Last updated: 05/20/2025
Thank you for visiting this website located at https://prescientist.org (the “Site”) operated by Pre-Scientist, Inc. (“LPS,” “we” or “our”). We are committed to protecting the privacy of all visitors to this Site and the participants in the Letters to a Pre-Scientist program. We have prepared this Privacy Policy to describe our practices regarding personal data that we collect through this Site and other websites where this Privacy Policy is posted and otherwise in the process of administering the LPS program, including data from STEM professionals, students, teachers and donors.
1. Types of Data We Collect
We collect the following types of personal data from individuals who interact with this Site and/or who participate in the LPS program:
Information users provide to us
- When a user subscribes to our mailing list, we collect their email address, first and last name and, in some circumstances, mailing address and referral source.
- When a user provides us feedback or contacts us via email, we will collect their name and email address, as well as any other content included in the email to us, in order to send a reply.
- When teachers apply to host the pen pal program, we collect personal data related to their application, including their contact information and the name of the school where they teach.
- When STEM professionals register for the pen pal program, we collect personal data related to their request, including contact information, demographic data, employment information and interests and experience as a pen pal.
- When pre-scientists (students) register for the pen pal program, following our receipt of signed consent from their parent or guardian, we collect personal data from them, including first name and last name, the name of their LPS teacher and information relevant to a student’s needs and interests relating to participation in the program, such as languages spoken and STEM areas of interest. As pen pal letters to students are sent from our STEM professional volunteers to the student’s teacher, we do not collect personal contact information for pre-scientists through the registration process.
- When STEM professionals, students and teachers complete surveys related to their experience with the LPS program, we may also collect demographic data of students, STEM professionals or teachers if the individual completing the survey chooses to provide it.
- We also may collect electronic copies of the letters from both STEM professionals and pre-scientists as part of the pen pal program administration.
- When individuals provide donations to support the LPS program, donations are collected through postal mail as well as third-party donation platforms. In connection with donations, we receive information relating to donors such as the donor’s name, email address, donation amount and last four digits of donor credit card.
Information collected automatically through this Site
To make our Site more useful or better personalize our email messages, our servers (which are hosted by a third-party service provider) may automatically collect information from the computer or device of visitors to our Site. We collect this information through the use of tracking technologies, such as cookies, pixels and web beacons. This information includes but is not limited to:
- Details regarding your device or browser, such as your device ID, the type of device or browser you are using and its display settings, the device’s operating system, session start/stop time, time zone and network connection type (e.g., Wi-Fi, cellular);
- The Internet Protocol (IP) address (a numerical address assigned to each computer by the user’s Internet service provider) that can sometimes be used to derive a user’s general geographic area;
- Information regarding your interactions with our Site or email messages we may send you, including:
- the date and time of visit of our Site or interaction with our email message, the web pages, ad or content viewed, and links that were clicked on while navigating our Site or viewing our email message;
- the site visited before and after visiting our Site;
- search terms entered using our Site or on a referral site and items you may download from our Site.
- We use third-party analytics services (“Analytics Services”) to help analyze how users use our Site. The information generated about the use of our Site (the “Analytics Information”) is transmitted to the Analytics Services in order to compile reports on user activity. The Analytics Services may also transfer the Analytics Information to third parties where required to do so by law or where such third parties process Analytics Information on their behalf.
2. Use of Personal Data
We and our service providers use personal data that we collect as follows:
General use
We use personal data to:
- Operate and administer the LPS program, including choosing and pairing students and STEM professionals;
- Measure and analyze visitor traffic and improve the quality of users’ experience when they interact with our Site;
- Send communications to existing and former LPS program participants and potential participants, including newsletters and promotional materials for the LPS program;
- Send marketing online regarding the LPS program to individuals who have visited our Site;
- Understand whether our users read email messages and click on links within those messages;
- Communicate with donors to the LPS program and solicit donations for the LPS program from existing and potential donors;
- Prevent potentially prohibited or illegal activities and comply with applicable laws.
LPS pen pal program administration
Part of our mission is to create personal connections between STEM professionals and pre-scientists, and we are committed to doing so while protecting the privacy and safety of all our participants. In order to facilitate meaningful correspondence, we match STEM professionals and pre-scientists as pen pals on the basis of their shared interests, including topics in science as well as hobbies and recreational activities. Personal data regarding student pre-scientists is disclosed to their STEM professional pen pal.
We also ask both STEM professionals and pre-scientists for demographic data, including race and gender identity. Providing this data is not required for participation. We use this data to better understand our diverse population of students and volunteers and to evaluate and improve the LPS program.
De-identified or anonymized data
We may de-identify or anonymize personal data we collect by excluding information (such as name and contact information) that makes the data identifiable or linkable to a particular individual. We reserve the right to use such de-identified or anonymized data for any purpose and to disclose such data to third parties at our discretion.
3. Disclosure of Personal Data
We may disclose personal data you provide or we otherwise collect as described below:
Third-party service providers
We may share personal data with our service providers, such as program management tools, donations payment processors or email messaging platforms. For example, we use MailChimp to maintain our email list and Airtable to manage our program data.
Program participants and volunteers
In order to administer the pen pal program, we may share personal data with participants in the LPS program and volunteers who support the program. All participants and volunteers agree to protect the confidentiality of personal data and use the data in accordance with this Privacy Policy and LPS Codes of Conduct.
