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Thursday, 23 February 2006 |
by LINDSAY CRAVEN
Lifestyles Editor
Editor’s note: This article is part one of two articles about student information.
In times of frequent identity theft and fraud, it has become essential that everyone protect their records. Students must have heightened awareness, as they are at high risk.
Students at Appalachian State University typically use their Social
Security numbers to identify themselves. This means handing them out
regularly in order to obtain campus services.
How much does the university know about students, and how does it protect that information from harm?
The answer may be surprising, but Appalachian has managed to protect
its students by using the least amount of information possible and
keeping the amount of people with whom it shares information to a
minimum.
Social Security numbers
Regarding Social Security numbers, students have the option to have a
random number assigned to them as a student ID, but this is not well
known.
“The Social Security number is our current unique identifier,”
Registrar Don Rankins said. “It’s the key to our student system – key
meaning everything that’s referenced using that number.”
Rankin said the number is also required for financial aid, scholarships and student employment.
“It’s going to be critical that we always collect that number if you
want to be involved in any of those three things and probably 95
percent of students want to be involved in that,” he said.
This issue is being assessed.
The university will update its 25-year-old ID system with the Banner
System, which will give every Appalachian State student a randomly
assigned number. This system must go live by fall 2007.
“We’re taking advantage of updating the system and all the state
schools are doing that,” Rankins said. “All of us but two schools are
in the middle of conversion.”
“We did a study two to three years ago about what it would cost to take
our current system and it would take us two to three years to get our
current system converted,” Rankins continued. “So, it’s one of those
things, you know, why not spend that same time on the total new system
we need.”
During this conversion time, Appalachian is focusing on raising
awareness among various departments that will continue to use Social
Security numbers until the Banner System is installed.
The same awareness sessions were held four years ago.
“That project entailed us reviewing every report, every output for
faculty, everything individuals were accessing,” Rankins said. “We went
out and did sessions with every group on campus about how we had to
hide that number.
“We had to use reference information, such as your name, your e-mail
account and we actually created what’s called an authentication file so
most everything you do, you log in using your e-mail account and a
password known only by you and that removes us needing that Social
Security number.”
Student health records
Student Health Services was one of those groups. Students must still
give their Social Security number because this is how the department
files.
One thing that has been done to improve this is to allow students to write their number and hand it to the nurse.
Students may have concerns about their health records.
“The university has a policy on how long we keep records before we
discard them, the university disposition determines that time,” head
nurse Norma J. Adisey said.
“The only access to your records that anyone has is who you give
permission to,” Adisey said. “The staff in medical services are the
only ones allowed to view your records if you need care.”
Students may request their records upon graduating from the university, but they will only receive copies, she said.
The original records will be kept until the specified amount of years, determined by the university disposition, is up.
University Attorney Dayton Cole said he is currently conducting a study
with Health Services to determine how long records should be kept.
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