Director denies fee‑waiver appeal but orders Alpine School District to finish parent’s records request by July 15

Audrey Genta, a parent, appealed after months of delay and a substantial fee for records she requested from Alpine School District relating to her daughter. "As a parent, I have responsibilities to make informed decisions concerning my child and those decisions should not have to be made while records that may be directly relevant remain unavailable," Genta told the director, saying she had repeatedly narrowed the request at the district’s direction and pre‑paid fees but, as of the hearing, had received no production after 112 days.

Alpine counsel said the request identified about 1,100 potentially responsive records (approximately 2,750 pages) and that substantial redaction would be required to protect other students’ FERPA‑protected information; the district argued the fees are a reasonable estimate of actual costs and that it had performed substantial preparatory work. Counsel proposed rolling production and offered a target completion date, saying the district could reasonably finish the work by July 15.

Director Pearson denied Genta’s request for a fee waiver, finding the district’s fee calculation reasonable given the scope and redaction requirements, but he also found the district’s extensions of time overall were justified by the volume and complexity. He instructed Alpine to complete production by July 15 and reminded the petitioner she may raise any substantive objections about redactions or exempt classifications in a later CAO appeal.

Why it matters: The ruling illustrates the tension between parents’ desire for timely access to student‑related records and school districts’ obligations to protect other students’ FERPA‑covered information; the decision balances timely production against reasonable agency costs for redaction.