This statement discloses the privacy practices of STEM·E Youth Career Development Program® for our Websites at "STEME.org" and our programs and services, including web-based programs delivered through our social media platforms. You acknowledge this privacy policy is part of our Terms of Use, and by accessing our Websites or using our programs and services, you agree to be bound by all of the Terms of Use and understand this privacy policy. We refer to ourselves as "we", "STEM·E Youth Career Development Program" or "STEM·E" in this policy. Questions pertaining to this policy should be directed to: INO@STEM·E.org for clarification.

 

Website Terms and Conditions

Your Privacy Is Important to Us

Your privacy is important to STEM·E Youth Career Development Program.  We believe you should know what information we collect from you and how we use it. STEM·E Youth Career Development Program wants you to make the best decisions about the personal information and other information that you share with us. Personal information means information that can be used to identify you, and may include, but is not limited to, your name, address, phone number and email address. This privacy policy describes how STEM·E collects and uses personal information, and the rights and choices available to you regarding such information.

 

Our Privacy Vow to Our Donors

We will not sell, share, or trade our donors' names or personal information with any other entity, nor send mailings to our donors on behalf of other organizations, unless our donor has given STEM·E  specific permission to do so.

 

This policy applies to all information received by STEM·E Youth Career Development Program , both online and offline, on any Platform ("Platform" includes all STEM·E  websites and mobile applications), as well as any electronic, written, or oral communications.

 

To the extent any donations are processed through a third-party service provider, our donors' information will be used for purposes necessary to process the donation.  Some of our partners may use our donor's information in aggregate for statistical analysis, but data that are organizationally or personally identifiable will not be shared.

 

How We Collect Personal Information

STEM·E collects or may be provided personal information in the normal course of its operations as described in this policy.  When you access certain Websites, programs or services, we may ask that you provide us with some personal information, which lets us know who you are.  If you do not provide that information, depending on the program or service, you may not be able to engage in that activity. It is completely optional for you to engage or not engage in those activities.

 

When you access certain Websites, programs or services, we may collect personal information such as first name, last name, email address and username.  For certain Websites, programs or services we may also collect other personal information such as passwords, phone number, postal address, employer, job title, age, gender, race, and household income, some of which will be used for personalization and identification purposes only.  STEM·E Youth Career Development Program offers certain programs, which may include the use of web-based programs, games and related content, and you may be asked to provide certain personal information to access such content.  In some cases, additional information, such as the school or school district and user feedback on our programs, may be associated with the personal information we collect from users of our Websites, programs or services.

 

How We Use Personal Information

We do not sell or trade your personal information to others. STEM·E Youth Career Development Program collects and uses personal information only for the purposes explained in this privacy policy.  Those purposes include the following:

 

We use aggregate data collected to inform local STEM·E areas of the number of people from their areas who are registered users.  Non-specific, aggregate data is also used for the purposes of collecting general demographic information, measuring user interests, and analyzing the collective characteristics and behaviors of our registered visitors. The collection of this information allows us to appropriately change and update our programs and service our Websites and web platforms to improve our programs and services and the user experience.

 

From time to time, STEM·E Youth Career Development Program may use your information to inform you of changes and enhancements to our content and services. For those who have elected to receive information from STEM·E Youth Career Development Program, such as offers or information about the company, we may send you direct or electronic mail regarding programs and services we feel may be of interest to you. If you do not want to continue to receive such offers or information, simply tell us and we can edit your account information to no longer receive such mailings.

 

If you enter a sweepstakes or contest, we may use any personal information that you provided to contact you if you should win.

 

You should be aware that if you voluntarily disclose personal information (i.e., your name, e-mail address, etc.) in any discussion forums or other public areas on this site, any information you disclose in your communication can be collected and used by third parties. Such activities are beyond our control and this policy does not apply to such information.

 

Ultimately, you are solely responsible for maintaining the secrecy of your password and/or account information. Please be careful and responsible whenever you are online.

 

STEM·E Youth Career Development Program is committed to protecting your personal information and using it in compliance with applicable data privacy laws, including the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA). STEM·E Youth Career Development Program makes reasonable efforts to avoid collecting or retaining the personal information of anyone under the age of 13, except in compliance with COPPA and other applicable data privacy laws. Where certain personal information is requested, it must be indicated that the user is 13 years of age or older in order for the information to be collected, stored or transmitted, unless otherwise collected and retained in accordance with COPPA and other applicable data privacy laws.  In some cases, STEM·E Youth Career Development Program and/or local STEM·E areas may provide notification to and obtain consent from a school or district on behalf of the parents or guardians of users under 13 years of age as permitted by COPPA with respect to the collection and use of personal information as described in this privacy policy.  Such personal information is not used or shared for commercial purposes not related to online services offered in cooperation with the school or school district. 

 

STEM·E Youth Career Development Program uses SSL security on any form that requires credit card information. We will never ask for information that could be used in a phishing scheme without the SSL security behind the form.

 

Unfortunately, no data transmission over the Internet or any wireless network can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. As a result, while we strive to protect your personal information, you acknowledge that: (a) there are security and privacy limitations of the Internet which are beyond our control; (b) the security, integrity, and privacy of any and all information and data exchanged between you and us through our Websites cannot be guaranteed; and (c) any such information and data may be viewed or tampered with in transit by a third party.

 

What about Sensitive Data?

