Students Connecting

 

Privacy Policy

 

Welcome to Students Connecting. This website is owned and operated by RSLTSC Enterprises, LLC, dba Students Connecting. RSLTSC, Enterprises, LLC, dba Students Connecting is headquartered in the state of New York, U.S.A. Students Connecting is a safe website for students of all ages, including children and young adults, allowing students and parents of students looking for tutors and student tutors to connect. It was established in 2009 by Ronnie Schwartz, an educator, who saw how student tutoring can make a positive difference in the lives of students.

Students Connecting is committed to protecting the privacy of our visitors and members/users. This Privacy Policy discloses how we collect, protect and use information you provide us online, as well as how we protect children's privacy. By using the pages on this site, you are accepting the practices described in the Privacy Policy.

If our policy practices change in the future, we will let you know by posting the policy changes on our Site. However, we will treat all personal information we collect in accordance with the privacy notice in effect at the time the information is collected.
This Privacy Policy has been developed to reflect our commitment to children, their safety, security and the information privacy of all registered users to the site.


Students 12 and Under

Students Connecting works to comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Enacted in 2000, the regulations apply to personal information that is collected from children who are 12 years of age and younger. The Act spells out that website operators, like us, need to include a Privacy Policy on our website, when and how to seek verifiable consent from a parent and what responsibilities website operators have to protect and secure children’s privacy and safety online.
COPPA applies to individual identifiable information about a child (12 or younger) that is collected online, such as full name, home address, email address, telephone number or any other information that would allow someone to identify or contact a child. The Act also applies to other types of information, such as hobbies, interests and user information gathered through the use of cookies and other methods of tracking, when they are tied to individually identifiable information.

It is important for you to understand this law; we encourage you to read more about COPPA at http://www.ftc.gov/privacy/coppafaqs.shtm.

Students Under 18

Students Connecting works to inform teenagers ages 13-17 who are users of our Site of how to protect their information online by educating them on when and how to disclose information. We have included a “Tips for Teens” section on the Site that educates teens on how to remain safe and secure when using the Students Connecting website.

Students Connecting User Registration and Membership

The Students Connecting registration form requires students to provide us with the following contact information:

1. Name;
2. Email Address; 
3. Demographic Information (Age, Gender, and State);
4. Subjects they wish to be tutored in or seek to tutor;
5. Languages they speak;
6. Rates they are willing to pay or charge for tutoring services;
7. Availability for Tutoring; and
8. Whether Pets or Smoking is/ are acceptable for the tutoring environment.

 

This information is used to get in touch with users when and if necessary.

For students over 13 years old, Students Connecting sends their parent/guardian an email notifying them that they have registered at Students Connecting and provided us with personally identifiable information.

For students 12 and under, Students Connecting obtains permission from the student’s parent/guardian before the registration is completed. We send a confirmation email to the parent/ legal guardian to which the parent/guardian must respond.

Students Connecting does not disclose any personal information to anyone, at any time, for any reason. However, in the event of the sale or merger of the company, Students Connecting, the personal information collected by Students Connecting about its members/ users in the normal course of its business will be shared with the partner company or successor company upon completion of the subject acquisition or merger. Parents or guardians can review their daughter’s/son’s personal information once we receive verifiable identification. Verifiable consent can be given by one of the following methods:

1. Following the link provided in the confirmation email, or
2. Provide a signed form via postal mail or facsimile consent form.  

Upon request, parents can revoke their consent and ask that information about their daughter/ son be deleted from the site by contacting our offices by phone at 1--888-599-6444 or via e-mail at support@studentsconnecting.com. To do this or to review personal information collected from Student Members, we must verify the identity of the requesting parent. When a parent revokes consent, we will stop collecting, using, or disclosing information from that child. To respect the privacy of parents, information collected and used for the sole purpose of obtaining verifiable parental consent or providing notice is not maintained in retrievable form by the site if parental consent is not obtained after a reasonable time.

Students Connecting  “Shout Out” Message Board and “Classified” Boards 

Students Connecting has a safe “Shout Out” Message Board, and another “Classified” Board for student members. These message and classified boards are only accessible by our registered members/users. Students Connecting makes its members/users aware that postings in these areas become public information on our website. Student Members, including children, are not allowed to disclose any personally identifiable and/or contact information on our “Shout Out” and “Classified” boards.

The Students Connecting member name/username and first name and last name initial (where parental/legal guardian consent is obtained for students ages 12 and under) are a student’s only identities at Students Connecting, and this is the way that people should know you and communicate with you on the Internet.

All content is strictly moderated, but children and students are still cautioned that any information they provide can be viewable across the web on our Students Connecting website. Our Students Connecting “Shout Out” Message Board and “Classified” Boards are frequently moderated byStudents Connecting’s personnel. Our moderators take extraordinary steps to ensure that Student Members / Users  do not divulge personal information.  Members/Users who try to reveal, or ask for, personal information or post messages that are inappropriate will be warned by Students Connecting. If problems continue with the same members/users, they could be denied future access to the site.

Students Connecting Tutor of the Week Program

Each week, Students Connecting will select one of its tutors to feature on the Students Connecting Facebook page to recognize the tutor for their valuable service. If you wish not to participate in this Program, please email to support@studentsconnecting.com. If you do not email Students Connecting to opt out of this Program, you are consenting to participation in this program as a tutor with Students Connecting and grant Students Connecting the right to use your name and likeness in connection with the Tutor of the Week program.

Outbound Links & Social Media Plugins

The Students Connecting site may contain links to other sites. Although Students Connecting is not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of other sites, Students Connecting screens all sites accessible from its website, to ensure that they comply with our standards. We have no responsibility for linked sites and provide these links solely for the convenience and information of our visitors.

