PRIVACY POLICY

SEO – Sponsors for Educational Opportunity, Inc.

Last Updated: February 19, 2026

1. INTRODUCTION

SEO – Sponsors for Educational Opportunity, Inc. (“SEO,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, disclose, and protect information about you when you interact with our website at https://www.seo-usa.org/ and our services (collectively, the “Services”) in connection with your participation in our programs through program application portals, social media, via email and other communications, and from third parties.

This Privacy Policy is incorporated into and subject to our Terms of Use.

By using the Services or providing information to us, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy and consent to our privacy practices as described herein.

SEO is a nonprofit organization which is committed to protecting your privacy and has implemented this Privacy Policy to provide you with transparency and control over your personal information consistent with applicable privacy laws and principles.

2. INFORMATION WE COLLECT

a. Personal Information You Provide

We collect limited information (e.g., for program purposes) that you provide directly to us, including:

Contact Information: Name, email address, mailing address, telephone number, and emergency contact information
Demographic Information: Date of birth, gender, and similar demographic data
Educational Information: School name, grade level, academic performance, transcripts, test scores, educational history, and career interests
Application Information: Program applications, essays, references, and supplemental materials
Financial Information: Family income information, financial aid applications, and payment information for program fees (processed through third-party payment processors, such as Stripe and Classy). We do not collect, process, or store credit card or debit card numbers on our systems.
Employment Information: Resumes, work history, references, and career placement information
Social Media Information: Social media handles and profile information when requested as part of program applications
Communications: Content of communications with us, including emails, survey responses, and other correspondence
Photos and Media: Images and videos captured during program activities (with appropriate consent)

b. Information Collected Automatically

When you access our Services, we automatically collect certain information, including:

Device Information: IP address, browser type, device type, operating system, and unique device identifiers
Usage Information: Pages visited, time spent on pages, links clicked, and other usage data
Cookies and Similar Technologies: Information collected through cookies, web beacons, and similar tracking technologies (see Section 9 for details)
Mobile device identifiers and device information
Mobile operating system information
Mobile carrier information
Location data (with your permission)
Push notification preferences
App usage data and analytics

You can control many of these permissions through your device settings. However, disabling certain permissions may limit your ability to use some features of our mobile applications.

When you provide your mobile phone number or other mobile contact information, we will only use it to communicate with you about our programs and services when you have affirmatively opted in to receive such communications. We do not share mobile contact information with third parties for marketing or promotional purposes.

c. Information from Third Parties

We may receive information about you from third parties, including:

Educational institutions that provide transcripts and academic records
References and recommenders who submit letters of recommendation
Corporate partners who provide feedback on program participants
Service providers who assist with background checks or identity verification
Publicly available sources and professional networking platforms such as LinkedIn

3. HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

Program Administration: To process applications, evaluate candidates, administer programs, track participant progress, and provide program services
Career Services: To facilitate internship and employment opportunities, connect participants with corporate partners, and provide career counseling and support
Communications: To send program updates, event notifications, newsletters, and other communications related to our Services
Fundraising and Development: To process donations, acknowledge contributions, and send fundraising communications
Analytics and Improvement: To analyze program effectiveness, improve our Services, understand user behavior, and conduct research
Legal Compliance: To comply with legal obligations, enforce our policies, respond to legal process, and protect our rights and those of others
Security: To maintain the security and integrity of our Services and protect against fraud and unauthorized access
Reporting: To prepare reports on program outcomes and organizational impact for internal and external stakeholders

a. SMS Text Messaging

You may opt into receiving SMS text messages from SEO. By opting in, you:

Confirm you are the subscriber or authorized user of the phone number
Consent to receiving recurring or one-time messages
Consent to electronic record of your opt-in
Agree to message and data rates
Can cancel at any time by texting STOP

4. HOW WE SHARE YOUR INFORMATION

We do not engage in interest-based advertising or allow third-party advertising networks to place cookies on our website to track your activities across websites. Any cookies we use are for essential website functionality, analytics to improve our Services, and our own internal purposes only.

We may share your information in the following circumstances:

a. Corporate Partners

We share participant information with training and educational partners and corporate partners (including law firms, financial institutions, and other prospective employers, authorized personnel, and management at partner organizations) to facilitate training and education. This includes contact information, educational background, resumes, and other information regarding opportunities. We do not sell participant data to corporate partners or any third party; any financial contributions from partners are not conditioned on receiving participant information.

b. Service Providers

We share information with third-party service providers and vendors who perform services on our behalf, including Salesforce (CRM), Box and Google (cloud storage), Survey Monkey Apply and Airtable (application management), Thrive TRM (talent recruitment), Classy and Stripe (payment processing), WP Engine (website hosting), and program-specific training providers. These service providers are contractually obligated to protect your information, use it only for the specific purposes we authorize, implement appropriate security measures, and comply with applicable privacy laws. We conduct due diligence on service providers before sharing your information with them. We may engage additional service providers from time to time, and we will update this Privacy Policy periodically to reflect material changes to our service providers.

