This Privacy Policy applies to the BROOKES AEPS TRAINING LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM at aepstraining.com (“LMS”), which is owned and operated by Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc. (“Brookes”). Brookes respects the privacy of our customers, web site visitors, and LMS users (“Users”), and we understand how important it is to protect their personally identifiable information and the information they manage. This Privacy Policy identifies the information that is collected on this LMS and explains how it is used and how it is protected.

Please read this Privacy Policy carefully before using this LMS. Your use of the LMS is also subject to the Terms of Use  and to the individual End User License Agreements (“EULAs”) for the courses or other online offerings available on the LMS. Brookes may, from time to time, change, amend, modify, or update this Privacy Policy and the Terms of Use without notice to you and at its sole discretion. Any such revisions or changes will be considered effective from the date they are posted on this LMS. Your continued access or use of this LMS constitutes acceptance of the latest version of this Privacy Policy by you and your institution. It is your responsibility to regularly check the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use, which are accessible from the home page of aepstraining.com.

If you have questions or concerns regarding this Privacy Policy, please contact AEPS Training Support at onlinetraining@brookespublishing.com.

COLLECTING AND USING INFORMATION

Anyone can visit the LMS without revealing their name or personal information, and Brookes does not use any devices that detect personally identifying information about the visitors to our site. If you elect to purchase Training on this LMS, the relevant privacy conditions after you access Training are set forth in this Privacy Policy.

This LMS hosts a variety of professional development learning experiences (“Training”) for Users. Training is broadly organized into two categories: (1) Tool Certifications and (2) Training Courses. Most Training can only be accessed with a user name and password. Training is intended to be used for pre-service and in-service purposes, on a supervised or independent-study basis, by teachers, specialists, administrators, child care providers, related services professionals, and other interested parties.

The portion of the LMS that contains User test results, User certificates issued after successful course completion, User-posted information, or other personal information about or from a User, is restricted to access by the individual User and/or Supervisors. The LMS is not intended to be used by any persons under the age of 18. Brookes will not sell, share, or rent any information collected on this LMS in ways different from what is disclosed in this Privacy Policy.

Personal Information about a User

You may become a registered User after you have purchased a Training, or, if you are employed by or otherwise appropriately affiliated with (e.g., as a third-party contractor or consultant) an organization that has purchased or otherwise received access to use the LMS and Training. User roles are defined in the Terms of Use for the LMS and/or in the EULA for a particular Training. Before using the LMS and engaging in Training and to obtain a user name and password, you must provide certain information that can be used to personally identify you (“Personal Information”); the specific Personal Information you must provide is determined by whether you are have purchased access ("Individual Purchase") or been granted access by an entity purchasing on your behalf ("Multiple Purchase).

  • Individual Purchase: Whether you are an organization or individual, if you have purchased access to Training, you must provide your full name, address, and valid email address to generate your LMS Account, and, if you are the purchaser, your telephone number and financial information* (e.g., credit card number).
  • Multiple Purchase: If you are affiliated with a school, school district, child care center, community program, or other organization that has purchased Training for you, you must enter your full name and email address to generate your LMS Account Holder. The Account Holder or Supervisor may request additional Personal Information from you (e.g., mailing address, telephone number) at their discretion.

*No financial information is stored in the LMS but must be provided to Brookes Publishing Co. as part of the customer service ordering process outside the LMS. Brookes uses the financial information for billing purposes only.

Brookes uses your name and email address to send email alerts and updates related to the LMS. You may opt-out of receiving email alerts and updates by emailing webmaster@brookespublishing.com or selecting the “opt-out” option included at the bottom of each email.

You may receive catalogs by postal mail from Brookes throughout the year. To be removed from our postal mailing list, please email Customer Service; call toll-free 1-800-638-3775; fax to 410-337-8539; or write to Brookes Publishing, P.O. Box 10624, Baltimore, MD 21285-0624, U.S.A., Attention: Customer Service. Brookes will remove you from any postal mailing list that we generate from our customer records, but we may not be able to remove your name from lists that we purchase from outside vendors. Brookes will make every effort to make your name inactive if you so request.

Subscriptions to Brookes email newsletters, which may be accessed from the LMS, are voluntary, and anyone may subscribe at any time. If you purchase a Training, you may be emailed regarding new products or special offers. We do not share or sell email addresses under any circumstances. You may opt out of receiving any, or all, of these communications from us by unsubscribing at email webmaster@brookespublishing.com or following the unsubscribe link or instructions provided in any email we send. 

User Name and Password

Your user name and password enable you to access Training in accordance with the access rights Brookes and your Supervisor grant you. Brookes encourages Account Holders and Supervisors to employ best security and privacy practices and require Users to regularly change their passwords. Do not disclose, share, or allow any third party to use your user name and/or password. If you become aware that your user name and/or password has been stolen or is being misused, notify your Supervisor or Account Holder at your organization immediately; if you are an individual purchaser, Account Holder, or Supervisor, notify Brookes directly by submitting a Help Desk ticket through the Contact Form. If you have lost or forgotten your user name or password, please use the secure automated mechanism available in the LMS for re-issuing user names and passwords for registered Users in the event they are lost or forgotten.

