Kristen Cates

kcates@greatfallstribune.com

The Montana University System says it will not release the records of a University of Montana student to famed author Jon Krakauer because it could mean losing hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funds.

Releasing the records of University of Montana student and Grizzly quarterback Jordan Johnson would mean violating federal student privacy laws, even though the release of those records was ordered by a Lewis and Clark County District Court judge last month. Violating the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act could result in the loss of millions in federal support to the Montana University System, according to Kevin McRae, deputy commissioner for communication at the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education.

To that end, the OCHE has appealed District Court Judge Kathleen Seeley’s ruling to the Montana Supreme Court, with a motion filed with the clerk of the Supreme Court on Oct. 14. Seeley’s ruling in September was based on public information laws, saying that the records sought by Krakauer and his Helena-based attorney Mike Meloy are to be considered public documents.

“(The U.S. Department of Education) has told us we are not authorized to release those records,” McRae said. “We definitely respect and honor the right to know. There’s also a right to privacy.”

On Thursday afternoon, Jim Bradshaw, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C., referred questions on the matter to the U.S. Department of Justice and would not say whether his agency had told the Montana’s higher education office to deny releasing the records because of federal regulations.

Meloy could not be reached for comment Thursday afternoon.

McRae said, though, that Commissioner of Higher Education Clayton Christian had been told by the U.S. Department of Education that the release of the records being requested by Krakauer and Meloy would be a FERPA violation and could subject the university system to the loss of $150 million in research grants, $75 million in Pell grants and an estimated “hundreds of millions” more in work study and loans for students — impacting scores of students across the state.

“We’re talking about whether these students can go to school or not,” McRae said.

In general, under the guidelines of FERPA listed on the U.S. Department of Education’s website, a school “must have written permission from the parent or eligible student in order to release any information from a student’s education record.” However, FERPA allows schools to disclose those records, without consent, to parties under numerous conditions, which includes: “to comply with a judicial order or lawfully issued subpoena.”

But McRae said that can only be applied to information that FERPA said is legal to release. Education entities are not lawfully authorized to release records — specifically possible disciplinary records in Johnson’s case, he said.

McRae said FERPA doesn’t even allow him to acknowledge if such records exist in one student’s case. In this case, McRae said the records of one student alone have been requested, which means redacting that student’s name before releasing the records wouldn’t do anything to protect that student’s privacy, unless the student waives their right to privacy.

“We have no authorization from any student on any records in the university system,” McRae said.

In 2013, Johnson was acquitted on a charge of sexual intercourse without consent in Missoula County District Court. His trial highlighted ongoing concerns over how the University of Montana and law enforcement in Missoula were handling or accused of mishandling reports of rape by university students.

Reach Tribune Staff Writer Kristen Cates at 791-1463.