Which situation would constitute a violation of FERPA?

The situation involving a volunteer parent asked to compile a list of withdrawn students from the cumulative file would indeed constitute a violation of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). FERPA protects the privacy of student education records, granting specific rights to parents regarding their children's records and limiting who can access those records without consent.

In this scenario, the information about withdrawn students includes personally identifiable information, and allowing a volunteer parent access to compile this information without the necessary permissions or safeguards violates the privacy rights guaranteed under FERPA. Only authorized school officials with a legitimate educational interest should be allowed to access and manage this type of sensitive information.

In contrast, accessing immunization forms for health reasons, parents requesting copies of their child’s records (as they have the right to do under FERPA), and teachers verifying attendance for grading purposes all comply with FERPA guidelines since they involve legitimate educational interests or parental rights.