STEM·E does not generally collect sensitive data (also known as special categories) through the Websites or otherwise. The term "sensitive data" refers to the various categories of personal data identified by data privacy laws as requiring special treatment, including in some circumstances the need to obtain explicit consent from you. These categories include, without limitation, racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious, philosophical or other similar beliefs, membership of a trade union, physical or mental health, biometric or genetic data, or criminal convictions and offences (including information about suspected criminal activities). In the limited circumstances where STEM·E may collect such data, STEM·E will do so in accordance with all applicable data privacy law requirements, which may include obtaining consent. If you choose to provide STEM·E with unsolicited sensitive data, you are consenting to STEM·E using the sensitive data as described in this privacy policy, subject to applicable laws.

 

Safeguarding Your Personal Information

The security, confidentiality and integrity of your personal information is important to us.  We maintain organizational, physical, and technical security arrangements for the personal information we collect to guard your personal information against accidental loss and from unauthorized access, use, alteration, and disclosure.  However, despite such efforts, no security controls are 100% effective, and STEM·E cannot ensure or warrant the security of personal information that you provide to us or other third-parties. There is no guarantee that the data may not be accessed, disclosed, altered, or destroyed by breach of any physical, technical, or managerial safeguards.

 

When you registered as a user, you may have created an account that is password-protected.  Do not divulge your password to anyone.  Also remember to sign out of your account and close your browser window when you have finished, particularly if you share a computer with someone else or are using a computer in a public place like a library.

 

Accessing, Correcting or Deleting Your Personal Information

You are entitled to know what personal information we collect about you and to have access to that information.  If you have registered as a user, you may access, edit, or correct the personal information you have provided in your profile at any time.  Otherwise, you can request to access, review or correct your personal information, or to have your personal information or account deleted, at any time by emailing us at INFO@STEME.org.

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You can choose not to receive any communications about events or publications we believe might be of interest to you. Individuals may opt-out of communications, including by sending an email to INFO@STEME.org.

 

Retention of Personal Information

STEM·E will retain your personal information for as long as you allow STEM·E to retain your data, or as otherwise necessary to provide you with information about STEM·E and its programs and services.  When you register as a user or obtain a user account, we process and keep your personal information for as long as your account is active. Once your account is deleted, we will retain your personal information for up to 60 days before permanently deleting it, unless we are legally required to retain the information for a longer period.

 

Information for Global Users

STEM·E is an organization located and operating in the United States. Global users of our Websites, programs and services should be aware that the privacy and data protection laws in the United States may not be equivalent to the laws in your country of residence.  If you provide personal information to STEM·E, you understand that your personal information will be transferred, used, stored and/or processed to and within the United States.  With respect to users to whom the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR) applies, to the extent your personal information is processed by, or on behalf of, STEM·E, the lawful basis for such for processing is (a) your consent; (b) STEM·E's legitimate interests in conducting its operations, including to make its services available to you and to grow and improve such services, provided those interests are not outweighed by your rights and interests; (c) performance of a contract with you; or (d) compliance with a legal obligation, as applicable.  If you have a privacy question, concern, or request for STEM·E, including on data portability or on your rights to be forgotten or to restrict or object to the processing of your personal data, please contact us at: INFO@STEME.org.

 

Policies and Practices of Third Parties

Our Websites may, from time to time, contain links to other third-party websites. This privacy policy does not apply to other third-party websites.  If you follow a link to any such websites, please note that they may have their own privacy policies and their own data collection, use and disclosure practices.  STEM·E does not accept any responsibility or liability for such third-party policies or practices.  Please check the applicable privacy policies before you submit personal information to any third-party websites.  Additionally, in the event other companies place advertising or other links on our Websites, they may collect information about you if you view their advertising or click on their links, including through the use of cookies. We cannot control this collection of information; rather you should contact these parties directly if you have any questions about the information they collect.

 

Use of Cookies and Tools to Collect and Store Information

Information about your visit and use of our Websites may be collected through third-party tools such as Google Analytics. The information may include your IP address, your operating system, your browser ID, and other information about how you interact with the Websites. STEM·E uses this information to improve its services and the user experience as well as network management and security.  STEM·E and its third-party vendors also use various technologies to collect and store information when you use the Websites, including cookies and similar tracking technologies, such as pixels and web beacons, to analyze trends, administer the Websites, track users' movement around the Websites, and identify ways to improve the Websites and determine how STEM·E can make the Websites a more positive and relevant user experience.

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The use of cookies is now an industry standard, and will be found on most major websites.  Cookies are pieces of information that websites transfer to your browser to keep on your computer for record-keeping purposes.  For example, cookies allow us to "save" your passwords and settings so that you can avoid re-entering them each time you return for a visit. The cookies make your use of the site easier, make the site run more smoothly, and help us to maintain a secure site.  By using our Websites, you agree that STEM·E can place cookies on your device.

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If you want to remove existing cookies from your device or to block future cookies from being placed on your device, you can usually do this by changing your browser options and settings.  Unless you have adjusted your browser settings to block cookies, our system will issue cookies as soon as you visit our Websites, even if you have previously deleted our cookies.  Turning off cookies will also prevent any web beacons from tracking your user activity on our Websites. The web beacon will still account for an anonymous visit, but your unique information will not be recorded.  Please bear in mind that deleting and blocking cookies will likely have an impact on your user experience as parts of the Websites may no longer work as intended.

 

Updates to Privacy Policies

We regularly review and, if necessary, update our privacy policy.  Periodically, we may change, modify, make additions to or deletions from this policy, without giving you prior notice, or any notice. Any modifications to this policy will be posted as part of this policy. We suggest that you review and update yourself regarding this policy. Your continued use of our Websites, programs or services, including programs accessed through the LMS, after any changes or modifications to this privacy policy constitutes your agreement to follow and be bound by any changes or modifications. 

 

Questions or Concerns

If you have a privacy question, concern, or request, please contact us at: INFO@STEME.org.  We welcome any questions or comments you may have.