Helping Students

The University of Alabama’s Counseling Center is a resource for students needing help with mental health or stress management issues.

Visit the Counseling Center website and the MentalHealthEdu website for information on how to identify and help students in distress.

Be sure to follow the appropriate UA channels if you feel that a student needs help. Don’t try to address these issues on your own.

FERPA protects the confidentiality of student education records, and it is important for you to understand the issues involved with FERPA (also known as the Buckley Amendment). The Office of Academic Records / University Registrar has developed a comprehensive FERPA website (https://registrar.ua.edu/academics-policies/ferpa/) to help you determine when and when not to share student information.
Incoming first-year students are given the opportunity to sign a confidentiality waiver allowing the University to share their academic information (grades, class progress, etc.) with parents or guardians.If parents contact you requesting information about their child’s progress in your class, you will need to determine if the student signed a confidentiality waiver before you can speak to his or her parents.
The safest thing to do if a parent calls to ask about student grades is to explain to them that because of FERPA you are prohibited from talking with them but that you will be happy to speak with the student about his or her grades. If the parent wants a conference, the student should be present and you should get permission to waive FERPA before sharing student records at the conference. Please, also, feel free to contact the Director or Associate Director of FWP for advice on how to handle specific parental requests for information.

To report instances of hazing or suspected hazing call 348-HALT or see hazing.ua.edu for more info.

The Office of Disability Services (ODS) serves as the central contact point for students with disabilities. ODS works individually with students to determine appropriate and reasonable academic accommodations, and to ensure that students’ academic performance is evaluated apart from the limiting effects of disability. Please see the ODS Faculty/Staff page (http://ods.ua.edu/faculty/) or call 348-4285 (voice) or 348-3081 (TTY) for details on policies, note-taker procedures, test scheduling, and procedures for temporary disability (injuries).

In the first weeks of class, remind students that they must register with ODS to receive accommodations and that once registered, they should bring you documentation that explains what accommodations are needed. Accommodations are not retroactive.

Safe Zone “[provides] a visible network of allies for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, and asexual (LGBTQA+) individuals.” For more information and contact info please visit the Safe Zone website (http://safezone.ua.edu/).