Effective Date: July 27, 2026

Open Doors Higher Education Alliance (“ODHE,” “Open Doors,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting the personal information entrusted to us.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, store, and protect information when you visit odhe.org, submit an inquiry, subscribe to our newsletter, apply for assistance, make a donation, participate in our programs, or otherwise interact with Open Doors Higher Education Alliance.

By using our website or providing information to us, you acknowledge the practices described in this Privacy Policy.

1. Information We Collect

The information we collect depends on how you interact with ODHE.

Information You Provide Directly

We may collect information that you voluntarily provide, including:

• Full name

• Email address

• Telephone number

• Mailing address

• Contact preferences

• Information included in contact-form messages

• Newsletter subscription information

• Donor information

• Partnership, volunteer, or mentorship inquiries

• Student application information

• Parent or guardian information

• Educational background and enrollment information

• School, college, university, community college, trade school, or technical program information

• Financial-need information

• Scholarship and financial-aid information

• Housing, family, or economic circumstances

• Essays, supporting statements, references, and uploaded documents

• Any other information you choose to provide

Please do not submit Social Security numbers, banking credentials, medical records, or other highly sensitive information through a general contact form or email unless ODHE specifically requests that information through an authorized and secure process.

Donation and Payment Information

When you make an online donation, your payment may be processed through Stripe or another third-party payment processor.

The payment processor may collect information such as:

• Name

• Email address

• Billing address

• Payment-card information

• Bank or digital-wallet details

• Donation amount

• Transaction date

• Fraud-prevention and device information

ODHE generally does not directly receive or store complete payment-card numbers. Payment information is handled by the payment processor according to its own privacy policy, security practices, and terms.

We may receive limited transaction information, such as your name, contact information, donation amount, transaction status, and payment reference information.

Information Collected Automatically

When you visit our website, we or our service providers may automatically collect certain technical information, including:

• Internet Protocol address

• Browser type

• Device type

• Operating system

• Referring website

• Pages viewed

• Links clicked

• Date and time of access

• Approximate geographic location

• Website-performance and diagnostic information

• Cookie and similar technology identifiers

This information helps us operate, secure, and improve the website.

2. How We Use Information

ODHE may use collected information to:

• Respond to questions and requests

• Communicate with students, families, donors, volunteers, mentors, and partners

• Review applications for scholarships, grants, programs, or other assistance

• Determine eligibility for available support

• Verify application information

• Administer educational-support programs

• Provide college, career, scholarship, and financial-aid guidance

• Process and acknowledge donations

• Issue donation receipts when applicable

• Maintain donor and program records

• Send newsletters and organizational updates

• Coordinate partnerships, mentorships, volunteer opportunities, and community programs

• Improve our website, services, and communications

• Measure program participation and organizational impact

• Prevent fraud, misuse, and security incidents

• Comply with legal, tax, accounting, reporting, and regulatory requirements

• Protect the rights, safety, and property of ODHE, its students, donors, personnel, and community

• Carry out any other purpose disclosed when the information is collected

3. Scholarship and Program Applications

Information submitted through a scholarship or program application may be reviewed by authorized ODHE employees, board members, volunteers, application reviewers, selection committee members, educational partners, and service providers when reasonably necessary to evaluate or administer the application.

Submitting an application does not guarantee:

• Acceptance into an ODHE program

• Eligibility for assistance

• Receipt of a grant or scholarship

• Payment of any particular educational expense

• Admission to an educational institution

• Continued support for any specific period

ODHE may contact applicants, parents, guardians, references, schools, or educational institutions to verify information when permitted by law and appropriate for the program.

Applicants should ensure that they have permission before submitting personal information about another person.

4. How We Share Information

ODHE does not sell personal information for money.

We may disclose information in the following circumstances:

Service Providers

We may share information with vendors that help us operate, including providers of:

• Website hosting

• Website maintenance

• Email and newsletter services

• Online forms

• Cloud storage

• Application management

• Payment processing

• Accounting

• Analytics

• Communications

• Cybersecurity and fraud prevention

These providers may use information only as allowed by their agreements with ODHE and applicable law.

Program Administration

We may share relevant information with schools, educational institutions, scholarship reviewers, community organizations, program partners, mentors, and other parties involved in evaluating applications or delivering requested support.

Legal and Safety Reasons

We may disclose information when we reasonably believe disclosure is necessary to:

• Comply with a law, regulation, subpoena, court order, or legal process

• Respond to a lawful government request

• Investigate fraud, misuse, or security concerns

• Enforce our agreements or policies

• Protect the rights, property, or safety of ODHE or another person

• Address an emergency involving a student’s or another person’s health or safety

Organizational Transactions

If ODHE enters into a merger, restructuring, collaboration, asset transfer, or similar organizational transaction, information may be transferred as part of that transaction, subject to appropriate safeguards.