c. Legal Requirements

We may disclose information when required by law, in response to legal process, to protect our rights or the rights of others, to comply with government requests, or as otherwise permitted by applicable law.

d. Business Transfers

If SEO is involved in a merger, acquisition, reorganization, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you of any such change in ownership or control of your personal information.

e. Aggregated and De-identified Information

We may share aggregated, anonymized, or de-identified information that cannot reasonably be used to identify you for research, reporting, or other lawful business purposes.

f. Recognition of Donors

Unless you specify that your contribution is anonymous or request that your name not be listed, we may list the names of donors in our newsletters and annual reports to recognize your generosity.

g. With Your Consent

We may share information for any other purpose disclosed to you at the time of collection or with your consent.

Important: We do not sell your personal information to third parties.

5. YOUR PRIVACY RIGHTS

Depending on your state of residence, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information under state privacy laws, including laws in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Virginia. Some state privacy laws do not apply to, or have exemptions for, nonprofits such as SEO.

a. Rights Available to You

You may have the right to:

Access: Request confirmation of whether we are processing your personal information and obtain a copy of your personal information
Correction: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal information
Deletion: Request deletion of your personal information, subject to certain exceptions
Portability: Receive a copy of your personal information in a portable and readily usable format
Opt-Out: Opt out of the processing of your personal information for purposes of targeted advertising, or the sale of personal information (which we do not engage in)
Data Consent: Where required by law, limit our use of personal information to what is necessary to provide our Services
Non-Discrimination: Not be discriminated against for exercising any of these rights

Please note that we are not required to delete information that has been aggregated, anonymized, or de-identified such that it can no longer be linked to you. We may retain and use such de-identified information for research, reporting, and other lawful business purposes.

b. How to Exercise Your Rights

To exercise any of these rights, you may contact us at:

Email: privacy@seo-usa.org
Mail: SEO – Sponsors for Educational Opportunity, Inc., 55 Exchange Place Fl 6, New York, NY 10005
Phone: 212-979-2040

We will respond to your request within the timeframes required by applicable law (typically 45 days, with a possible extension of 45 additional days). We may need to verify your identity before processing your request.

c. Authorized Agents

You may designate an authorized agent to make a request on your behalf. The authorized agent must provide proof of authorization, and we may also require you to verify your identity directly with us.

d. Appeals

If we deny your privacy rights request in whole or in part, you may appeal our decision by contacting us using the information in Section 5.b. In your appeal, please explain why you believe our decision should be reconsidered. We will respond to your appeal within 45 days (or 60 days if we need additional time, in which case we will notify you). If we deny your appeal, we will provide you with information about how to contact the applicable state attorney general to submit a complaint, where applicable.

e. Email Communications Opt-Out

If you do not wish to receive promotional emails from us, you may opt out by:

Clicking the ‘unsubscribe’ link at the bottom of any promotional email
Emailing privacy@seo-usa.org with ‘Unsubscribe’ in the subject line
Calling 212-979-2040

6. DATA RETENTION

We retain personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, enforce our agreements, and as required by our data retention policies. Generally, we retain program participant information for the duration of program participation and for a reasonable period thereafter to provide alumni services and maintain historical records. Financial records are retained in accordance with applicable tax and financial regulations. When we no longer need your personal information, we will securely delete or anonymize it in accordance with our data retention and destruction procedures.

We retain different categories of information for varying periods, including, but not limited to:

Program participant information: For the duration of program participation and at least 2 years thereafter to provide alumni services and maintain historical records. When you transition from program participant to alumni status, we reserve the right to continue to use and share your Personal Information as outlined in this Policy for alumni services, networking, and career support purposes.
Financial and tax information: For 7 years in accordance with IRS requirements
Communications and correspondence: For the duration of the relationship and 3 years thereafter.

7. DATA SECURITY

We implement reasonable physical, technical, and administrative safeguards designed to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, use, alteration, and disclosure. These measures include secure data storage systems, encryption of data in transit and at rest, access controls, and employee training on data security. However, no security measures are perfect or impenetrable. We cannot guarantee the security of your information, and you transmit information to us at your own risk. If we become aware of a data breach that compromises your personal information, we will notify you and relevant authorities as required by applicable law.

