Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy describes how Veterans Growing America ("VGA," "we," "us") collects, uses, protects, retains, and shares information within the VGA Incubator application (the "application"). It applies to participants, instructors, administrators, and authorized support staff.

Information we collect

• Account information: name, email, password credentials, and role.
• Profile and business information: business name, description, industry, goals, challenges, and other information you enter into your profile or assignments.
• Program activity: assignments, submissions, uploaded documents, attendance, participation, assessments, scores, feedback, and progress records.
• Communications: direct and group messages, comments, and announcements you send or receive in the application.
• Meeting information: attendance and any recordings, chat, or transcripts from Zoom sessions where recording has been disclosed in advance.
• Technical information: login timestamps, IP address, device and browser information, and security/audit logs used to operate and protect the application.

Why we collect it

• To operate the incubator program, deliver curriculum, and support participants.
• To provide instructor feedback, assessments, and progress tracking.
• To enable messaging and community collaboration between authorized users.
• To secure accounts and investigate misuse or safety concerns.
• To evaluate and report on program performance using aggregated or de-identified information.

Who may access your information

Access is based on role. Participants can access their own information. Instructors can access only information for participants they are assigned to. Administrators and authorized support staff at Veterans Growing America may access information as necessary to operate, support, secure, and evaluate the program.

How your information is stored and protected

• Information is stored in access-controlled databases and private file storage.
• Access is enforced by role-based permissions and database-level policies.
• Passwords are stored using industry-standard one-way hashing; we do not store your password in readable form.
• Uploaded files are private by default and are not publicly indexed.
• We use administrative, technical, and physical safeguards intended to protect information; no online service can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

How long we keep information

We retain account and program information for three years from completion of the program, and for as long as needed to meet legitimate business and legal obligations and resolve disputes.

Correcting or deleting your information

You can update your profile at any time from your account settings. To request correction or deletion of information you cannot edit yourself, contact us using the address below or submit a request through the Account and Data Deletion page. Some information may be retained after deletion when required for legal, financial, security, or program-record reasons.

Aggregated and de-identified program results

Veterans Growing America may use aggregated or de-identified program information to evaluate the program and to report outcomes to funders, partners, and the public. Identifiable success stories, testimonials, photographs, recordings, and business results will not be used publicly without your separate written permission, except where disclosure is legally required.

How success information is labeled

Where the application displays outcome or success information, it is labeled by source: Participant reported, Instructor assessed, System generated, or Administrator verified. Aggregated or de-identified information is used for program reporting whenever individual identification is not necessary.

Meetings and recordings

Zoom sessions are clearly identified in advance as recorded or not recorded. When a session is recorded, a notice is shown before you join describing what may be captured (name, image, voice, chat, shared screen, contributions), and joining a recorded session requires your acknowledgment. Zoom links and recordings are not publicly accessible. Recordings, photographs, testimonials, and participant success stories are not used for marketing without your separate written permission.

Security

We use administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards including secure authentication, password reset, role-based access control, database-level access policies, private file storage, protected administrator areas, secure storage of credentials and API keys, input and file validation, and session expiration. We do not claim the application is completely secure, unhackable, HIPAA compliant, government approved, or independently certified compliant with any specific regulation.

Contact

Privacy questions or requests: info@veteransgrowingamerica.com. See also Contact Support.