On February 5, 2026, the U.S. Department of Education, through the Student Privacy Policy Office (SPPO), issued a Dear Colleague Letter providing technical assistance to presidents of institutions of higher education subject to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

The letter addresses questions and concerns related to participation in the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE), a national research initiative examining student political engagement across more than 1,000 colleges and universities in the United States.

Given the ongoing focus on student data privacy, institutional compliance, and civic engagement, this guidance may be of particular interest to admissions, registrar, and compliance professionals.

The Dear Colleague Letter may be accessed here:https://studentprivacy.ed.gov/resources/sppo-dcl-ihes-regarding-nslve