SMARTS Terms of Use

SMARTS PRODUCTS TERMS OF USE, PRIVACY POLICY & SYSTEM SECURITY INFORMATION

The following SMARTS Products Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and System Security Information apply to any and all licensed users of the Research Institute for Learning and Development (“ResearchILD”) products, services and/or websites.  Such licensed users are hereinafter referred to as LICENSSEES as defined in the SMARTS Product Terms of Use Section below.

SMARTS PRODUCTS TERMS OF USE

ResearchILD operates various websites (the “Websites”), including but not limited to the Websites available at www.researchild.org and www.smarts-ef.org, and provides certain content, curriculum products and services to users of the Websites. In addition to these SMARTS Product Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and System Security Information, LICENSEES agree to be bound by the ResearchILD Website Terms of Use also posted on the Websites.

The SMARTS  programs, including but not limited to the SMARTS Secondary, SMARTS Premium, SMARTS Elementary, SMARTS@Home and MetaCOG Survey and Toolkit curriculum products, and all related training, workshops, lectures, presentations, research findings, publications, concepts, ideas, exercises, graphics, explanations, and/or all materials available via ResearchILD’s Websites and any and all other formats are the exclusive property of ResearchILD. Hereinafter all such materials will be referred to as the “SMARTS Curriculum” or “SMARTS”.

Only an authorized individual(s) may utilize the SMARTS Curriculum, An authorized    individual (“LICENSEE”) is someone who has an up-to-date, fully paid individual, clinic, or school license to use  specified curriculum product(s), (e.g., SMARTS Secondary or Premium, SMART Elementary, SMARTS@Home, and/or MetaCOG). All  Licenses must be renewed on an annual basis or as specified in the product purchase information.  

To access the  specified SMARTS Curriculum product,  each         LICENSEE must have an individual license assigned by ResearchILD via a unique LICENSEE name and password. If the license is purchased by a school or other organization on behalf of a LICENSEE, the license may be reassigned  to another LICENSEE during the license term by contacting ResearchILD to cancel access and request a new LICENSEE name  and password.

SMARTS  Curriculum licenses may not be shared or used by more than one LICENSEE. The SMARTS Curriculum may be used solely for LICENSEE’S students and/or clients. SMARTS may not be distributed, shared, copied or made available for use by anyone other than the authorized LICENSEE. If the LICENSEE has a license assigned by  LICENSEE’S school or other organization, SMARTS may be utilized solely for such school’s/organization’s students. The  school/organization that purchased the license(s) is responsible for ensuring all LICENSEES are made aware of and comply with these Intellectual Property terms.

 LICENSEE may NOT utilize the SMARTS Curriculum in the following manner without specific written permission from ResearchILD:

  • With students and/or clients as part of an on-line education program, virtual school, or any other remote access program or service with the following exception. Subject to the other Terms of Use included herein, a LICENSEE may upload SMARTS materials to their own electronic classroom for use with their students.
  • As part of a training program or course for teachers, psychologists, educational therapists and/or other applicable
  • Any other manner not expressly permitted under these Terms of Use.

Use of the SMARTS materials is subject to the Terms of Use described herein. By using any or all of the SMARTS  materials, LICENSEE is acknowledging that LICENSEE has read, understood and agreed to be bound by these Terms of Use. If LICENSEE does not agree to these Terms of Use, LICENSEE should not utilize the materials.

SMARTS materials may only be utilized in their original form with all trademarks, logos and intellectual property language intact. Any permitted use of SMARTS content not in its original form must be clearly identified and have the following reference language included in a visible location: “©2014-2023 ResearchILD. All rights reserved. Use  is by permission only.”

LICENSEE may NOT: a) modify, b) make improvements, and/or c) create derivative works or adjusted versions of SMARTS (hereinafter referred to as “Modifications”) without written permission from ResearchILD. In the event that LICENSEE makes Modifications to SMARTS, LICENSEE hereby acknowledges and agrees that such Modifications: a) must be      immediately provided to ResearchILD and b) shall become the exclusive property of ResearchILD. LICENSEE does not retain any ownership or other rights in the Modifications except for the limited, non- transferable license to use the Modifications in accordance with these Terms of Use. Notwithstanding the foregoing, LICENSEE may customize individual handouts or slides for use with LICENSEE’s students/clients only.