Other disclosures
We may disclose personal data if such disclosure is appropriate (a) in connection with any legal investigation or proceeding; (b) to comply with relevant laws or to respond to subpoenas or warrants served on us; and/or (c) to protect the safety of our program participants.
LPS is an independent, tax-exempt, non-profit corporation. If LPS is operated by another corporate entity in the future, that organization will assume the rights and obligations regarding personal data described in this Privacy Policy.
4. Third-Party Websites
Our Site may contain links to third-party websites. When users click on a link to any other website or location, they will leave our Site and go to another site which may collect personal data. We are not responsible for these outside websites or their content. We encourage users to read the privacy policies of every website they visit.
5. A Note About Children
Our pre-scientists, most of whom are under the age of 13, participate in the LPS program with close oversight by their LPS teacher. Each pre-scientist must have a signed letter of consent from a parent or guardian allowing them to participate in LPS. We do not collect any personal data from or about a child whose parent or guardian does not consent to their participation and agree to that data collection. Parents or guardians may choose to revoke this consent, either by contacting their child’s LPS teacher or by emailing info@prescientist.org. We will delete the child’s information as soon as possible after receiving notice that consent has been revoked.
6. Donor Information
We will not sell, share or trade our donors’ personal data with any third-party (who is not our service provider) or send mailings to our donors on behalf of other organizations. LPS use of donor-related information is limited to our internal purposes to support the mission of LPS. To the extent any donations are processed through a third-party platform, donor information will be used in accordance with that third party platform’s privacy policy.
LPS will honor any donor’s wish to remain anonymous, and donors and prospective donors may ask to be removed from our email, mailing or phone lists at any time. If you determine that information in our database is inaccurate, or it has changed, you can modify your personal information by contacting us directly at info@prescientist.org.
7. Your Choices
Individuals have choices regarding how we use their information:
Email communications
We may periodically send newsletters and other emails that promote participation in our pen pal program or charitable contribution to our organization. When users receive any communications from us, they may indicate a preference to stop receiving further communications from us by emailing us at info@prescientist.org. Mailing list subscribers may opt out by following the unsubscribe instructions provided in the email they receive.
Changing or deleting information
Despite the indicated preferences for newsletters and marketing emails, we may continue to send informational emails about the pen pal program to STEM professionals who have registered to participate in the past two years. Users may request to have any of their information changed or deleted by contacting us directly at info@prescientist.org.
Cookie management
When you interact with our Site or email messages, we collect certain information by automated means using tracking technologies, such as cookies. Cookies are small data files that websites send to your computer or device to uniquely identify your browser to store information or settings in your browser. We use cookies to better understand how users interact with our Site or email messages. We may also use cookies to enhance and customize your experience on our Site. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies. You can, however, change your browser to prevent this or to notify you each time a cookie is set. You can also choose to turn off cookies by adjusting your browser settings. If you turn off cookies, some of the features of our Site may not function properly. To learn more about how to manage cookies on different types of browsers, you can visit the website www.allaboutcookies.org.
Do-not-track browser signals
Your browser and other mechanisms may permit you to send do-not-track signals or other similar signals to express your preferences regarding online tracking. Because of differences in how web browsers incorporate and activate this feature, it is not always clear whether users intend for these signals to be transmitted or whether they even are aware of them. We do not currently respond to such signals.
8. Your Privacy Rights
You may be afforded, in accordance with applicable law, the right to: (i) obtain information about the personal information we have collected about you and to request a copy of it; (ii) delete certain personal information we have about you; (iii) request correction of inaccurate personal information we have about you; (iv) object to or request the restriction of processing of your personal information; and (v) withdraw your consent.
To exercise any of these rights please send an email to info@prescientist.org.
Once we receive your request, we may verify it by requesting information sufficient to confirm your identity. We reserve the right to deny requests as allowed by applicable law, such as where we have a reasonable belief that the request is fraudulent, where your identity cannot be confirmed or where we must retain your Information consistent with applicable law. To appeal a decision regarding a consumer rights request, please email us at info@prescientist.org.
We will not discriminate against you for exercising your rights and choices, although some of the functionality and features available to you may change or no longer be available to you.
9. Data Security
The security and confidentiality of your personal data is very important to us. We have implemented measures designed to appropriately protect your personal data from accidental loss and from unauthorized access, use, alteration and disclosure. Unfortunately, no security measures can guarantee that information will never be accessed in an unauthorized way.
10. Data Retention
When deciding how long to keep your personal data, we take into account how long we need to retain the information to fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy and to comply with our legal obligations. We may also retain personal data to investigate or defend against potential legal claims in accordance with the limitation periods of jurisdictions where legal action may be brought.
11. Changes to this Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time for any reason. We will notify users of any changes to our Privacy Policy by posting the new Privacy Policy at www.prescientist.org/privacy and changing the “Last Updated” date above and, in some cases, we may provide you with additional notice (such as adding a statement to our Site or sending you a notification). We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy regularly to stay informed about our information practices and the choices available to you.
12. Questions and Contact Information
Any questions, concerns or complaints about our Privacy Policy or our data collection or processing practices may be sent to info@prescientist.org.