Thank you for visiting the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) Web site and reviewing our privacy policy.  Our policy is simple: We collect no personal information about you unless you choose to provide it.  We do not give or sell personal information to others.  For details about how we safeguard personal information, please read below.

Privacy

Non-personal Information

If you do nothing during your visit but browse the Web site or download information, our operating system will automatically record the following information:

• The domain for your Internet service, such as "xcompany.com" if you use a private Internet service, or “yourschool.edu" if you connect from a college or university domain.
• The type of browser you are using, such as "Netscape version X" or "Internet Explorer version X."
• The type of operating system you use, such as Macintosh, Unix or Windows.
• The date and time you visit and the Web pages that you visit.
• The address of the previous site, when you link to us from another site. 

This tracking system does NOT record information about individuals.  We use this information to monitor traffic on our site and to help us improve the site. 

Cookies  

A cookie is a small file that a Web site transfers to your computer's hard disk, usually to keep track of you while you are connected to that site. 

Cookies are NOT used on the public portion of the DESE Website.

Cookies ARE used on secure portions of our site (https://apps.dese.mo.gov/webLogin/login.aspx).  Access is restricted to authorized agency and school district personnel and is used for reporting and collecting data. One session cookie per visit is used to store state information only within a session. The cookie is cached while a user is visiting the web server issuing the session cookie and deleted from the cache when the user closes the session.

Email

If you send email to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the message will usually contain your return address. If you include personal information in your email, we may use that information in responding to your request. Email is not necessarily secure or confidential. Send only the information that is necessary for us to answer your question or process your request.

The Department collects or receives email addresses as part of agency activities. Under Missouri’s Sunshine Law, any information in an email, including the content, may be subject to disclosure to third parties. Individuals should consider this when providing an email address in a database or using a personal email address to communicate with the Department.

Interactive Forms

Some of our Web pages include interactive forms that let you submit personal information.  Examples include our feedback form and requests for teacher certification information as well as login information for a grant application and school finance information on our secured https://k12apps.dese.mo.gov/webapps/logon.asp Website.  Information that you submit through such forms is used only for the specific purpose for which it is intended.  If you include personal information with a message that you submit to an e-mail discussion list sponsored by DESE, such information will be posted along with your comments.  

User ID and Password Security

The maintenance and security of any and all User IDs and Passwords issued for access to https://k12apps.dese.mo.gov/webapps/logon.asp shall be the sole responsibility of the individual or entity accessing the website. Such individual or entity shall be responsible for access to and use of its User ID and Password by its employees, whether or not such access and/or use were authorized. In no event shall the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education be liable for the use or misuse of any User ID and Password.

Missouri Sunshine Law

As a state governmental agency, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is subject to Chapter 610 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri, commonly known as the Sunshine Law. If an appropriate request is made to this office for information that is subject to disclosure by the Sunshine Law, DESE may be required to disclose the information requested, even if it includes your personally identifiable information.

Links to Other Sites

Our site provides links to many other Web sites.  The privacy policies described here do NOT apply to any external sites.  Read the privacy policies of other sites you visit.  Be informed.  You are the person best qualified to protect your own privacy. 

Security

System Monitoring

To protect the system from unauthorized use and to ensure that the system is functioning properly, system administrators monitor this system. Anyone using this system expressly consents to such monitoring and is advised that if such monitoring reveals possible conduct of criminal activity, system personnel may provide evidence of such monitoring to law enforcement officers.

Unauthorized attempts to upload information and/or change information on this agency’s Websites are strictly prohibited and are subject to prosecution under the Identity Theft Enforcement and Restitution Act of 2008.

Secure Transactions 

Agencies that conduct online transactions that require sensitive data such as social security number or credit card are required to encrypt the data transmission with current industry standard secure socket layer (SSL) technologies.

For More Information

If you have any questions or comments about our privacy policy, contact webmgr@dese.mo.gov.