Universities Space Research Association Privacy Policy

Introduction

Universities Space Research Association (USRA) is committed to respecting your privacy and recognizes your need for appropriate protection and management of any personally identifiable information that you might share with us. This policy outlines our personal information handling practices for both online and offline data. If you give us personal information, we will treat it according to this policy. It is important that you understand the care with which we intend to treat your personal information.

Personal information means information that may be used to identify an individual, including, but not limited to, a first and last name, a home or other physical address and an email address or other contact information, whether at home or at work.

USRA strives to comply with all applicable laws that are designed to protect your privacy. Although legal requirements may vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, USRA intends to adhere to the principles set forth in this privacy policy. Our goal is to provide protection for your personal information no matter where that personal information is collected, transferred, or retained.

USRA is committed to instructing its employees on the importance of the privacy policy. All of those employees who have access to privacy information either computerized or paper data are especially instructed at orientation to the importance of the USRA privacy policy.

Collection of personal and collaborative information

When USRA collects any personal information either on our corporate website, employment with USRA and, or collaborative work with the association, we will express our need for the personal data at the point of collection. Examples include but are not limited to:

• Interaction and registration information for those in the student programs. (High school and above.)
• Registration for workshops and conferences (including name, address, email, credit card information etc.)
• Subcontractors and consultants (examples include indirect rates, labor rates, social security numbers etc.)
• Information to complete our Foreign Exchange Visitor Program (all information required for the completion of the process)
• Proprietary proposal information.

Security of your personal information

USRA is committed to protecting the personal information you share with us. We utilize a combination of security technologies, procedures, and organizational measures to help protect your personal information from unauthorized access, use or disclosure.

Computer security

USRA is committed to securing all data when transfering over the Internet or internally at each USRA site. For specific information technology protection please see the document USRA Information Technology and Computer Security.

USRA will not retain your personal information longer than is necessary to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected or as is required by applicable laws or regulations.

Children's privacy. USRA does not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 13. If we learn that we have collected personal information on a child under the age of 13 we will delete that data from our systems.

Program or Institute security

USRA is committed to maintaining personnel record systems that comply with the recordkeeping, access, disclosure and confidentiality requirements of federal and state law.

In collecting, maintaining, and disclosing personnel information, USRA makes every effort to protect employees' privacy rights and interests and prevent inappropriate or unnecessary disclosures of information from any employee's file or record. While complying with its governmental reporting and recordkeeping requirements, USRA strives to ensure that it handles all personal and job-related information about employees in a secure, confidential, and appropriate fashion in accordance with the principles and procedures outlined below.

Confidentiality of Information

USRA treats personal information about employees as confidential and respects the need to protect each employee's privacy by enforcing secure information-handling procedures for all personnel involved in gathering, retaining, using, or releasing personal information about the organization's employees. USRA collects and retains personal information only as needed to conduct business and administer employment and benefit programs. Every effort is made to ensure that all personal and job-related information about employees is accurate, complete, and relevant for its intended purpose. Wherever possible, USRA notifies affected employees if it needs additional personal information and gives these employees an opportunity to supply the requested data.

Security and Storage of Personnel Records

All paper-based documents relating to USRA's personnel record system are kept in secure, locked files. These files are accessible only to authorized staff and executives, managers, and supervisors who have a valid, demonstrable need for specific information from an employee's personnel record. Employees also are granted access to their personnel files and records in accordance with the access procedures outlined below.

All personnel files and records must remain in the secure areas of each institute or program as well as at USRA Headquarters at all times.

All medical information relating to an employee is kept in the separate Medical Records System files maintained by the site administrator and/or USRA Headquarters HR staff. Access to these medical files is tightly controlled. In most cases, medical information about an employee is released only to the employee's designated physician in accordance with the employee's written specific request.

Questions or issues about the application or enforcement of these security measures should be addressed to the Institute or Program Administrator and/or the Payroll/Personnel Operations Manager or USRA Manager for Human Resources located at USRA Headquarters.

Disclosure to Government Agencies

On occasion, USRA must provide information and data from its personnel records and files to federal, state, and local government agencies in accordance with recordkeeping and reporting requirements imposed by such agencies. In instances where a government agency requests information beyond that which it normally requiresUSRA ordinarily advises affected employees of the agency's information request. However, if an agency's information request occurs in the course of an agency investigation or if an agency asks USRA to keep such a request confidential, USRA has discretion to comply with the agency's request.

USRA ordinarily honors subpoenas demanding information regarding any employee, but usually advises an employee of the subpoena and nature of the information requested, unless otherwise prohibited by law.

Disclosure or Release to Nongovernment Entities

In response to an information request from an outside organization, individual, or other nongovernment entity, the company normally verifies only the employment status and dates of employment for former or present employees. USRA does not provide any other information, unless and until the worker or former employee submits a written request that the company disclose or confirm additional specific information.