ULM Privacy statement

1. Commitment To Privacy

The University of Louisiana Monroe (ULM) or “University” is committed to maintaining the privacy and security of any collected confidential or highly sensitive personal information. The University’s commitment to privacy aligns with the requirements of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), (University Registrar’s FERPA Page) the University’s Data Security Policy, Account Access Policy ,and other relevant University Policies.

This policy has been adopted to address the collection, use, and dissemination of personal information by the University. This policy is subject to change over time, as the technologies utilized to provide services via the Internet continue to develop and evolve. Despite changes in technology, any alterations to this policy will not affect the University’s commitment to privacy.

2. General Statement

This policy applies to all information digitally collected by or submitted to ULM. ULM receives information via two primary methods:

Information collected automatically via websites
Information voluntarily provided by the user in order to receive information and/or services (via web forms and email).

3. Information Collection

3.1 Automatic Collection

If a user has not taken specific steps to anonymize their personal web traffic (e.g. apply mechanisms such as the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on that disable the collection of data for analytical purposes), official University websites may collect certain information automatically. This information includes, but is not limited to:

User’s Internet protocol (IP) address
Internet service provider
Operating system
The time and date of the visit
Browser
The site from which the user visited
Cookie information (if applicable)

Any information collected automatically is not associated with any other information held by the University (i.e. not linked with information voluntarily provided to University) unless the University is required to do so by law.

3.2 Voluntary Submission

In order to provide information and/or services, the University may request users to provide personal information, some of which may be personally identifiable information (PII). Information such as name, date of birth, email address, etc. can be collected via voluntary submission of an email or web form to a ULM entity.

4. Information Use

4.1 Website Information Use

Website information that is gathered automatically is utilized to improve the understanding of how University-provided websites are being leveraged by the user community.

For example, some University websites use Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc. Google Analytics uses “cookies” (i.e. files used to track website activity) to determine how users navigate University sites. Google uses this cookie data for various purposes, including the evaluation of website use, reports on website activity, and other services.

4.2 University Use of Submitted Information

Any information submitted to the University voluntarily in order to receive services and/or information will only be utilized to conduct official university business. ULM may disseminate voluntarily submitted information to third parties and offices/departments within the University to the extent necessary in order to provide the requested services and/or information. ULM may also disseminate such information if required by applicable international, federal, state and/or local laws.

The University will not disclose any information submitted voluntarily for reasons other than mentioned above, without clear notice and the opportunity to opt-out or otherwise prohibit such uses. ULM will never sell or trade voluntarily submitted information to other entities unless a prior consent has been obtained and/or such information is being shared in response to a subpoena, court order, or legal process.

There is no legal requirement for a user to provide any information to the University. However, without certain information, University websites and services may not function as intended and features may be inaccessible.

4.3 Third Party Use of Sensitive Personal Information

The University may disclose an individual’s sensitive personal Information and other personal information as follows:

Consent: The University may disclose personal information if the University has the individual’s consent to do so.

Emergency Circumstances: ULM may share an individual’s personal information when necessary to protect the individual’s interests and when the individual is physically or legally incapable of providing consent.
Employment Necessity: ULM may share an individual’s personal information when necessary for administering employment or social security benefits in accordance with applicable law or any applicable collective bargaining agreement, subject to the imposition of appropriate safeguards to prevent further unauthorized disclosure.
Public Information: ULM may share an individual’s personal information if the individual has manifestly made the information public.
Archiving: The University may share an individual’s personal information for archival purposes in the public interest, and for historical research and statistical purposes.
Performance of a Contract: The University may share an individual’s personal information when necessary to administer a contract the individual has with the University.
Legal Obligation: The University may share an individual’s personal information when the disclosure is required or permitted by international, federal, and state laws and regulations.
Service Providers: ULM uses third parties who have entered into a contract with the University to support the administration of University operations and policies. In such cases, ULM shares individual’s personal information with such third parties subject to the imposition of appropriate safeguards to prevent further unauthorized disclosure.
University-Affiliated Programs: ULM may share an individual’s personal information with parties that are affiliated with the University for the purpose of contacting the individual about goods, services, charitable giving or experiences that may be of interest.
De-Identified and Aggregate Information: ULM may use and disclose individual’s personal information in de-identified or aggregate form without limitation.

4.4 Retention and Destruction of Personal Information

An individual’s personal information will be retained by the University in accordance with applicable state and federal laws, and the University’s applicable retention periods. An individual’s personal information will be destroyed upon the individual’s request unless applicable law requires destruction after the expiration of an applicable retention period as per the ULM Records Management Policy. The manner of destruction shall be appropriate to preserve and ensure the confidentiality of the individual’s information given the level of sensitivity, value and criticality to the University.

5. Use of Cookies

Some ULM websites use cookies (beyond cookies utilized by Google Analytics), which enable the University to further tailor its web services to the needs of the user community. Cookie data assists the University in improving both web content and distribution. Users have the right to refuse the use of cookies by implementing technical configurations in their web browsers; however, functionalities of certain sites may be impacted if such configurations are implemented.

6. External Links

Some University sites may contain links to external websites not owned by, or officially affiliated with, ULM in any way. If a user decides to navigate to external links, the user will leave the University website and thus, the University is not responsible for privacy practices or the content of such websites. Navigating to external links is done at the user’s own risk and users should be aware that ULM’s policies no longer apply. The University recommends that users review the privacy policy and applicable terms of all sites they visit.

7. Data Security

ULM implements stringent security measures wherever possible to promote confidentiality, integrity, and availability of any information in the possession of the University per the University’s Data Security Policy. ULM websites that allow users to submit information voluntarily utilize encryption to prevent third-parties from viewing the submitted data. Personal information voluntarily submitted via email cannot leverage encryption in most cases, and thus email is not a mechanism that ULM will recommend for submitting confidential and/or personal data. Users that submit unsolicited confidential and/or personal information via email must do so at their own risk.

While the security of user data is of the utmost importance to ULM, due to the nature of Internet communications, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be completely secure. Any information transmitted to ULM by the user is done so at the user’s own risk. Once the information is received by ULM, the University will make every effort to ensure the security of data on the ULM systems.

If an individual’s sensitive personal information and/or other personal information is compromised, ULM will notify the individuals affected and inform appropriate governing agencies, per our Computing Systems Security Breach Policy.

8. Individuals in the European Economic Area and GDPR

The purpose of the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) is to protect all European Union (“EU”) citizens from privacy and data breaches by allowing citizens to maintain control of the personal data kept and processed by organizations. The GDPR also protects the personal data of individuals, regardless of citizenry, in the EU.

ULM’s Privacy Statement outlines the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information provided to the University by students, faculty and staff, alumni and other members of our community to which the GDPR applies. When information is submitted to ULM, or a person uses the University’s websites and other services, the user consents to the collection, use, and disclosure of that information as described ULM’s Privacy Statement.

Through the GDPR, EU Citizens have the right to request access to, a copy of, rectification, restriction in the use of, or erasure of their information in accordance with all applicable laws. The erasure of their information shall be subject to applicable state and federal laws, and the applicable retention period. If an EU Citizen has provided consent to the use of their information, they have the right to withdraw consent without affecting the lawfulness of the University’s use of the information prior to receipt of their request.

Information created in the European Union will be transferred out of the European Union to the University. If a user feels the University has not complied with applicable foreign laws regulating such information, the user has the right to file a complaint with the appropriate supervisory authority in the European Union.

Texting Terms of Service

ULM Privacy statement