Germanna Community College makes no distinction between the privacy rights of students enrolled in distance learning courses or programs and the privacy rights of other students.
Online Learning privacy statement:
Germanna protects the privacy of all students, including distance learning students, through the strict adherence to the rules of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 as Amended (FERPA). The official FERPA statement is available for student and public view through the Germanna Community College website and in college catalogs. All Germanna Community College employees complete required annual training in FERPA rules.
Online Learning privacy procedures:
Student identification number
GCC issues each student a student identification number at the time of initial registration and each college employee upon date of employment. These student and employee IDs become the unique identifiers for all individuals throughout their academic and professional career at GCC. The user ID is required for both students and faculty to access GCC’s online class environment within Canvas. Canvas is a secure environment for faculty members to post assignments and exams while ensuring the privacy of individual student’s assessments and grades.
Faculty course space
All faculty members are assigned a course space in Canvas matching each class they are teaching. The faculty’s employee ID is used to verify access to this space. Each student registered in a class will have access to that class’s space in Canvas verified by their individual student ID. Faculty follow security recommendations for online coursework found on the GCC website.
Secure login and password
Each distance learning faculty and student enters his/her user ID and password into the myGCC login portal. This combination of user ID and password identifies faculty and students to the system on each subsequent course visit.
- All parties accept responsibility for the security of their personal password.
- The myGCC system requires all passwords to be updated every 180 days.
- Student information is individualized within Canvas and protected from outside intruders.
- Faculty information within Canvas is protected from student views and from outside intruders.
- All myGCC users must utilize multi-factor authentication (MFA).
VCCS information security standard
GCC adheres to the VCCS Information Security Standard 9.3 Access Control and secures personal information from unauthorized access, use or disclosure. Confidential information including grades, private contact information, or personal information directly attributed to a student is transmitted through secure interaction.