User Data

Depending on the User's role and access rights and the features within specific Training, Users may use the Training to create, view, interact with, complete assignments, and/or modify their information for their User Profile and/or sharing with their Supervisor (“User Data”). Each User's role and access rights are determined by the Account Holder and/or Supervisor and are not assigned or modified by Brookes.

Completing some Trainings requires the collection of User-generated answers to questions and other input. Using the full range of the LMS's features may require the collection of additional information, such as posts to a Supervisor, shared documents or links for other Users, or calendar events related to the Training.

User Data you provide will be accessible by the designated Supervisor within the LMS Account for that organization. In some cases, a purchasing organization may have purchased access to Training as part of an agreement negotiated by a larger entity. For example, a district or state may make a purchase from Brookes on behalf of many districts, agencies, and/or schools. In cases such as this, the User Data you provide are accessible by the larger entity as well as the purchasing organization or local entity.

Brookes will not share, rent, or sell personally identifiable User Data except as permitted by this Privacy Policy. Brookes will only access Personal Information or other personally identifiable User Data when a support call initiated by the User absolutely necessitates it. All User Data are stored and transmitted securely in the LMS; please see the SECURITY section below for details.

User Data in Reports

Depending on the User's role and access rights and the features within specific Trainings, Users and Supervisors may use the LMS to create, view, interact with, and/or modify reports generated from User Data (“Reports”). Reports of test results are automatically generated in the LMS and are not modifiable by any User. The Reports include but are not limited to test and/or certification scores and other progress reports for individual Users that enable Users to see their own results or their Supervisor within the LMS from their purchasing organizations, or larger controlling entities such as state-level organizations, to see their results. Reports including User Data may be shared with Brookes and/or the author/developers of individual Trainings provided all associated Personal Information has been removed.

Trainings in the LMS are closely associated with products published by Brookes whose authors/developers are engaged in ongoing work to enhance their research, evolve their educational approach, and provide a public benefit. Brookes and its authors/developers may from time to time use aggregated data from the LMS that have been stripped of personally identifying information about individual Users, programs, and organizations (“Limited Data Set”) for research purposes. Brookes and/or its authors/developers may publish the results of research on the Limited Data Set. In no event will any such results identify an individual User, program, or organization, and there is no threat to your privacy from the distribution of the Limited Data Set. Brookes will not rent or sell, or permit to be rented or sold, the Limited Data Set under any circumstances.

Archived User Results

A User’s Profile will hold information about the User’s results from various Training, depending on the features of the specific Training. For example, upon successful completion of a tool Certification, a copy of the User’s certificate of completion will remain stored in the User’s Profile (“Archived User Results”). The Archived User Results will remain in the LMS's database, and Users may access but not modify their own Archived User Results.

Deleting User Data

Users may delete User Data they have added to their User Profiles such as useful links or posts to Supervisors (“Deleted Data”), with the exception of test results. Test results and certificates remain a permanent part of the User’s Profile. Once you elect to delete User Data, the Deleted Data are no longer stored in the LMS's database and cannot be accessed.

Brookes does not retain Deleted Data, nor can we recover or restore Deleted Data. Before deleting any of your User information and results, be sure you have exported a copy if you want to keep the information for your own records.  

Messaging

Through the LMS messaging system, Supervisors may have the option to post messages, make requests, and ask questions of Users ("Submitted Materials" within the LMS Account of their purchasing organizations. Account Holders and Supervisors are encouraged to avoid Submitted Materials that contain personal identifying information about any User or any confidential information or trade secrets owned by you or any other party. Any personal information you post is strictly voluntary.

All Submitted Materials are the property of Brookes. At its sole discretion, Brookes may delete Submitted Materials that are deemed inappropriate or offensive.

Feedback

Brookes encourages Users to provide feedback on their use of the LMS and their experience with Trainings by submitting a Help Desk ticket through the Contact Form and including "ATTN Feedback". The User's feedback and any personally identifiable information contained within (e.g., name, email address) are used by Brookes Publishing Co. only for purposes directly related to responding to the User.

Surveys

From time to time, Brookes may request information from LMS Users via surveys. Participation in these surveys is completely voluntary, and the User therefore has a choice whether to disclose any information. Survey information will be used to monitor or improve the use and user satisfaction of this LMS or to gather aggregate data about our customers.

Termination

If a purchasing organization/party elects to terminate (see Terms of Use) its LMS account(s) and/or its access to specific Trainings, Brookes may delete all User Data and User information and results associated with the Trainings being terminated from the LMS database (“Terminated Data”). Brookes does not retain Terminated Data, nor can we recover or restore Terminated Data. Before termination of an LMS Account, the Account Holder or Supervisor may elect to export User Data and User information and results from the LMS at no charge.

