"A former student filed suit against Fuller Theological Seminary, claiming that it had expelled her because she was in a same-sex marriage," Inside Higher Ed reports. "The complaint filed by the former student, Joanna Maxon, says disciplinary proceedings were initiated against her after the financial aid office flagged information from her tax returns -- which she had authorized be shared with the seminary for financial aid purposes -- showing she had filed her taxes jointly with a same-sex spouse."

"Maxon’s lawsuit alleges that Fuller, a nondenominational, evangelical Christian seminary located in Pasadena, Calif., violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, as well as California civil rights code barring discrimination on the basis of sex and sexual orientation.

The lawsuit raises questions about the rights of religious institutions to treat students differently based on their religious views on same-sex relationships, as well as issues related to student privacy.

Paul C. Southwick, Maxon’s lawyer, said the complaint does not allege breach of privacy because students have no private right of action under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. But he argued that Fuller had used her tax records improperly and pointed to provisions of FERPA that prohibit college officials from sharing a student's educational records without consent even internally except to individuals that have 'legitimate educational interests' in those records.

​'That information on tax returns is protected by FERPA, and it can only be used for what the student authorizes it to be used for,' Southwick said. 'There does appear to be an exception for educational purposes, if it’s necessary for some kind of educational purpose beyond financial aid, but otherwise it can’t be disclosed even internally to the institution. For example, you wouldn’t want the financial aid office emailing your tax returns to professors or other administrators.'

Karen McCarthy, the director of policy analysis at the National Association for Student Financial Aid Administrators, said the relevant question under FERPA would be whether there was a legitimate educational interest to share tax information internally. Fuller's FERPA policy states that '[a] school official has a legitimate educational interest [in a student's educational record] if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibilities for the seminary.'"

NASFAA's "Notable Headlines" section highlights media coverage of financial aid to help members stay up to date with the latest news. Articles included under the notable headlines section are not written by NASFAA, but rather by external sources. Inclusion in Today's News does not imply endorsement of the material or guarantee the accuracy of information presented.

Publication Date: 11/25/2019