 PRIVACY POLICY

ResearchILD shall only use LICENSEE information collected or received solely for the operation of ResearchILD, the Websites and/or the provision of  Products and Services and in accordance with the Websites Terms of Use and SMARTS Product Terms of Use.  ResearchILD shall not share LICENSEE information with third parties outside of ResearchILD and its related organizations except as noted below.
  • ResearchILD may share LICENSSEE’s information with third-party business partners for the purpose of providing a service or product to LICENSEE. Third-party business partners will be given limited access to LICENSEE’s information as is reasonably necessary to deliver the product or service, e.g., to ship an order.
  • ResearchILD may share aggregated demographic information with third-party business This is not linked to any personal information that can identify any individual person and/or LICENSEE.

ResearchILD may use the information collected or received, such as LICENSEE’s email address, to communicate directly with LICENSEE. ResearchILD may send LICENSEE emails containing newsletters, information about product and services, and special offers. If LICENSEE does not want to receive such email messages, LICENSEE will be given the option to opt out or change LICENSEE’s preferences. ResearchILD shall also use LICENSEE’s information to send LICENSEE service-related emails (e.g., account verification, purchase and billing confirmations and reminders, changes/updates to features of the service, technical and security notices). LICENSEE may not opt out of service-related emails.

The Websites automatically collect some technical information from LICENSEEs in order to give LICENSEE the best possible experience. ResearchILD uses web measurement technology (Google Analytics) to automatically track LICENSEE interactions with  the Products and Services. This information is only used to help ResearchILD make the Products and Services more useful for LICENSEE.   ResearchILD does not track or record personally identifiable information about individual LICENSEEs and their visits.

A cookie may also be generated to optimize LICENSEE’s experience on the Websites, allowing LICENSEE to have repeat access to the free lesson and/or purchased lessons on LICENSEE’s computer without re-entering LICENSEE’s information. LICENSEE can turn off the use of cookies at any time by changing LICENSEE’s specific browser settings.

Any content that LICENSEE voluntarily discloses for posting to the Websites such as our Message Board or Subscriber Community (“LICENSEE Content”) becomes available to the public and cannot be removed, except by ResearchILD in our sole discretion. Once posted on the Website, however, LICENSEE Content may not be removable from public view, as copies may remain viewable in cached and archived pages of the service, on other Websites that have republished ResearchILD, or if other LICENSEEs have copied or saved that information. If LICENSEE does not wish LICENSEE’s LICENSEE Content to be available to the public, please don’t post it on the Website.

ResearchILD take precautions to protect LICENSEE’s sensitive information. When LICENSEE submit sensitive information via the Websites, LICENSEE’s information is protected both online and offline.

  • Wherever ResearchILD collects sensitive information (such as credit card data), that information is encrypted and transmitted to ResearchILD in a secure way. LICENSEE can verify this by looking for a lock icon in the address bar and looking for “https” at the beginning of the address of the Web page.
  • While ResearchILD use encryption to protect sensitive information transmitted online, ResearchILD also protects LICENSEE’s information offline. Only employees who need the information to perform a specific job (for example, billing or customer service) are granted access to personally identifiable information. The computers/servers in which ResearchILD stores personally identifiable information are kept in a secure environment.
  • In the event that any information under our control is compromised as a result of a breach of security, ResearchILD will take reasonable steps to investigate the situation and where appropriate, notify those individuals whose information may have been compromised and take other steps, in accordance with any applicable laws and regulations.

The MetaCOG Survey and Toolkit product, also available as part of SMARTS Premium Curriculum,  enables the LICENSEE and LICENSEE’S students to complete surveys online. Students answer questions about their learning style and strategy use. The information gathered from the MetaCOG enables the educator to target the use of the SMARTS curriculum lessons to the learning challenges identified in the MetaCOG survey.  NO STUDENT IDENTIFYING INFORMATION OR STUDENT DATA IS COLLECTED IN THE SURVEY.