With Your Consent

We may share information for another purpose when you authorize or direct us to do so.

5. Student Stories, Photographs, and Testimonials

ODHE may publish student stories, testimonials, photographs, videos, or program achievements only when it has obtained appropriate authorization or otherwise has a lawful basis to do so.

When the individual is a minor, ODHE may require authorization from a parent or legal guardian.

Consent to publicity is not a condition of receiving support unless clearly stated and legally permitted.

6. Cookies and Similar Technologies

Our website and service providers may use cookies, pixels, logs, and similar technologies to:

• Enable website functions

• Remember preferences

• Understand website usage

• Measure website performance

• Detect technical problems

• Protect the website from fraud or abuse

You may be able to block or delete cookies through your browser settings. Disabling cookies may affect certain website functions.

Where required by law, we will request consent before using nonessential cookies.

7. Email and Newsletter Communications

You may subscribe to receive newsletters, student stories, program updates, fundraising communications, and other information from ODHE.

You may unsubscribe from promotional emails by using the unsubscribe link in the message or by contacting us at info@odhe.org.

Even after you unsubscribe from promotional communications, we may continue sending non-promotional messages related to an application, donation, program participation, legal requirement, or prior transaction.

8. Children’s Privacy

ODHE’s mission includes supporting students, some of whom may be under 18. However, our general website is not intended to collect personal information directly from children under 13 without appropriate parental or guardian involvement.

Children under 13 should not submit personal information through the website without the participation and authorization of a parent or legal guardian.

If we learn that we collected personal information directly from a child under 13 without legally required parental consent, we will take reasonable steps to delete it.

A parent or guardian who believes that a child under 13 has submitted personal information may contact us at info@odhe.org.

For applicants under 18, ODHE may require a parent or legal guardian to review, authorize, or participate in the application process.

9. Data Security

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards designed to protect personal information against unauthorized access, loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure.

However, no website, email transmission, database, or online storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. You provide information electronically at your own risk.

If you believe information submitted to ODHE has been compromised, contact us promptly at info@odhe.org.

10. Data Retention

We retain personal information for as long as reasonably necessary to:

• Evaluate and administer applications

• Deliver programs and services

• Maintain donor and financial records

• Fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy

• Meet legal, accounting, tax, grant, audit, and reporting obligations

• Resolve disputes

• Prevent fraud

• Enforce agreements

Retention periods may vary depending on the type of information and our legal or operational obligations.

When information is no longer reasonably required, we may delete, anonymize, or securely archive it.

11. Your Privacy Choices and Rights

Depending on your location and applicable law, you may have the right to request that ODHE:

• Confirm whether we maintain your personal information

• Provide access to certain personal information

• Correct inaccurate information

• Delete certain information

• Provide a copy of certain information

• Restrict or object to certain processing

• Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent

• Stop sending promotional communications

To submit a request, email info@odhe.org with the subject line Privacy Request.

We may need to verify your identity before completing a request. A parent or legal guardian may submit a request regarding a minor when legally authorized to do so.

Certain information may be retained or excluded from a request when permitted or required by law, including donation, tax, fraud-prevention, application-review, and legal records.

ODHE will not unlawfully discriminate against an individual for exercising an applicable privacy right.

12. Third-Party Websites and Services

Our website may link to third-party websites and services, including:

• Stripe

• Educational institutions

• Scholarship resources

• Financial-aid resources

• Application platforms

• Maps

• Social media platforms

• Partner organizations

ODHE does not control the privacy, security, availability, or content of third-party websites. This Privacy Policy does not apply to information collected independently by those third parties.

You should review the privacy policy and terms of each third-party service before submitting information.

13. International Visitors

ODHE is based in the United States. If you access the website from another country, your information may be transferred to, processed in, and stored in the United States, where privacy laws may differ from those in your jurisdiction.

Where required, we will process international personal information using an appropriate legal basis and applicable safeguards.

14. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy to reflect changes in our programs, website, technology, service providers, or legal obligations.

When we make changes, we will update the effective date at the top of this page. Material changes may also be communicated through the website or another appropriate method.

Your continued use of the website after an updated Privacy Policy becomes effective constitutes acknowledgment of the revised policy.

15. Contact Us

Questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy may be directed to:

Open Doors Higher Education Alliance
1019B Edwards Ferry Road
Leesburg, VA
United States

Email: info@odhe.org
Phone: 844-696-3338