Students and families can access school transcript documents more safely and securely with U-High’s implementation of Parchment, a newly introduced processing and storage website for academic documents.
Students can now digitally obtain both their official and unofficial transcripts. They will no longer need to complete a form and submit it to the Learning & Counseling Office as before. Students can set up their Parchment account by gaining access to their individual keycode after sending a request to [email protected].
According to a Dec. 8 community email from Sarah Arehart, Laboratory Schools registrar, and U-High principal Martin Woods, “By facilitating the storage and delivery of official credentials between students and recipients, Parchment ensures the privacy and security of student records by eliminating the need to email official documents.”
Ms. Arehart said in her opinion, the use of Parchment will minimize the risk of another security breach such as the one this past summer, in which the high school transcripts of members of the Class of 2023 were sent to some students due to a human error. At the time, Parchment was not in use. Its introduction was not a direct result of this breach, and staff in the registrar’s office were already looking into new mechanisms.
“The issue in summer is an example of why the move to Parchment is a good choice for Lab, but the move was already in the works prior to it,” Ms. Arehart said.
Ms. Arehart also said specific privacy measures which Parchment offers enhance the security aspects of the system. For example, Parchment blocks parental access to school transcripts once a student turns 18, abiding by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Ms. Arehart echoed previous optimism about Parchment and its future at Lab.
“The use of Parchment brings many benefits including secure log-in, request tracking, and faster turn-around time for transcript requests,” Ms. Arehart said. “It’s a well-known record system used by schools, colleges, and universities around the U.S., and I’m pleased that we have been able to implement it here at Lab.”