Use of the MetaCOG Survey feature by the educator is voluntary and not necessary for utilizing the SMARTS Curriculum materials. LICENSEE In utilizing the MetaCOG survey, educators are instructed to use student identifiers (e.g., id numbers, initials) rather than student names.  It is the responsibility of the LICENSEE to only use the MetaCOG survey tool in accordance with their school’s privacy policy as well as any applicable privacy laws. Each MetaCOG LICENSEE shall only have access to the data entered by their own students, and may not view data entered by students associated with another LICENSEE. In the event ResearchILD becomes aware that any MetaCOG data has been inappropriately accessed, ResearchILD will take reasonable steps to investigate and if appropriate, notify the LICENSEE.

The Websites may contain links to other third-party websites. Please be aware that ResearchILD is not responsible for the content or privacy practices of such other third-party websites. ResearchILD encourages LICENSEEs to be aware when using these links and to read the privacy statements of such third-party websites.

SMARTS PRODUCTS SYSTEMS SECURITY INFORMATION

 SMARTS Curriculum Product Description:  The SMARTS Products are delivered on a subscription basis that gives licensed users access to the curriculum materials online via the educator’s email and a password.

The SMARTS Products consists primarily of instruction materials, lesson plans, student handouts and presentations in PDF and MS PowerPoint (PPT) formats, that the educator downloads as needed.  Educators do not need to provide any student data to use these materials in their classrooms.

There is only one feature available as part of the SMARTS Premium product or as separate product known as the MetaCOG Survey and Toolkit,  that enables students to input information directly into the program. This feature enables the educator to obtain information that can be used to  target the SMARTS curriculum lessons to the learning challenges identified by their students.  Students are asked to provide an identifier (e.g., their initials or a student code) and answer questions about their learning style and strategy use. Use of the MetaCOG Survey feature by the educator is voluntary and not necessary for utilizing the SMARTS materials. In utilizing the MetaCOG survey, educators are instructed to use student identifiers rather than the name.  No student identifying information or student data is collected in the survey.

Assigning SMARTS Licenses: Accounts are assigned to each LICENSSE by using the educator’s email and a unique password.  Only the educator’s work email is used for assigning SMARTS Licenses.  No personally identifiable information is collected for use of the SMARTS Products.

Data Storage and Security:   SMARTS data is stored and managed through the SiteGround platform. For SiteGround server locations, see: https://www.siteground.com/kb/where_are_sitegrounds_servers/

Access to data and SiteGround server access is limited to ResearchILD administrative and IT staff, as necessary for the management of the specific survey data. Two-factor authentication is enabled where available and enforced for administrators and strong passwords are required for all staff with access per current security standards. ResearchILD practices are in compliance with the NIST Cybersecurity Framework Version 1.1

The Websites operate on a secure Wordfence server, with SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificates installed which enable an encrypted connection between the secure server and a user’s web browser.

ResearchILD utilizes WordPress plugins to support the administrative functionality of the site, including PaidMembershipPro and Gravity Forms, however none of these plugins are utilized/related to the direct use of the SMARTS product by LICENSEES. Plugins are updated monthly by a designated staff member.

In the event of a data breach, ResearchILD would notify the account contact even though no educator or student identifying data is collected other than the educator’s email.

Operating system requirements: There are no operating system requirements or integrations necessary to use the SMARTS Products.  The SMARTS curriculum is an online product accessible through the internet. Use of PowerPoint materials does require access to Microsoft Office Suite; however, they can also be opened using a program such as Google Slides.   In addition, some of ResearchILD’s training videos for educators and optional content videos for students are hosted on YouTube.

Any questions about these SMARTS PRODUCTS TERMS OF USE, PRIVACY POLICY &

SYSTEM SECURITY INFORMATION  and/or  requests for further information should be directed to  ResearchILD, 4 Militia Drive, Suite 20, Lexington, MA 02421, telephone: 781-861-3711, email: [email protected].

SMARTS is a program developed by RESEARCHILD. Copyright © 2023 RESEARCHILD. All Rights Reserved.