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Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy applies to your use of:

(1) Acadeum Course Share (“ACS”), a course sharing platform that connects students with colleges and universities to democratize the education experience, (2) Acadeum Skills Marketplace (“ASM”), an integrated online marketplace and storefront that connects sellers of online courses and certificate programs with students to democratize the education experience, and (3) any products, services, websites or platforms to which this Privacy Policy is affixed.  ACS and ASM are online platforms owned and operated by College Consortium, Inc., doing business as Acadeum (“Acadeum”).  By using ACS and/or ASM, or otherwise accessing, viewing or using the products, services, websites or platforms to which this Privacy Policy is affixed, you agree to this Privacy Policy.  If you do not agree with this Privacy Policy, please discontinue using ACS, ASM or the products, services websites or platforms to which this Privacy Policy is affixed.  

For purposes of this Privacy Policy, ACS, ASM and the website, software, products or services to which this Privacy Policy is affixed, and each of their respective services and benefits, shall be hereinafter collectively referred to as the “Platform”.

This Privacy Policy will change over time. If we make minor changes to the Privacy Policy without materially changing your rights, we will post the modified Privacy Policy on the Platform. We will notify you by email, through the Platform, or by presenting you with an updated Privacy Policy to accept if we make a modification that materially changes your rights. When you use the Platform after a modification is posted, you are accepting the modified Privacy Policy.

What Information We Collect

We collect personal and non-personal data from you when you use the Platform. Personal data is data that includes a personal identifier like your name, email or address, phone number, IP address or device identifier, or is data that could reasonably be linked back to you. It also may include demographic information, geolocation information, educational information, or commercial information as described below.

You may be required to create an account to use the Platform. You can create an account on ACS as a student seeking to enroll in a course or program offered via ACS.  You can also create an account on ACS or ASM as an authorized representative (or administrator) of your organization seeking to utilize the services and/or benefits of ACS or ASM. 

  • Personal data: We receive personal data about you when you create an account, both as a student or as an authorized representative (or administrator) for your organization.  We receive further data about you when you update your account or personal profile, enroll in courses, or otherwise use the Platform.  We may also receive data about you (as a student) from our partners (i.e. academic institutions and employers) or from third parties.
  • From our partners: Our partners may share information about you (as a student or employee) with Acadeum so we can provide them with benefits that they use to manage their students, employees, benefits, courses and programs. Beyond the personal information required to process an enrollment, each partner chooses what it shares with us, which may include your first and last name, mailing address, email address, phone number, employer, job title, gender, date of birth, citizenship, state residency, academic information (including but not limited to Student ID, Field of Study, Matriculation Date, Institution Contact Name such as student advisor’s information). Where FERPA applies to data shared by our partners, it is stored, used and shared in compliance with the statute.
  • From you, your student account and your student profile: As a student, you can choose to share additional information with us, such as an updated email address, phone number, educational records, and answers to questions about your interests and activities that will be covered by this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Service. You can also share this information by updating your Student Profile on the Platform, uploading documents that include personal information, or answering questions or surveys we email you or present to you on the Platform. We will not use your phone number to send any commercial or marketing messages to you without your consent. We do not collect any personal data about you unless you voluntarily provide it to us or it is provided to us by your institution or employer. However, you may be required to provide certain personal data to us when you elect to use the Platform. This may include, without limitation: (a) registering for an account on Platform; (b) entering a sweepstakes or contest sponsored by us or one of our partners; (c) signing up for special offers from selected third parties; (d) sending us an email message; (e) submitting your credit card or other payment information when ordering and purchasing products and services on the Platform; and (f) registering in, enrolling in, or purchasing a course or other educational product. We will use your personal data for, but not limited to, communicating with you in relation to services and/or products you have requested from us. We also may gather additional personal or non-personal information in the future.
  • From third parties: We may receive additional information about you from other schools, alumni or career counseling organizations, or from other sources.
  • Usage and log data: When you visit the Platform, we log and store your IP Address and technical information about your visit like your browser type and how you progressed through the Platform, where you abandoned it, etc. (“Usage Data”). We can use your IP address to determine your general location. 

