Biola University Online Privacy Policy Statement

[Updated: October 25, 2018]

Biola University, Inc. (Biola) is committed to the responsible use of personal information collected from and about you while you are using the www.biola.edu website or any website or online service under the biola.edu domain name. Consistent with the California Online Privacy Protection Act of 2003, this privacy statement provides information about how this personal information may be used. Individual web pages under the biola.edu domain name may post additional privacy statements addressing more specific information collected on those pages.

1. Non-personally identifiable information
   As users access the website, Biola collects non-personally identifiable information such as IP address, browser type, and site usage. This information is not linked to any personal information and remains anonymous. To collect this information, the university uses session “cookies” -- that is, small text files that are placed on your computer’s hard drive. The session cookies used by the university do not give us access to your computer and do not provide us with personally identifiable information. Session cookies are deleted when you close your browser. You may modify your browser settings to disallow cookies, but this may prevent you from taking full advantage of our website.
2. Personally identifiable information
   Certain areas of our website collect voluntary information that is personally identifiable, such as name, zip code, and e-mail address. This is typically done through request and registration forms provided in order to learn of your interest in Biola and provide you with information and services. Personally identifiable information may be collected as part of an online purchase, payment, or donation. In this case, Biola uses one of the following PCI-compliant third-party services to process your transaction. Prior to using these services, we encourage you to read the privacy policies listed below.
   
   • FoxyCart.com LLC (Non-student online purchases) — Foxycart privacy policy
   • TouchNet Information Systems, Inc. (student account payments and non-student online payments and purchases) — TouchNet privacy policy
   • AudienceView (Biola Ticket Office purchases) — AudienceView privacy policy
   • Slingshot (online Biola Bookstore purchases) — Slingshot privacy policy
   The university does not knowingly collect personally identifiable information from children (defined herein as minors younger than thirteen years of age) without obtaining parental consent. Implied parental consent includes, but is not limited to: use of parent login, use of parent-supplied credit card and inclusion of parent personal information on registration forms. Some Biola departments provide services to children. As a part of the online registration process for such services, we may request information such as a child’s name, address, cell phone, email, gender, grade level, birth date, school attended, clothing size, church and ethnicity. This information is never sold or otherwise provided to third parties, although some information may be provided to other Biola departments in order to provide the child with information about Biola. Before registering online for a service, Biola requests that all children have their parents read this Privacy Policy as well as any additional Privacy Policy associated with the service for which they are registering, and that parents continue their involvement throughout the registration process.

1. Use of non-personally identifiable information
   We use non-personally identifiable information while you are browsing the site to improve your individual experience and provide you with more individualized responses. We also aggregate non-personally identifiable information from many users into statistical reports in order to better administer our website, diagnose server problems that may occur from time to time, and improve our website.
2. Use of personally identifiable information
   By providing personally identifiable information, you imply consent to the collection and use of the information for the purposes for which it was provided. Your information is used to provide relevant materials, products and services you request, and to facilitate relationships with the University, such as the admissions process and fund raising programs. You may opt out of receiving information from Biola University by contacting the department from which the information came. Only those Biola University employees who need personally identifiable information to perform a specific job are given access to the information. Unless required by law, personally identifiable information is only shared with third parties as necessary to provide the materials, products, and services you request. When third parties are given access to personally identifiable information, they are, by contract, not permitted to use or re-disclose any of the information for unauthorized purposes. Personally identifiable information is never sold to third parties.

The California State Legislature passed Assembly Bill 21 last year which requires all colleges and universities to communicate information about immigration enforcement policies to all faculty, staff, and students, every semester, as well as have this information available online for all faculty, staff, and students. In light of this bill, there are disclosures Biola University is required to communicate to our community every semester pertaining to the protection of personal information and the University’s approach to responding to immigration authorities. The points are provided below to help you better understand the legal protections and the protocols Biola will be following.

