Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy explains how Minestem Inc. (“MineSTEM”, “we”, “us”) collects, uses and protects information when you use the MineSTEM website at minestem.com, the MineSTEM classroom platform, and the MineSTEM mobile apps for iOS and Android (together, the “Service”). It applies to school staff, students, and parents or guardians who use the Service.
MineSTEM is an education service. Most of the personal information we hold is student information provided to us by schools, which we process on the school’s behalf and under its direction. We do not show advertising, we do not sell personal information, and we do not use student information for any purpose other than providing and improving the Service.
1. Information we collect
From schools and teachers
- Teacher and administrator account details: name, school email address, school or district, and a password or a Google/Clever identity.
- Class rosters entered by teachers or synced from Clever or Google: student first and last name, grade, class and the login credential the teacher issues (for K–1 students this is a picture-and-code card; older students use a username or a Google/Clever account).
- Optional family contact details a teacher chooses to enter so that family newsletters and messages can be sent.
From students, while using the Service
- Work students complete or upload: answers, photos of worksheets, drawings, reflections and other portfolio items.
- Progress data: which assignments were opened and completed, time spent, scores and teacher grades or comments.
- Technical data needed to run the Service: device type, browser or app version, IP address, and log records of sign-ins and errors.
From parents and guardians
- If a parent account is created: name, email address and the messages exchanged with the teacher.
We do not ask students for any information beyond what the Service needs, and we do not collect precise location data, contacts, or biometric information.
2. How we use information
- To operate the Service: sign users in, show students their assignments, let teachers assign, grade and report, and let families see newsletters and their child’s work.
- To support users: respond to questions from teachers, administrators and families.
- To keep the Service secure and reliable: detect abuse, diagnose errors, and make backups.
- To improve the Service, using aggregated or de-identified information that does not identify any student.
We do not use student information to build a profile of a student for any purpose other than the educational purpose for which the school uses the Service, to target advertising, or to market to students or families.
3. Children’s privacy (COPPA)
The Service is used by children under 13 at school. We rely on the school to provide consent for the collection of student information on behalf of parents, as permitted by the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) when an operator collects information from students solely for the use and benefit of the school. Student accounts are created only by a teacher or administrator; students cannot create accounts themselves, and the Service contains no advertising, no public sharing and no way for students to message anyone other than their own teacher.
Parents and guardians may review their child’s information, ask us to correct it, or ask that it be deleted. Because the school controls the account, we ask that such requests go through the child’s teacher or school first; you may also contact us directly at support@minestem.com and we will work with the school to respond.
4. Student records (FERPA)
Where a school is subject to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), we act as a “school official” with a legitimate educational interest: we use education records only for the purposes the school authorises, under the school’s direct control, and we do not disclose them to others except as described in this policy. Schools may request a data processing agreement at the address below.
5. Sharing information
We share personal information only:
- Within the school — a student’s teachers and school administrators see that student’s work and progress; a parent or guardian sees their own child’s information.
- With service providers that host and run the Service for us, such as cloud hosting, file storage, email delivery and error monitoring. They may use the information only to provide those services to us.
- With sign-in providers you choose — if a school uses Google or Clever sign-in, those providers authenticate the user; we receive the name and email address (or Clever identifier) needed to sign the user in.
- When required by law, or to protect the safety of a student or the security of the Service.
- In a business transfer, such as a merger or acquisition, in which case this policy continues to apply to the transferred information and the school will be notified.
We never sell or rent personal information, and we never share student information with advertisers or data brokers.
6. Third-party links
Lesson materials may link to other websites; those sites’ own privacy policies govern their use, and we encourage teachers to preview any link before sharing it with students.
7. Security
The Service is served over HTTPS. Access to student information is limited to the student’s own school and to MineSTEM staff who need it to support the Service. Passwords are stored hashed. Data is hosted in the United States with backups. No system is perfectly secure; if we learn of a breach affecting personal information we will notify the affected schools without undue delay so that they can inform families as required by law.
8. Retention and deletion
We keep personal information for as long as the school’s account is active and as needed to provide the Service. When a school ends its use of MineSTEM, or asks us to delete a student, class or account, we delete the associated personal information within 60 days, except for records we must keep by law and backup copies, which are overwritten in the normal backup cycle. Teachers can remove individual students from a class at any time from the roster.
9. Your choices and rights
- Teachers and administrators can view and edit roster information and delete student work from the platform.
- Parents and guardians can ask to review, correct or delete their child’s information (see section 3).
- California residents have rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act and the Student Online Personal Information Protection Act (SOPIPA); we comply with SOPIPA’s prohibitions on targeted advertising, profiling and the sale of student information.
- Anyone can contact us with a privacy question or request at support@minestem.com.
10. Cookies
We use cookies and similar storage only to keep users signed in and to remember settings such as the selected class. We do not use advertising or cross-site tracking cookies.
11. Changes to this policy
If we make material changes we will post the new policy here with a new date and notify school administrators by email before the changes take effect.
12. Contact
Minestem Inc.3762 Deedham Dr
San Jose, CA 95148, United States
support@minestem.com · (408) 406-3728