Ohio University Website Policy Statement
This Privacy Policy describes Ohio University’s information gathering and dissemination practices for our website: www.ohio.edu. This Policy outlines the information we may collect, how we protect it, how me may use that information, and how you can elect to change your information. Ohio University does not sell or rent website visitor information and does not share website visitor information except as required by law.
Collection of Information
While using our website, Ohio University may collect and store certain information regarding your use of the website, including the IP address from which you accessed the website, the domain name, the type of browser and operating system used to access the website, the name of the website from which you entered our site, date and time stamps, the pages, files, documents and links that you visited or downloaded, and any errors encountered.
Ohio University will only collect personal information such as your name, street address, e-mail address and telephone number that you knowingly and voluntarily provide to us. As well, anonymous, non-identifiable personal information is collected through third-party aggregators, such as Google Analytics, which includes age, gender, and limited geographic information. Ohio University uses the information collected from you for systems administration purposes, abuse prevention, to track user trends to better focus on the needs and interests of our visitors, to foster and promote further communications, and improve the functionality of our website.
Cookies
When you view our website, we may store some information on your computer in the form of a cookie. Cookies allow us to tailor our website to better match your interests and preferences. Cookies typically collect non-personally identifiable information to better understand the browsing behaviors of all users in order to make online ad experiences more relevant and engaging. You have the ability to accept or decline cookies. Most Web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. If you choose to decline cookies, you may not be able to fully experience all features and content of our website.
Sharing of Information
If you are seeking information from the University and provide us with personally identifiable information, we will typically only use that information to respond to your inquiry, request, or order. We may also contact you to provide you with information about Ohio University activities, programs, special events, membership and development opportunities that may interest you. We may process credit card information to properly bill your account, when applicable, and we may contact you for purposes connected to Ohio University’s relationship with you.
If we use your personal information to contact you, we will provide you with a method allowing you to opt-out of future communications. You can also contact us by e-mail, writing or telephone, at the below contact information to opt-out of future communications.
Ohio University will not sell your personally identifiable information and will only share such information about you with third parties when:
- We have your consent to share the information.
- We need to share your information to provide the service or product you requested.
- We need to send your information to third parties who work on behalf of Ohio University to provide a service or product.
- The information is directory information consistent with FERPA regulations.
- We need to respond to subpoenas, court orders, or any other legal process.
- We find it necessary to protect and defend the legal rights and/or property of Ohio University.
Minors/Children
Ohio University does not knowingly collect website information from children or minors as defined by the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
Third-Party Links
Within our website, there are links to non- Ohio University websites. When you link to a third-party website, you leave Ohio University’s website and are no longer subject to our Privacy Policy. Ohio University is not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of non-Ohio University websites, and such links are not intended to be endorsements of those sites or their content.
European Union General Data Protection Regulation (EU GDPR)
The EU GDPR provides broad privacy protections to individuals physically located in the European Economic Area. Under certain circumstances, the EU GDPR may apply to Ohio University’s activities in the European Economic Area. When subject to the EU GDPR, Ohio University will comply with GDPR’s core privacy principles, which principles provide that personal data shall be:
- Processed lawfully, fairly, and in a transparent manner;
- Collected for specific, explicit and legitimate purposes and not further processed in a manner that is incompatible with those purposes;
- Retained only as long as necessary; and
- Secure.
To achieve its core mission, it is essential and necessary for Ohio University to process personal data of its students, employees, applicants, research subjects, alumni, and others involved in its educational, research and community programs. To that end, Ohio University processes personal information for various lawful reasons, including, without limitation, academic admissions and enrollment, student registration, residence life; delivery of classroom, on-line, and study abroad education programs; administration and oversight of recreation programs, student organizations, and other various student affairs activities; distribution of grades, materials, and other communications by and among students, faculty and staff; employment; applied research, program development and analysis; job hiring and employment; provision of medical services or health insurance; engagement with the community at-large; compliance with internal policies, procedures, and guidelines, as well as applicable federal, state and local laws; and record retention.
Personal data processed by Ohio University typically includes name, address, email, phone number, transcripts, work history, financial information, information for payroll, research subject information, medical and health information (for admissions, student health services, travel, etc.), and donations. If you have specific questions regarding the collection and use of your personal data, please contact news@ohio.edu or call us at 740.593.1000.
If a data subject refuses to provide personal data that is required by Ohio University in connection with Ohio University’s lawful basis to collect such personal data, such refusal may make it impossible for Ohio University to provide education, employment, research or other requested services.
Ohio University will comply with all its published data protection policies in the processing of an individual’s personal data.
Data Retention
Ohio University keeps the data it collects for the time periods specified in the Ohio University Retention Manual.
Disclaimer of Liability
Neither Ohio University nor any of its departments, programs, employees, agents or individual trustees shall be held liable for any improper or incorrect use of the information described and/or contained on the website and assumes no responsibility for anyone’s use of the information.
Consent to This Privacy Policy
By using our website, you signify that you agree with terms of our current Privacy Policy as posted in this area of the web site. If you do not agree with any term in this Policy, please do not provide any Personal Information on this site. If you do not provide Personal Information on this site, you may not be able to do certain things, like access particular areas of the site, request certain types of information, or send us email communications.
Access to Your Personal Information
Upon request, you can review, update and correct the personal information you have provided to us. To access this information, please contact us at news@ohio.edu or call us at 740.593.1000.
Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may occasionally decide to change our Privacy Policy, especially as new features are added to our website. If there are changes to this Policy, we will post those changes here so you are always aware of what information we collect, and how we use it. If at any point we decide to use your personal information in a manner different from that stated at the time it was collected, we will notify you and it’s your choice as to whether or not we use your information in this different manner.
Questions
If you have any questions about this Privacy Statement, please contact us as follows:
Our postal address is:
1 Ohio University
Attn: Legal Affairs
Athens OH 45701-2979
We can be reached via e-mail at news@ohio.edu. We can be reached by telephone at 740.593.1000.
Effective October 22, 2018