1. Our university will NOT be disclosing personal information concerning our students, our faculty or staff to immigration officials, without the consent of the person identified, or, if the person is under 18 years of age, without the explicit consent of the parent or guardian of the person identified; except: (a) as may legally be disclosed under state and federal privacy laws; (b) for the programmatic purpose for which the information was obtained; (c) as part of a directory that does not include residence addresses or individual persons’ course schedules and that the person has not elected to opt out of; or (d) in response to a judicial warrant, court order, or subpoena.
2. If there is reason to believe that a student, faculty, or staff member has been taken into custody as a result of an immigration enforcement action, as soon as possible following verification that this has, in fact, occurred, the university will notify the person’s emergency contact.
3. If a member of our Biola community is advised that an immigration officer is expected to enter, or has entered our campus to carry out a federal immigration order, Campus Safety should be notified immediately.
4. Biola University will comply with a request from an immigration officer for access to nonpublic areas such as residence halls, classrooms and offices not open to the public, of the campus only upon presentation of a judicial warrant. This compliance shall not apply to an immigration officer’s request for access or information related to the operation of international student, staff, or faculty programs, employment verification efforts, or other nonenforcement activities.
5. If you are responding to or having contact with an immigration officer executing a federal immigration order, please refer the individual to Campus Safety campus.safety@biola.edu,(562) 903-4877 for purposes of verifying the legality of any warrant, court order or subpoena.
6. For any questions or concerns that relate to an immigration order or inquiry being enforced on our campus, please email internal.communications@biola.edu. Unless the disclosure is permitted by state and federal education privacy law, faculty and staff persons shall be prohibited from discussing the personal information, including immigration status information, of any student, faculty, or staff person with anyone, or revealing that personal information to anyone. Privacy laws are very strict so disclosing any personal information of any students or employees is prohibited and violates the law.
7. Biola University maintains a list of legal service providers who can provide legal immigration representation for students, provided free of charge upon request. View the legal directory.
8. All students, faculty and staff have a number of legal rights pertaining to immigration, afforded to them, which can be found here. View your legal rights
9. In the event that an undocumented student is detained, deported, or is unable to attend to his or her academic requirements due to the actions of an immigration officer in relation to a federal immigration order, Biola University will make all reasonable efforts to assist the student in retaining any eligibility for financial aid, fellowship stipends, exemption from nonresident tuition fees, funding for research or other educational projects, housing stipends or services, or other benefits he or she has been awarded or received, and permit the student to be re-enrolled if and when the student is able to return to Biola.
10. Biola University’s Pastoral Care team through Student Development is available to assist undocumented students, and other students, faculty, and staff who may be subject to a federal immigration order or inquiry, or who may face similar issues, and whose education or employment is at risk because of federal immigration actions.

If you have any concerns regarding California State Assembly Bill 21, or the university’s policy, please send all questions, comments and inquiries to internal.communications@biola.edu.

In order to protect the loss, misuse, or alteration of information gathered on our site, all information is stored within a controlled database environment accessible only to authorized University staff. However, as effective as any security measures implemented by the University may be, no security system is impenetrable. Biola University cannot guarantee the security of its database environment, nor can it guarantee that the information you provide will not be intercepted while being transmitted over the Internet.

Biola University does not control the actions of its site visitors nor the use site visitors may make of publicly disclosed information. Please be aware that disclosing personally identifiable information on the site’s bulletin boards, guest books, chat rooms or other such public forums may allow visitors to gather information and send unsolicited email. We encourage you to report any unsolicited/unwanted email or misuse of information to informationtechnology@biola.edu.

Our website may include links to other websites outside the biola.edu domain, including co-branded or other affiliated sites that may or may not be owned or operated by Biola University. Such sites are not governed by this privacy statement. Users should become familiar with the privacy practices of those other sites.

Questions about this privacy policy should be directed to the University at informationtechnology@biola.edu.

Biola University
13800 Biola Avenue
La Mirada, CA 90639