If a purchasing organization allows all of its Training access to expire but does not notify Brookes of its intent to terminate, User Data and User information and results will continue to be maintained for a limited period of time to facilitate a personal purchase if a User so desires. See Terms of Use for details.

SECURITY

This LMS uses robust security measures, provided by a Tier 1 managed host, to prevent unauthorized access to the LMS and to safeguard the User Data, User information and results, and other data used by the LMS and ensure their confidentiality and correct use.

Access Security

Users may only gain access to Training on the LMS that is available for a fee by providing a valid user name and password combination, which is encrypted during transmission via Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), the industry standard security protocol. Secure pages can be recognized by the lock icon on the bottom of the web browser.

Brookes encourages Account Holders and Supervisors to employ best security and privacy practices and require Users to regularly change their passwords. Do not disclose, share, or allow any third party to use your user name and/or password. If you become aware that your user name and/or password has been stolen or is being misused, notify a Supervisor at your organization immediately. The LMS provides a secure automated mechanism for re-issuing user names and passwords for Users in the event they are lost or forgotten. If an Account Holder or Supervisor loses or forgets their user name or password or has concerns regarding user name/password misuse, they should contact Brookes immediately by submitting a Help Desk ticket through the Contact Form.

Data Security

Brookes takes precautions to protect the confidentiality and security of the data collected and stored in the LMS's database by using industry-recognized security safeguards such as firewalls, coupled with carefully developed security procedures to protect your information from loss, misuse, or unauthorized alteration.

Regular backups of the LMS and all data are made; all data are backed up in full on a daily basis. Backed-up data are stored at a secure site for a period of 30 days. Brookes also encourages Supervisors to use the LMS's data exporting functionality and maintain regular data backups.

Physical Security

Access to the personal information that you provide during the registration process or put on the LMS is restricted to only staff of Brookes and any outside contractor who need the information to perform a specific job. Our databases and the servers on which we store LMS information are kept in a secure Tier 1 data center that includes physical security, conditioned power, environmental controls, uninterruptible power supplies, diesel generator, and fire suppression technologies. Our databases and customer service systems are protected by employee-specific passwords. Furthermore, all employees and outside contractors are kept up-to-date on our security and privacy practices. Each year, as well as any time policies are added or modified, our employees are notified and/or reminded about the importance Brookes places on privacy and what they can do to ensure that our customer information is protected.

LOG FILES AND IP ADDRESSES

This LMS's log files collect anonymous data such as IP addresses, browser types, referring pages, pages visited, and time spent on the LMS. Collection of IP addresses is for system administration purposes, such as monitoring the level of activity on the LMS. All other anonymous data are used only in aggregate by Brookes for internal review to improve the LMS and its Services.

LINKS TO OTHER WEB SITES

This LMS may contain links to other web sites or refer you to other resources. Brookes is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of the content or the privacy practices of other sites we may link to. We encourage Users to be aware when they leave our LMS and to read the privacy statements of every web site they visit that collects personally identifiable information. This Privacy Policy applies solely to information collected by Brookes.

MAINTAINING, CORRECTING, AND UPDATING INFORMATION

Supervisors and Users of the LMS are responsible for creating and managing all user-provided information provided for accessing and using the LMS and its Trainings. If you wish to correct or change information in your LMS Account's User Profile, you may do so by logging into the LMS and updating or correcting the personal information stored in your User Profile.

CHILDREN’S PRIVACY

Brookes respects the sensitive nature of children's privacy on-line. The Trainings offered on the LMS are intended to be used by teachers, specialists, administrators, child care providers, related services professionals, and other interested parties. They are not intended for use by persons under the age of 18. If Brookes learns that a User is under 18 years of age, we will promptly notify the purchasing organization's Account Holder and delete any personally identifiable information provided by that User.

FERPA AND HIPAA/HITECH

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. This law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) are federal laws intended to improve the protection and security of individually identifiable health information. If any of these laws apply to your organization, you must be aware of your obligations under, and respect the terms of, these laws. Please contact Brookes by submitting a Help Desk ticket through the Contact Form as needed.   

LEGAL DISCLAIMER

Although Brookes makes every effort to honor and protect our Users' privacy, we may need to disclose the data we collect and we reserve the right to do so if required by law or in the good-faith belief that disclosure is necessary (a) to obey the law or comply with legal process served on us or our affiliates; (b) to protect and defend our rights or property or the rights and property of other Users of the LMS; or (c) to act in an emergency to protect the personal safety of Users of the LMS or the public.

QUESTIONS?

Thank you for taking the time to read this Privacy Policy. Brookes take your privacy seriously, so please let us know if you have any questions or comments regarding our LMS or this policy. Please direct questions to the Help Desk through the Contact Form.