How We Use Your Personal Data

We use, process and store your personal data to operate the Platform and to provide you with potential courses and programs. This includes:

  • Allowing you to search our inventory of course sections and programs.
  • Delivering course and program opportunities and communications from potential partners by email in accordance with your account settings and communication preferences.
  • Allowing you to contact your home institution, a teaching institution or your past, current or future employer through the Platform.
  • Providing data to institutions offering courses or programs in which you seek to register and enroll.
  • Contacting you about additional Acadeum products and services you might be interested in, unless you opt-out (see “How to Opt-Out of Email Communications”).
  • Researching new ways to improve the Platform.
  • Using FERPA protected data only in compliance with the requirements of the statute.

When We May Share Your Personal Data

We will only share your personal data under the following circumstances:

  • With your consent.  For example, if your account is associated with an institution or employer, your institution or employer will be able to access and view personal data uploaded by you via your Student Account. All partners are required to safeguard any personal data they receive. 
  • With vendors that are contractually engaged to provide us with services, such as cloud service providers, telecommunications services, and other services for maintaining our systems, order forms, email management, and credit card processing. These companies are obligated by contract to safeguard any personal data they receive from us.
  • With relevant law enforcement bodies if we believe that disclosure is reasonably necessary to comply with a law, regulation, valid legal process (e.g., subpoenas or warrants served on us), or governmental or regulatory request, to enforce or apply the Terms of Service, to protect the security or integrity of the Platform, and/or to protect the rights, property, or safety of Acadeum, its employees, users, or others. If we are going to release your data, we will do our best to provide you with notice in advance by email, unless we are prohibited by law from doing so.
  • With professional services, potential purchasers or investors in connection with the sale, merger, bankruptcy, sale of assets or reorganization of our company. We will notify you if a different company will receive your personal data and the promises in this Privacy Policy will apply to your data as transferred to the new entity.

When We Use and Share Non-Personal Data

Non-personal data is data that itself cannot reasonably be linked back to you or data that is combined with other data in a way that cannot reasonably be linked back to you. We use and share your non-personal, de-identified or aggregated data in a variety of ways to help our partners and the public understand trends in course and program sharing through analytics reports, statistics and other metrics and guides. 

Cookies

As a Platform user, we place a small piece of software referred to as a “cookie” on your computer. If you use the Platform and create an account, we also use this cookie to recognize you on return visits and expedite the login process. You can remove this and other cookies through your browser preferences menu, though the exact method varies depending on the type of browser you use – but note that you won’t be able to log into the Platform if your cookies are disabled. If you visit from a mobile device, we may reference your device identifier or other information about where your visit originated.

Our email communications contain web beacons or similar technology which track when the email has been opened or read. This functionality sends the resulting records back to the Platform, which may be associated with other information you have provided us.

Security of Your Personal Data

Acadeum secures your personal data from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. Acadeum uses the following methods for this purpose:

  • SSL Protocol
  • Password security protocols, including SAML to support SSO or password hashing.

When personal data (such as a credit card number) is transmitted to other websites, it is protected through the use of encryption, such as the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol.

We strive to take appropriate security measures to protect against unauthorized access to or alteration of your personal data. 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 data, you acknowledge that: (a) there are security and privacy limitations inherent to the Internet which are beyond our control; and (b) security, integrity, and privacy of any and all information and data exchanged between you and us through the Platform cannot be guaranteed.

How to Opt-Out of Email Communications

To stop receiving notifications or promotions, please click the unsubscribe link found at the bottom of each email or update your account preferences. For EEA users: We only send marketing communications to users located in the EEA with your prior consent. Please see the section “GDPR: Information for EEA Users” below.

Storage, Security and How to Remove Your Information

We use industry standard technical, administrative and physical controls to protect your data including encrypting it at rest and as it is transferred from you to Acadeum. While we take reasonable precautions against possible security breaches, no website or internet transmission is completely secure and we cannot guarantee that unauthorized access, hacking, data loss or other breach will never occur. In the event of a breach, we will take reasonable steps to investigate the situation and, where appropriate, notify affected individuals in accordance with any applicable laws and regulations.

Do Not Track Signals

We are currently unable to respond to Do Not Track signals that may be sent by some browsers.

De-Activating Your Account or Deleting Your Personal Data 

Your student account is not a public account and is not viewable by our partners on the Platform. You may also request Acadeum delete information about you, however we may be obligated as a service provider to your organization to retain certain data about you. This means that if they re-send us your data to process on their behalf, we will retain it unless they request we delete it. You can request deactivation or deletion by sending a message to support@Acadeum.com or by contacting your organization to ask them to delete your information.

