it covers any human subject.

Although your student may be doing the research, as the faculty sponsor you are responsible for ensuring appropriate research design when human subjects are involved and for assisting in development of the application to the University Committee on Activities Involving Human Subjects. In addition, you have responsibility for his or her conduct in the field, adherence to the protocol, and any adverse advents or problems that may occur. You should also be able to appropriately address any questions from subjects concerning their rights as a subject or potential violations of such rights.

If your students are assigned to conduct research or professional activities with human subjects, visit NYU’s Research with Human Subjects information. This resource provides detailed guidelines for studying human subjects and will help you determine if your work will need to be reviewed and approved by the Committee.