Posting of ID Numbers Discussed

The question of whether professors should publicly post student names together with their ID numbers was discussed by the Committee on Undergraduate Education (CUE) yesterday afternoon.

As a result of the debate, Registrar Georgene B. Herschbach agreed to send a letter to the faculty, reminding them that the posting of such information is prohibited.

According to the "Information for Instructors" handbook, professors may not post grades either by ID number or by name.

The discussion was prompted by a student who complained to Dean of Undergraduate Education Lawrence Buell last fall that the practice violated her right to confidentiality.

The student, who was not identified, had expressed concern that the privacy of her grade would be compromised since many professors post course grades by ID numbers.

At the meeting, Herschbach proposed a system by which students would select a personal information number (PIN) upon entering a course. The PIN would be used when information about the student's grades were posted in public.

"It's a way of putting control in the hands of a student and protecting confidentiality," Herschbach said.

However, some of the committee members said they believed a new system would be unnecessary and extraneous.

"Since we already have one rule that no one is following, it doesn't make sense to create another rule," said Baird Professor of Physics Gary J. Feldman.

Other members questioned the confidentiality of the ID number itself.

"I personally am more concerned with the confidentiality of my ID number than with the confidentiality of my grade," said Marco B. Simons '97, who is one of the student representatives on the committee.

ID numbers are of a "semi-confidential" nature, Herschbach said. "It certainly is not directory information."