MyStemHelp Inc. (“MSH”, “us”, or “we”) is committed to protecting your privacy. We strive to create a safe and secure environment for learners of all ages. 

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As a not-for-profit organization registered in Connecticut, we use the data we collect to provide you with a better experience and fulfill our mission of providing free academic support to students on our website MyStemHelp.org (the “Service”).  We will not sell your information to any third-parties for profit.

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Our Privacy Policy describes what information we gather from our members and others who visit and use our Service, how we use that information, what we do to protect it, and what you can do to control decisions about your information. By visiting or using our Service, you consent to the information handling practices described in this Privacy Policy.

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Your use of our Service and any information you provide to us are subject to the terms of this Privacy Policy, and our Terms of Services.

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1. What information do we collect?

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We collect information, including personal information, in a variety of ways which may vary according to your use of the Service and whether you are a student, parent, volunteer, or donor. The categories of personal information we collect may include:

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• Contact and profile information

• Account and authentication information from third-party integrated services

• Location information

• Information about your browser or device

• Donation and applicant data

• Non-personal information which may be linked to your Personal Information

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Categories of information that we may collect automatically when you use the Service include:

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• Technical information (for example, browser type, IP address, cookies, and operating system)

• Usage information (for example, pages visited, search terms entered, and frequency of visits)

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Use of Cookies:

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When you use the Service, we may send one or more cookies (which are small text files containing a string of alphanumeric characters) to your computer or mobile device, to help analyze our web page flow, customize our content, measure promotional effectiveness, and promote trust and safety. You are always free to decline our cookies if your browser permits, although doing so may interfere with your ability to use the Services or certain features of the Service.

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Child users:

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MSH requires the consent and contact information of a parent or guardian for a student who is younger than 13-year old to sign up. We do not knowingly collect personal information from individuals under 13 years of age without parental consent. Please see Section 6 below for more parental rights to protect your children.

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2. How do we use the information we collect?

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We use the information we collect in the following ways:

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• To provide and enhance our Service.

  • We use the information you provide or that we collect to operate, maintain, enhance, and provide all of the features of our Service.

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• To personalize your experience.

  • We use the information to personalize your experience while using the Service, including on various devices you may use to access the Service. For instance, MSH remembers your recent activity so we can recommend the most appropriate content for you on your next visit and provide personalized learning experiences.

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• To communicate with you.

  • We use your information to communicate with you about your account and respond to inquiries. We may also use your Personal Information to provide you with information about MSH’s features, services and other offerings that may be of interest to you.

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• To understand, improve, and develop our Service.

  • We may use all of the information that you provide or that we collect from users to understand and analyze the usage trends, learning behaviors, and preferences of our users, to improve the way the Service works and looks, and to create new features and functionality.

  • We may also use information to maintain, develop, support and improve our Service and other educational products and services.

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• To recruit volunteers. 

  • We may use your personal information to evaluate your candidacy, when you apply to be a volunteer.

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3. How do we share or transfer your information?

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We may disclose your information to the following categories of recipients:

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• Employees and volunteers

  • ​We may disclose your personal information to employees and volunteers who need to access such information in order to provide the Service to you. For example, volunteer tutor may need to know the grades of the students in order to provide the appropriate level of instructions.

• Service providers: 

  • We may disclose your information to third party vendors who provide services in support of our operations, such as payment processing, website and other creative content development, software development, information technology and data security services, marketing management and other outreach and promotional services, and data analytics.

  • For example, our website is built on a web-building platform at Wix.com managed by Wix.com Ltd. (together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, “Wix”).  Much of the collection, processing, storage and use of your Personal Information are done through services provided by Wix and stored on servers owned by Wix on our behalf.  We choose Wix for its recognized technical capability and its compliance with applicable privacy laws.  If you want to understand more about Wix privacy policy, you can review it here.

• We may share data with social networks at your request. 

  • Some of our users choose to connect their MSH account with social networks. This functionality is entirely optional. If you have explicitly agreed that we may do so, MSH may disclose your information through a social network or similar service (like Facebook or Google). To control the information that you share, you have the option of modifying your MSH or social network settings or disconnecting your social network account from your MSH account.

• Information you post to public spaces of the Service. 

  • When you post in Forum or Blog part of the Service, your profile, which could include your name, short biography, and city-level location, as well as the content of your posted comment, is visible to others on the Service.

  • As with most online services, once you make your Personal Information available to others online, it may be collected and used by the recipients or any other website visitor without restriction. You may wish to use a nickname or alias in your profile if you do not want your personal information shared with others in this way. For example, your personal information may be visible to others in the following circumstances:

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4. How do we work with Zoom, a third-party providers?

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Our virtual help sessions are delivered through video conferencing service on Zoom.us (“Zoom”).  You may join a help session by clicking the Zoom link in a confirmation email, and you will be directed to the Zoom meeting interface (which is not connected with the MSH website). If you already have a Zoom account, you may join the meeting through the Zoom account.  Zoom incorporates tracking technologies, which may collect information from your browser when you participate in a Zoom meeting on the Service, including device identifiers and/or cookie IDs. This information is collected directly and automatically by Zoom, and MHS does not participate in these data transmissions.  We choose to use the Zoom platform for its tested capability and compliance with applicable privacy laws.  You may learn more about Zoom’s privacy policy here.

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5. What are your choices relating to control of your personal information?

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You may decline to share certain information with us, in which case we may not be able to provide to you some of the features and functionality of the Services. If you do not wish to receive marketing communications or newsletters from us, you can opt-out by contacting us using the contact information provided below or by using the unsubscribe process described in the communication, but you may still receive administrative emails from us. Although your changes are reflected promptly in active user databases, we may retain all information you submit for a variety of purposes, including backups and archiving, prevention of fraud and abuse, and analytics. 

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You may access, edit or delete your information through your account and profile settings. The information you can view, update, and delete may change over time. You may request that we delete your account and your data from MSH by contacting us using the contact information provided below. Please note that if you request removal of your information you will be unable to continue to utilize many features of the Service, including the virtual help sessions.  In order to fulfill your request, we may require additional information from you. We will respond to requests within the relevant time periods established by applicable law.

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6. Parental Rights Under COPPA

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MSH does not require a child or a child’s parents or guardians to disclose more information about the child than is reasonably necessary to participate in any part of the Services, and does not share personally identifiable information of a child with third parties who are not part of the Services except as provided above under “Disclosure of Information”. Parents and guardians, with a child or children under the age of 13, have certain rights that include the right to:

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• Review their child’s personal information collected by MSH;

• Request that MSH delete collected information about their child;

• Request that MSH no longer collect or use information about their child;

• Request that MSH no longer share information about their child with third parties that are not part of Services.

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Parents may exercise any of these rights listed above by contacting MSH using the contact information provided below.

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7. Changes to the Policy

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It is our policy to post any changes we make to the Policy on this page. If we make material changes to how we treat our users' personal information, we will notify you by email to the address specified in your account or through a notice on the web-application home page. The date the privacy policy was last revised is identified at the beginning of this Policy. You are responsible for ensuring we have an up-to-date active and deliverable email address for you.

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8. Contact Information

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For any inquiries about this privacy policy and our privacy practices, please fill in our Contact Form with "Privacy" in the subject line.