Community Rules & Etiquette and Privacy Guidelines
Thank you for being part of our community! To ensure the best possible experience for all members, we have established some basic guidelines for participation.
By joining and using this community, you agree that you have read and will follow these rules and guidelines. You also agree to reserve discussions and shared files and content to that best suited to the medium. This is a great medium with which to solicit the advice of your peers, benefit from their experience, and participate in an ongoing conversation. Questions should be directed to our member services department via the Contact Us link on this site.
Please take a moment to acquaint yourself with these important guidelines. If you have questions, contact the member services department. In order to preserve an environment that encourages both civil and fruitful dialogue, we reserve the right to suspend or terminate membership in this community for anyone who violates these rules.
The Rules
- Respect others. Focus on the content of posts and not on the people making them. Please extend the benefit of the doubt to newer guests and members; there’s no such thing as a stupid question.
- Respect the purpose of the community. Use the community to share successes, challenges, constructive feedback, questions, and goals instead of products or services that you provide. If you’ve found a product or service helpful, please share your experience with the group in a respectful way.
- Use caution when discussing products. Information posted on the discussion groups and in the libraries is available for all to see, and comments are subject to libel, slander, and antitrust laws.
- All defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal materials are strictly prohibited. Do not post anything that you would not want the world to see or that you would not want anyone to know came from you.
- Respect intellectual property. Post content that you have personally created or have permission to use and have properly attributed to the content creator.
- When posting items in our collaborative environment, please indicate if the item is not available for reuse. It’s also advisable to contact the owner of any material if you would like to reuse it.
- Post your message or documents only to the most appropriate communities. This helps ensure all messages receive the best response by eliminating "noise."
Discussion Group Etiquette
- State concisely and clearly the topic of your comments in the subject line. This allows members to respond more appropriately to your posting and makes it easier for members to search the archives by subject.
- Send messages such as "thanks for the information" or "me, too" to individuals, not to the entire list. Do this by using the "Reply to Sender" link in every message.
- Do not send administrative messages, such as “remove me from the list,” to the group. Instead, use the web interface to change your settings or to remove yourself from a list. If you are changing email addresses, you do not need to remove yourself from the list and rejoin under your new email address. Simply change your settings.
The Legal Stuff
This site is provided as a service for the members of Massachusetts Association of School Business Officials, Inc. (hereinafter “MASBO”). MASBO is not responsible for the opinions and information posted on this site by others. We disclaim all warranties with regard to information posted on this site, whether posted by MASBO or any third party; this disclaimer includes all implied warranties of merchantability and fitness. In no event shall MASBO be liable for any special, indirect, or consequential damages or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data, or profits, arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of any information posted on this site.
Do not post any defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal materials. Do not post any information or other material protected by copyright without the permission of the copyright owner. By posting material, the posting party warrants and represents that he or she owns the copyright with respect to such material or has received permission from the copyright owner. In addition, the posting party grants Massachusetts Association of School Business Officials and users of this site the nonexclusive right and license to display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit, print, and use such information or other material.
Messages should not be posted if they encourage or facilitate members to arrive at any agreement that either expressly or impliedly leads to price fixing, a boycott of another's business, or other conduct intended to illegally restrict free trade. Messages that encourage or facilitate an agreement about the following subjects are inappropriate: prices, discounts, or terms or conditions of sale; salaries; profits, profit margins, or cost data; market shares, sales territories, or markets; allocation of customers or territories; or selection, rejection, or termination of customers or suppliers.
MASBO does not actively monitor the site for inappropriate postings and does not, on its own, undertake editorial control of postings. However, in the event that any inappropriate posting is brought to the attention of MASBO we will take all appropriate action.
MASBO reserves the right to terminate access to any user who does not abide by these guidelines.
Data Security/Privacy Policy (June, 2019)
MASBO recognizes that information privacy is an ongoing responsibility, and will continue to update this privacy policy as it undertakes new personal data practices or adopt new privacy policies.
Applicability and Eligibility
This privacy policy applies to the collection, use, disclosure, and protection of membership data. It does not apply to third party websites, applications, or services.
Collection and Use of Personal Information
MASBO collects personal information about our members and other associated individuals as necessary to business operations. This information includes, but is not limited to, first name, last name, job title, employer name, work address, work email, and work phone number. It is used to provide members and customers with professional development and more. MASBO does not sell personal information to anyone and only shares it with third parties who are facilitating the delivery of its services, or with other members.
