You are hereby notified that Northern Illinois University shall consider as "directory information," subject to public disclosure in accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, the following items: A student's name, address, telephone listing, e-mail address and photographic or electronic picture or image, date and place of birth, major field of study, classification, participation in officially recognized activities and sports, weight and height of members of athletic teams, dates of attendance and full- or part-time status, degrees and awards received, and the most recent previous educational agency or institution attended by the student.

Any individual who does not want the foregoing information publicly disclosed shall so inform the Director of Registration and Records, Williston Hall 220, in writing. Please note that students must be currently enrolled to request nondisclosure of their directory information.

Print-friendly forms are available below for these options or students may utilize MyNIU to indicate their choices.

• Request to Prevent Disclosure of Directory Information (PDF)
• Retraction of Request to Prevent Disclosure of Directory Information (PDF)

If you request that no directory information be released, any business you wish to conduct at NIU must be done in person with proper identification. Information will not be provided to you over the phone or via e-mail. If you are unable to come in person, you may submit a signed and dated written request containing your student ID number and date of birth, listing the specific information you're requesting. We will reply to you in writing. Please be aware of the following circumstances pertaining to a request to prevent disclosure of directory information:

1. A third-party, such as a prospective employer, will need to submit with each request for information your written authorization before NIU can release or verify any information about you.
2. To avoid University non-compliance with or delay in response to requests that require immediate information, you should provide written authorization to any agency, company, employer, etc. with which you have contact.
3. University publications, such as the Commencement Bulletin and Student Directory will not list your name or other information about you.
4. NIU assumes no liability as a result of honoring your request that directory information be withheld.
5. All requests for "No Release of Directory Information" will be processed within 1-2 weeks following the published deadline for submission of requests as follows:
   1. each request will remain in effect on a continuing basis until Registration and Records is informed, in writing, to the contrary by the student or former student.
   2. This request will NOT prevent the Office of Registration and Records from releasing information to the student's parents if they provide evidence that the student is their dependent.

NEW INFORMATION EFFECTIVE JANUARY 2012

FERPA Annual Notice to Reflect Possible Federal and State Data Collection and Use

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 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 the University objects 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.