Privacy Policy

Last updated: October 3, 2026

This policy explains what information the Clara Science Academy portal (the website and the installable app) keeps, why, who can see it, and the choices families have. The portal is run by Clara Science Academy, 3015 East Bessemer Ave., Greensboro, NC 27405.

Who uses the portal

The portal is for enrolled students, their parents or guardians, and school staff. There is no public sign-up: the school creates every account. The portal is free; nothing is sold through it.

Information we keep

Account details: name, username, role, school email address, and a securely hashed password (we never store passwords in readable form).
Student records: enrollment, class schedules, assignments, submitted work, grades, report cards, transcripts, attendance, and teacher comments.
Family and staff contact details that the school office enters, such as phone numbers and addresses.
Messages and announcements sent inside the portal, and the notifications created from them.
Test monitoring: when a teacher runs a quiz in test mode, the portal records low-resolution screen captures and, unless an exemption is granted, camera images, plus focus and tab-switch events. These help teachers confirm the test was taken fairly.
Security logs: sign-in times, failed sign-in attempts, IP address and browser type, used to protect accounts.
App notifications: if you turn on notifications in Settings, your browser gives us a push address for that device. You can turn this off at any time, and signing out removes it.
Google connection (staff only): staff who connect a Google account allow the portal to use Google Classroom and Drive on their behalf. The access tokens are stored encrypted.

Why we use it

We use this information only to run the school: teaching, grading, attendance, communication with families, report cards and transcripts, and keeping accounts secure. We do not sell personal information, show advertising, or use it to build marketing profiles.

Student privacy laws

Student education records are protected by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). The school's service providers listed below act as "school officials" and may use records only to provide their service to the school. For students under 13, the school provides consent for the portal's educational use on parents' behalf, as permitted under the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Parents may review what is collected by contacting the office.

Who we share it with

Google Workspace for Education: school email, sign-in with Google, Google Classroom and Drive.
Our hosting provider (currently Render), which stores the database and runs the portal.
Browser push services (Google, Mozilla, Microsoft or Apple, depending on your browser), which deliver notifications you have turned on. They receive only an encrypted message.
Public code libraries loaded from jsDelivr and cdnjs, which see a normal web request (such as your IP address) but no portal data.

We may also share information when required by law, or to protect the safety of students and staff. There are no analytics, advertising or tracking services in the portal.

Cookies and device storage

The portal uses only cookies that are needed for it to work, so there is no cookie banner:

Session cookie: keeps you signed in and protects forms against forgery. It ends when you sign out or after a period of inactivity.
"Remember me" cookie: set only if you tick "Remember me", and expires after 14 days.

Your browser also stores a few settings on your own device, such as your theme, whether you have seen the latest update notes, and whether notifications are turned on. These never leave your device except as part of normal portal requests.

How long we keep it

Academic records (grades, report cards, transcripts, attendance) are kept as long as schools are required to keep them.
Test-mode screen and camera images, and the detailed activity log recorded with them, are deleted automatically 60 days after the test. The quiz score and any lock or violation record remain.
Device notification addresses are removed when you turn notifications off, sign out, or the browser reports them as expired.

Your rights

Parents and guardians, and students who are 18 or older, may ask to review the student's education records, ask for a correction if something is inaccurate, and ask questions about how information is used. Because schools are required to keep certain records, the portal does not offer self-service deletion; contact the office about any request.

Security

Connections are encrypted (HTTPS), passwords are hashed, staff access is limited by role, sign-in attempts are rate-limited, and uploaded files are available only to signed-in users. No system is perfectly secure; if we learn of a breach affecting your information, we will notify you as required by law.

Changes

If this policy changes, the new version will be posted on this page with a new "Last updated" date, and significant changes will be announced in the portal.

Contact

Clara Science Academy, 3015 East Bessemer Ave., Greensboro, NC 27405
Phone: 1-800-567-5110
Email: info@clarascienceacademy.com