Membership
- Upon becoming a member, information is included (but not limited to) name, employer’s name, work address, and work email address. MASBO may also collect personal email address, a personal mailing address, and a mobile phone number.
- MASBO processes personal information for membership administration, to deliver member benefits, and to provide and inform about events, content, and other benefits or opportunities associated with membership. MASBO may also use this information to help the Association understand members’ needs and interests to better tailor its products and services to meet members’ needs.
Events and Webinars
- MASBO hosts events throughout the year, including conferences, webinars, and trainings (collectively “events”). If a member registers for one of these events, MASBO will access the information in the member account to provide you with information and services associated with the event. If an individual is not a member and registers for one of our events, MASBO will collect your name and contact information, which will be stored in the database and used to provide the registrant with information and services associated with the event. If an individual is a presenter at one of our events, MASBO may collect information about him/her, which may include name, employer and contact information, and photograph, and may also collect information provided by event attendees who evaluated the performance as a presenter.
- MASBO reserves the right to use any photograph/video taken at events, without the expressed written permission of those included within the photograph/video. MASBO may use the photograph/video in publications or other media material including but not limited to: brochures, newspapers, magazines, websites, etc. To ensure the privacy of individuals, images will not be identified using full names or personal identifying information without written approval from the photographed subject.
Correspondence Information
If an individual corresponds with MASBO by email, the postal service, or other form of communication, such correspondence and the information contained in it may be retained and used to respond to an inquiry made by the individual; to notify him/her of conferences, publications, or other services; or to keep a record of his/her complaint, accommodation request, etc.
Access to One’s Own Information
Certain tools and settings are provided to help a member access, correct, delete, or modify his/her personal information. Contact staff regarding the information collected about you, including the nature and accuracy of the data collected about you, to request an update, modification, or deletion of your information, to opt-out of certain services, or to withdraw any consent you may have granted. Please note that if you choose to delete your information or opt-out of the collection and use of your information, certain features may no longer be available to you.
Payment Information
MASBO may collect and store information related to purchases if you choose to purchase goods and services. You may provide certain information to complete payments, including your credit or debit card number, card expiration date, CVV code, and billing address (collectively, “Payment Information”), along with your name and billing, and shipping address, to complete payment transactions. Per PCI Compliance, MASBO does not accept credit card information via email. Credit card information received via fax, phone, or mail is entered into a secure system and then deleted and destroyed.
Website Usage
As is true of most other websites, our website collects certain information automatically and stores it in log files. The information may include internet protocol (IP) addresses, the region or general location where your computer or device is accessing the internet, browser type, operating system and other usage information about the use of our website, including a history of the pages you view. This information may be used to help improve the site. We may also use your IP address to help diagnose problems with our server and to administer our website, analyze trends, track visitor movements, and gather broad demographic information to assist us in identifying visitor preferences.
Sharing Information
Information about your purchases are maintained in association with your membership or profile account. The personal information collected from you is stored in a database hosted by a third party, YourMembership (“YM”). YM does not use or have access to your personal information for any purpose other than cloud storage and retrieval.
MASBO does not otherwise reveal your personal data to third-parties for their independent use unless: (1) you request or authorize it; (2) it’s in connection with any of our events as described above; (3) the information is provided to comply with the law (for example, to comply with a search warrant, subpoena or court order), enforce an agreement we have with you, or to protect our rights, property or safety, or the rights, property or safety of our employees or others; (4) selected information is provided to our agents, vendors or service providers who perform functions on our behalf; (5) to address emergencies or acts of God; and (6) to address disputes, claims, or to persons demonstrating legal authority to act on your behalf.
Social Media
MASBO’s website may interface with social media sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter and others. If you choose to "like" or share information from MASBO’s website through these services, you should review the privacy policy of that service. If you are a member of a social media site, the interfaces may allow the social media site to connect your site visit to your personal data.
Member Directory
Members are allowed to share their information through our Member Directory to other members using this site. Members are invited to opt-in to having their information shared in the Member Directory. Member information will only be shared in the Member Directory if the member has opted-in to sharing such information.
Changes and Updates to the Privacy Policy
By using this site, you agree to the terms and conditions contained in this privacy policy. As MASBO’s organization, membership, and benefits change from time to time, this privacy policy is expected to change as well. MASBO reserves the right to amend the privacy policy at any time, for any reason, without notice to you, other than the posting of the amended privacy policy on our website. MASBO may email periodic reminders of our notices and terms and conditions and will email members of material changes.
Data Protection Officer
MASBO has appointed an internal data protection officer for you to contact if you have any questions or concerns about our data policies or practices.