If users interact with third-party social media sites and applications, we may have access to certain information from a user’s social media account such as user name, profile picture, information about friends and followers, and content posted or viewed through the social media. However, Students Connecting does not knowingly collect personally identifiable information from children under the age of 13 from third-party sites.When our users use social media networking platforms and plugins, they share information on our website with them and that information will be subject to that social media site’s privacy practices.

Email Communications & Referrals with Members/Users

Occasionally, Students Connecting may communicate with your daughter/son by email. If a user wishes to opt-out after completing the registration form, she / he can do so by contacting us at support@studentsconnecting.com.

However, users cannot opt out from receiving certain administrative email notifications, including, but not limited to:

1. Notifications sent from a Student Member to a Student Tutor Member (and vice versa) regarding transacting an agreement for tutoring services (these notifications will be mandatory unless a Student Member or Student Tutor Member specifies, through the website’s account preferences, that he or she no longer wishes to receive any notifications of changes to this Privacy Policy; and
   
   
2. Notifications of changes to this Privacy Policy and the Terms of Use Agreement governing the use of Students Connecting; and
   
   
3. Notifications required to be sent to Members by any laws or regulations of any United States jurisdiction.

Upon registration as a tutor, Students Connecting sends each tutor an e-book via email that they can elect to redeem. Students Connecting is not responsible for the policies of the third parties through which such e-books can be redeemed, such as Amazon.com.
In addition, we may offer our users the opportunity to send referral emails to their friends (known as the “Refer a Friend” program) via our website. In thosecases, the information requested is limited to

1. A user’s first name only
2. The first name(s)only of recipient(s); and/or
3. The email address(es) of the recipient(s).

We immediately delete such first names and email address after sending. If a minor 13 and older provides his or her first name and a friend’s first name and/or email address to request we send a referral to the friend, then we use that information solely to send the referral to the friend’s email address.Users will not be permitted to freely type messages in the subject line or in any text field, and no personally identifiable information other than the recipient’s email address (which is later deleted)will be disclosed.
Upon referring two friends to Students Connecting, users are entitled to a gift certificate they canelect to redeem. Students Connecting is not responsible for the policies of the third parties through which such gift certificates can be redeemed, such as Amazon.com/ Smashwords.Students Connecting may also engage in other rewards opportunities as part of its referral program, including contests/, drawings for prizes. Similarly, Students Connecting is not responsible for the systems or products of third parties that may be awarded to individuals as part of programs and disclaims any and all liability.

Advertising

Students Connecting may include advertisements from third party providers on its Site. While Students Connecting may release overarching demographic data to these advertisers, it is the policy of Students Connecting to conceal any information that would identify an individual member.

Use of Cookies

Visitors should be aware that non-personal information and data may be automatically collected by the Students Connecting website through the use of "cookies." "Cookies" are small text files a website can use to recognize repeat visitors, facilitate the visitor's ongoing access to and use of the site, and allow a site to track usage behavior and compile aggregate data that will allow content improvements. Cookies are not programs that come onto a visitor's system and damage files. Generally, cookies work by assigning a unique number to the visitor that has no meaning outside the assigning site. If a visitor does not want information collected through the use of cookies, there is a simple procedure in most browsers that allows the visitor to deny or accept the cookie feature. Students Connecting uses "cookie" technology only to obtain non-personal information from its online visitors in order to improve visitors' online experience and facilitate their visit within our site.

Security

Students Connecting has security measures in place to protect the loss, misuse and alteration of the information under our control. Passwords and personal information are collected, encrypted and stored on our secure servers. Paper records of data and financial transactions are stored in a locked facility. Payment information is obtained through our secure Paypal payment page.  Information will only be divulged to law enforcement agencies upon subpoena. However, in the event of the sale or merger of the company, Students Connecting, the personal information collected by Students Connecting about its members/users in the normal course of its business will be shared with the partner or successor company upon completion of the subject acquisition or merger.

The safety and security of your online experience is of the utmost concern to us. We ensure the appropriate physical, electronic, and managerial procedures are in place to safeguard and help prevent unauthorized access, maintain data security, and correctly use the information we collect online.

Students Connecting takes information security very seriously and uses reasonable administrative, technical and managerial measures to protect your personal information from unauthorized access. For example, we utilize Secure Sockets Layering (SSL), an industry-standard protocol for certain of your transmissions to us, in order to encrypt the personal information that you send to us through the registration and sign up process. This applies to all pages of the site. We store your email address and payment method information in an encrypted form.
You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account information and for restricting access to your computer or mobile device through which you access your Students Connecting account. Members/Users of public or shared computers or unprotected mobile devices should log out at the completion of each visit to the Students Connecting website.
Unfortunately, no security system can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. Accordingly, we cannot guarantee the security of your personal information and cannot assume liability for improper access to it. By using this website, or providing personal information to us through any means, you agree that we can communicate with you electronically regarding security, privacy, and administrative issues relating to your use of this site.


Modifications to This Policy

As we update and expand our services, we may make changes to this policy. You should check back for updates to this policy from time to time. If the changes result in materially less protection for your personal information than that provided in this policy, we will make reasonable efforts to contact you and obtain your consent to the changes. Like our Terms of Use, of which this policy is a part, your use of the Students Connecting website or continued use of our service after our efforts to contact you means that you agree to be bound by such changes.

This Privacy Policy may be translated into other languages. If a question as to their interpretation should arise, the English version will be deemed controlling.

Contacting Us and Account Cancellation

If you wish to cancel an account or have any questions or comments about our privacy statement, our practices or your dealings with Students Connecting, you can contact us at support@studentsconnecting.com, or via mail at:

RLSTSC Enterprises, LLC, dba Students Connecting
132 Davis Ave.
White Plains, NY 10605

1--888-599-6444