8. CHILDREN’S PRIVACY

Some of our programs serve minors, but not children under 13 years of age. Protecting the privacy of young children is especially important. For that reason, we do not allow children under 13 years of age to use the Site, we do not knowingly collect or maintain information from persons under 13 years of age, and no part of the Site is directed to persons under 13 years of age. If you are under 13 years of age, then please do not use or access the Site at any time or in any manner. If you are a parent or guardian and discover that your child under 13 years of age has provided us with information, please alert us at privacy@seo-usa.org. For participants ages 13-17, we comply with applicable state laws regarding processing of minors’ data. Parents and legal guardians may review, request deletion of, or refuse further collection of their child’s information by contacting us at privacy@seo-usa.org.

For participants under 18 years of age, we process personal information only as strictly necessary to provide our program services and facilitate career opportunities. We do not process personal information of minors for purposes of targeted advertising or profiling.

For participants between 13 and 16 years of age in certain states (including California), we do not sell or share personal information as those terms are defined under applicable state law. We process information of minor participants only for purposes of program administration and career services.

If you are between 13 and 18 years of age, you may only use our Services with the involvement, supervision, and approval of a parent or legal guardian. If you are under 13 years of age, you may not use our website unless we have obtained verifiable parental consent as required by COPPA.

a. Parental Consent

For program participants under 18 years of age, we obtain parental or guardian consent for certain program activities, including travel, use of photos and media, and other specific activities as required by law or program policies. Parents and guardians have the right to review their child’s personal information, request deletion, and refuse further collection or use.

b. Parental Rights

Parents and guardians may:

Review the personal information we have collected from their child
Request deletion of their child’s personal information
Refuse to permit further collection or use of their child’s information
Revoke previously given consent

To exercise these rights, please contact us at privacy@seo-usa.org.

9. INTERNATIONAL DATA TRANSFERS

Our Services are hosted and operated in the United States. If you are accessing the Services from outside the United States, please be aware that your information will be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States, where our servers are located and our central database is operated. The data protection laws of the United States may differ from those of your country of residence. By using the Services or providing us with information, you acknowledge and consent to the transfer, processing, and storage of your information in the United States.

Subject to applicable law (for example, if you are located in the European Union with rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”)), you may have one or more of the following rights with respect to Personal Information: the right to request access to such information; the right to request correction of such information; the right to request deletion or erasure of such information; the right to request restrictions on our processing or use of such information; the right to object to our use under certain circumstances; the right to withdraw consent under circumstances when consent is required for any use of such information; and the right to obtain such information in portable form.

In certain circumstances in any European Union member state, you may have the right to lodge a complaint regarding our privacy practices with the applicable data protection authority.

To exercise any rights under the GDPR or for further information, please contact us at privacy@seo-usa.org.

We do not intend to offer our Services in any jurisdiction where the offering of such Services would be contrary to applicable local law, and any such offer of Services is void if illegal under applicable law.

10. COOKIES AND TRACKING TECHNOLOGIES

When you use the Site, we may send one or more cookies (which are small text files containing a string of alphanumeric characters) to your computer or mobile device, to recognize your web browser, help analyze our web page flow, customize our content, measure promotional effectiveness, and promote trust and safety. You are always free to decline our cookies if your browser permits, although doing so may interfere with your ability to use the Site or certain features of the Site. We may also use Google Analytics or a similar service that uses cookies to help us analyze how users use the Site. That use may be subject to the Google Analytics Terms of Use and Google Privacy Policy.

For more information about Google Analytics and how to opt out, visit:

https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout
http://www.google.com/policies/privacy/partners/

By clicking accept on our cookie banner, or by continuing to use the Site after receiving notice about our use of cookies, you consent to our use of cookies as described in this Privacy Policy. You may withdraw your consent at any time by changing your browser settings to refuse cookies or by deleting cookies stored on your device. Please note that disabling certain cookies may limit the functionality of the Site.

11. DO NOT TRACK

Some browsers have a ‘Do Not Track’ feature that lets you tell websites you do not want to have your online activities tracked. We do not currently respond to Do Not Track signals.

12. THIRD-PARTY LINKS AND SERVICES

Our Services may contain links to third-party websites, applications, and services that are not owned or controlled by SEO, including social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. This Privacy Policy does not apply to third-party websites and services. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these third parties. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party websites or services before providing your information to them.

13. STATE-SPECIFIC PROVISIONS

Several US states have privacy laws that may be applicable, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, and Virginia, Delaware, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, and Utah. Specific additional rights to you may vary by state. Please contact us if you have any questions regarding state-specific provisions.

14. CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We reserve the right to update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. When we make material changes, we will notify you by updating the ‘Last Updated’ date at the top of this Privacy Policy and, where appropriate, by posting a notice on our website or sending you an email. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your information. Your continued use of the Services after changes to this Privacy Policy constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

15. CONTACT INFORMATION

If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us at:

SEO – Sponsors for Educational Opportunity, Inc.
55 Exchange Place Fl 6
New York, NY 10005

Email: privacy@seo-usa.org
Phone: 212-979-2040