Terms of Use

Purpose

The services and information provided at nextsteps.idaho.gov are created and maintained by the Office of the Idaho State Board of Education—the administrative arm of the Idaho State Board of Education. The purpose of any Next Steps Idaho resource is to help you identify career and education opportunities and make career plans.

 

Computers Talking to Computers

When you browse, read pages or download information on NextSteps.Idaho.gov, those actions are noted and logged. This information (listed below) never identifies who you are.

1. The Internet Protocol address and domain name used but not the e-mail address. The Internet Protocol address is a numerical identifier assigned either to your Internet service provider or directly to your computer. We use the Internet Protocol address to download the pages you request to your computer;
2. The type of browser and operating system and the connection speed;
3. The date and time you visited this site;
4. The web pages or services you accessed at this site; and
5. The web site you visited prior to coming to this web site.

Information that is automatically collected or stored is used to improve the content of this website and to help capture how people are using the Next Steps Idaho services. The Idaho State Board of Education analyzes website logs to continually improve the value of the materials available on its sites. Website logs are not personally identifiable, and no attempt is made to link them with the individuals that browse NextSteps.Idaho.gov.

 

People Talking to Computers

If, during your visit to NextSteps.Idaho.gov, you participate in a survey, send an email, or enter your email address into a login, sign-up, or form field, the following additional information will be collected:

1. Email and/or Embedded Form Correspondence – The email address, name if provided, and contents of the message; or
2. Surveys – Any information you volunteered in response to a survey; or
3. Applications – Any information you volunteered in the process of creating an account.

This information is not limited to text characters and may include audio, video, and graphic information formats you send or attach. These are retained in accordance with Idaho Open Records Law.

Next Steps Idaho uses your given details to respond appropriately. This may be to reply to you, to address issues you identify, to further improve the website, to verify your financial aid or training application(s), or to forward the email to another agency for appropriate action. Survey information is used only for the purpose designated.

Following is a summary of the personal identifying information (PII) that is requested when users choose to create an account within one of the three (3) Idaho State Board of Education applications accessed via the Next Steps Idaho website. These applications CANNOT collect any information unless a user actively submits their information. These services are optional.

 

Apply Idaho

Apply Idaho is a single, common, college application for up to 10 Idaho colleges and universities. It is free to use. ONLY Idaho high school seniors have the option to use Apply Idaho.

Requested PII Information: First Name, Last Name, Personal Email, Date of Birth, Date of Graduation, EDucation Unique IDentifier (EDUID) Number, Name of School, Home Address, Phone Number, Name of Parent(s) or Guardian(s).

 

Scholarship Idaho

Scholarship Idaho is a single, common scholarship application for 8 state-managed scholarships. Applicant eligibility is determined in real time (as they fill out the digital questionnaire). Scholarship Idaho is free to use. Any Idahoan that meets the eligibility requirements for at least ONE of the eight available state-managed scholarships has the option to use Scholarship Idaho.

Requested PII Information: First Name, Last Name, Personal Email, Date of Birth, Date of Graduation, *optional* EDucation Unique IDentifier (EDUID) Number, Name of School, Home Address, Phone Number, Name of Parent(s) or Guardian(s), Social Security Number (SSN).

 

Next Steps Idaho Student Portfolios

Next Steps Idaho Student Portfolios are a digital cache wherein students may save self-assessment results, bookmark Next Steps Idaho resources, and track their progress through interactive high school pathway plan activities. Next Steps Idaho Student Portfolios are free to use.

Students at or over the age of 13 have the option to use a Next Steps Idaho Student Portfolio. The consent of a parent or guardian is recommended for all students under 18. Parental/Guardian consent is required for students under the age of 13.

Requested PII Information: First Name, Last Name, Personal Email, Date of Birth, Date of Graduation, *optional* EDucation Unique IDentifier (EDUID) Number, Name of School.

 

Permissions for K-12 Institutions

Portions of all student portfolios at a school will be accessible to the Next Steps Idaho Coordinator for the school and to designees of the Next Steps Idaho Coordinator. However, under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 as amended (FERPA), the Coordinator and/or the designees must have a “legitimate educational interest” to look at material in a student’s portfolio. Next Steps Idaho Coordinator and their designees shall not view any part of student portfolios if they do not have a legitimate educational interest in reviewing such materials. The Next Steps Idaho Coordinator may set a policy in which all students are Opted-In or leave the choice to the student. If the policy is set so that all students are Opted-In, the student will receive notification of this policy the first time they log in.

Schools making Next Steps Idaho Portfolios available to students under the age of 13 shall obtain written authorization from parents or legal guardians before a Child creates an online portfolio. Parents may obtain access to their Child’s portfolio from the school’s Next Steps Idaho Coordinator or by using the Child’s username and password. Next Steps Idaho Coordinators can delete the Child’s portfolio if the parent wishes to prohibit future use of the portfolio. Next Steps Idaho Coordinators may also request that the option to create a personal portfolio be disabled for all students at a school.

