OLI Privacy Policy

Updated September 2024

The Open Learning Initiative Privacy Policies and Practices are formulated in order to use and protect the minimum personal information necessary to accomplish the needs of the credentialed educational process and, after anonymization, be of continuing value to researchers and practitioners in Evidence-based Educational Science and Technology.

In support of these ends, OLI’s Policies and Practices are designed to conform to the published policies of OLI’s parent, Carnegie Mellon University. [See links below], which include observance of the requirements of FERPA, COPPA, Pennsylvania Act 153 and GDPR, among others.

In particular OLI does not obtain user information beyond name and email address, which are used for access, and for identifying the tasks students have completed. When an individual is using OLI facilities via their relationship with a partnering institution or organization, that affiliation is also obtained by means of that institution’s connection to OLI.

This information is not retained in the available research analytics, and every user has the ability to completely opt-out of being included in the platform analytics.

When individual payments are required, credit card handling is either done entirely by the user’s home institution or by OLI using a vetted 3rd party credit card processing firm. Credit card numbers are not accepted or stored on any of OLI’s systems, and those systems are regularly scanned for accidental leakage of this information.

For fuller descriptions on these topics see the following:

Carnegie Mellon University Privacy Notice

<https://www.cmu.edu/legal/privacy-notice.html>

Carnegie Mellon University Legal Notice

<https://www.cmu.edu/legal/>

Carnegie Mellon University Student Privacy & FERPA

<https://www.cmu.edu/hub/privacy/index.html>

Carnegie Mellon Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) Notice

<https://www.cmu.edu/legal/coppa-notice.html>

Policy on the Protection of Children in Carnegie Mellon University Programs, Activities and Facilities

<https://www.cmu.edu/policies/administrative-and-governance/minors-on-campus.html>

OLI Research and Data Policies and Practices

<https://oli.cmu.edu/learn-more-about-oli/oli-research-and-data-policies-and-practices/>

OLI’s Security and Operations Policy

<https://oli.cmu.edu/oli-security-and-operations-policy/>