Third Party Links

The Platform may contain links to and from third party websites of our partners, service providers or advertisers. If you follow a link to any of these websites, please note that these websites have their own privacy policies and that we do not accept any responsibility or liability for their policies. We also cannot be responsible for your personal data that you submit to any entity using the Platform. Please check their individual policies before you submit any information to those websites.

Children

Minors under 16 are not permitted to use the Platform. We do not intentionally collect information from minors under 13. If you believe we have collected any personal information from a child younger than 13 years of age, please notify us immediately by sending a message to support@Acadeum.com, and we will take reasonable measures to remove that information from our systems.

Payments

Acadeum provides the ability for our partners to pay certain fees for the use of the Platform through the use of a third-party payment processor. Acadeum does not collect or use any of that payment information. If an Acadeum Partner has any conflicts regarding the method of payment acceptance, they should contact Acadeum. Acadeum claims no responsibility or liability for payment transactions.

Your California Privacy Rights

This Privacy Policy complies with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), which requires that we provide California residents with notice that you have the right to:

  • opt-out of the sale of personal information,
  • request deletion of personal information, and
  • know about personal information collected, disclosed or sold,
  • be treated without discrimination should you exercise these rights.

More information regarding the sources from which we collect personal information can be found above in the section titled “What Information We Collect”; business and commercial purposes for which we collect your personal information can be found above in the section titled “How We Use Your Personal Data”; categories of recipients with whom personal information is shared or sold can be found in the section above titled “When We May Share Your Personal Data.”

We do not sell any personal information collected from your use of the Platform.

To make a request under the California Consumer Privacy Act, or for any questions or concerns about our Privacy Policy or practices, please contact us at support@Acadeum.com.

Your California Privacy Rights

What rights do I have?

Individuals located in the European Economic Area (EEA) have certain rights in respect of your personal information and Acadeum will provide these capabilities to all our worldwide users, including:

  • The right of access to your personal data;
  • The right to restrict or oppose processing of personal data;
  • The right to erase your personal data;
  • The right to personal data portability; and
  • The right to lodge a complaint with the relevant Supervisory Authority.

As described in this Privacy Policy, when Acadeum processes your data at the direction of your academic institution or employer, we act as their “Processor” and comply with requests they send us under GDPR. 

As a Platform user:

  • We rely on your consent as a lawful basis for processing personal data to provide you with marketing or promotional communications.
  • We process personal data in order to provide you with benefits and services as requested by your academic institution or employer, or to perform our contract with you as described in this Privacy Policy, including:
  • To enable the Platform to function as expected; and
  • To communicate with you in response to customer service inquiries, support, to inform you of updates, modifications and other matters relating to the Platform, and to deliver non-promotional, Platform-related emails.
  • Additionally, we process personal data based on our “legitimate interests” in providing you the service as described in this Privacy Policy including:
  • To provide you with course and program enrollment opportunities.

In some cases, Acadeum may process personal information pursuant to a legal obligation or to protect your vital interests or those of another person.

How May I Exercise My Individual Rights

Acadeum account holders may exercise their rights regarding their personal information as follows:

  • You can access your personal data through your account settings in the Platform or by contacting us to request a personal data report at support@Acadeum.com.
  • You may withdraw your consent to receive cookies by adjusting your browser settings.
  • You may withdraw your consent to receive marketing or promotional communications at any time by clicking the “unsubscribe” link found within Acadeum email updates and changing your contact preferences. Please note, you will continue to receive essential account-related information, even if you unsubscribe from promotional emails.
  • You can request deletion of your data as described in the section “De-Activating Your Account or Deleting Your Personal Data.”

Users located within the EEA may contact us at support@Acadeum.com with questions or requests regarding their personal information. Please note that Acadeum may request additional information from you to verify your identity before we disclose any personal or account information.

Contact Us and Accessing Your Information

If you have any questions about our privacy practices, or if you wish to remove any of your personal information from our records, please contact us at either:

College Consortium, Inc., dba Acadeum 
2028 E. Ben White Blvd., #240-6351 
Austin, Texas 78701

or support@Acadeum.com

Effective as of January 1, 2024