 

Next Steps Idaho Adult Portfolios

Next Steps Idaho Adult Portfolios are a digital cache wherein adults may save self-assessment results, bookmark Next Steps Idaho resources, and discover/access job-finding support services. Next Steps Idaho Adult Portfolios are free to use.

Requested PII Information: First Name, Last Name, Personal Email, Date of Birth, Date of Graduation.

 

Information Sharing Restrictions for Children Under the Age of 13

Children under the age of 13 are not eligible to use services that require submission of personal information and should not submit any personal information to Next Steps Idaho without the authorization of a school, parent or guardian. This includes submitting personal information to the website as part of a user profile or personalization profile.

If Next Steps Idaho does gather personal information from a school, parent or legal guardian for a child under the age of 13, Next Steps Idaho will disclose the reasons for collecting the information as well as the intended use of it and verifiable parental consent will be sought before any personally identifiable information is collected.

Parents and legal guardians may request information on the type of data being collected, view their child’s information, and, if they choose, prohibit Next Steps Idaho from making further use of their child’s information. Next Steps Idaho will NOT provide personal information about children to third parties.

 

You Are In Control

Next Steps Idaho collects no personal information about you unless you voluntarily participate in an activity that asks for information (i.e. sending an email, sharing content, creating an account, or participating in a survey). If you choose not to participate in these activities, your choice will in no way affect your ability to use any other features on NextStep.Idaho.gov.

If personal information is volunteered by the user state law and the federal Privacy Act of 1974 may protect it. However, this information is a public record, once you provide it, and may be subject to public inspection and copying if not protected by federal or state law. The collection of personal information volunteered by children online or by email will be treated the same as information given by an adult and may be subject to public access.

Next Steps Idaho strives to protect personally identifiable information by collecting only the information necessary to deliver its services.

You can review any personal information that Next Steps Idaho collects about you. You can recommend changes to any of your personal information that you believe to be erroneous; just submit a written request to infor@nextsteps.idaho.gov that credibly shows the error. If you believe that your personal information is being used for a purpose other than what was intended when submitted, you may contact Next Steps Idaho. In all cases, reasonable steps will be taken to verify your identity before granting access or making corrections.

 

Deleting Your Account

Next Steps Idaho Student Portfolios promote lifelong career planning by permitting students to access their portfolio before, during, and after high school. However, after five years of non-use, all portfolios will automatically be disabled. Users employed by an agency or by a primary, secondary, or postsecondary school may remove their information at any time by contacting a Next Steps Idaho Coordinator or an Office of the Idaho State Board of Education staff member.

Owners of accounts—created via Scholarship Idaho, Apply Idaho, and/or a Next Steps Idaho Portfolio—may request a copy of all personal identifying information that has been collected through that account and/or to remove their account. To do so, sign and mail a letter of request to the address listed below. Please include your first and last name, your username and the school or agency your portfolio is associated with.

Office of the Idaho State Board of Education
650 West State Street, Room 307
Boise, ID 83702-5936

Phone: 208-334-2270
Fax: 208-334-2632
Email: info@nextsteps.idaho.gov
www.nextsteps.idaho.gov

 

Security

Next Steps Idaho has in place Administrative Security, Physical Security and Logical Security controls to protect from a data breach or unauthorized disclosure. Access to non-aggregate student information is restricted to a few key personnel and limited to the technical management of the records or specific support-related activities. Servers and backups are located in secured facilities and the databases containing student information are encrypted. User accounts are role-based and password protected. This provides tiered levels of permissions so that access to data can be restricted to the requirements of that user.

Next Steps Idaho complies with all applicable state and federal laws, including the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (FERPA), the Children’s On-Line Privacy Protection Act of 1998 and the Idaho Student Data Accessibility, Transparency, and Accountability Act of 2014 (Idaho Data Accountability Act). Except as stated herein, or as otherwise provided or permitted by law, this information is not disclosed to any other group or agency for any purpose, nor, except as necessary to correct system problems, is individual information looked at by staff of the Idaho State Board of Education or by a Next Steps Idaho designee. Next Steps Idaho will not use any information collected for sales, marketing or advertising.

Next Steps Idaho uses Amazon Cognito to safeguard the integrity of its telecommunications and computing infrastructure. Amazon Cognito supports multi-factor authentication and encryption of data-at-rest and in-transit. Amazon Cognito is HIPAA eligible and PCI DSS, SOC, ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 27017, ISO/IEC 27018, and ISO 9001 compliant.

Security measures have been integrated into the design, implementation and day-to-day practices of the entire Next Steps Idaho operating environment as part of its continuing commitment to risk management.

 

Disclaimer

Various external web links may be provided on the Next Steps Idaho website. Such links are provided as a convenience and Next Steps Idaho does not make any representations or warranties concerning the privacy protections or security of those websites.

 

Next Steps Idaho Listens

To offer comments about NextSteps.Idaho.gov or the way that it handles your information, follow the prompts on the Next Steps Idaho contact page or reach out to the Idaho State Board of Education.