Some states allow notaries to certify copies of most documents, other states don't allow it at all or only allow a few kinds of documents. A copy certification by the document custodian is allowed by all states for most documents. A few states don't let anyone but the appropriate government official certify certain documents, such as birth certificates.
That said, I would think a sworn or affirmed certification by a school official before a notary would be more desirable than a copy certification by a notary, even if the notary is allowed to certify the copy. The reason is the school official is in an excellent position to know if the document is genuine; it's much harder for the notary to tell. If the organization receiving the document actually cares if it's genuine, and has a clue about how the world works, they would be happier to receive the sworn certification from the school official. |