Rutgers University Foundation and Rutgers University Alumni Association

Privacy Notice

Rutgers University Foundation (RUF) and the Rutgers University Alumni Association (RUAA) are committed to ensuring the privacy, confidentiality, and security of alumni, donors, and friends. This notice describes our information collection practices and explains how we use and protect your personal information. We strive to comply with all legislation, data and privacy protection best practices, and Rutgers University data and security policies and procedures.

Our Mission

Created in 1973, Rutgers University Foundation advances Rutgers’ pursuit of excellence in education, research, and public service. It provides the bridge between donors and the schools and programs, faculty, and students that make up this university. It helps to match caring people with satisfying and meaningful opportunities to make gifts that have an impact on Rutgers. The foundation is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization.

The Rutgers University Alumni Association serves all alumni of Rutgers University. The purpose of the association is to advance the best interests and well-being of Rutgers University by engaging all alumni in the life of the institution through communication, programming, services, and volunteer opportunities. Membership in the RUAA is free and automatically granted to all graduates of Rutgers University, or any of its predecessor schools, upon graduation. The RUAA is part of Rutgers University, a 501(c)(3) and section 115 governmental entity.

Why is Personal Information Collected?

To fulfill our mission, it is important that we maintain a connection with individuals who have an affinity with Rutgers University. Our office obtains, holds, and processes personal information of alumni, friends, students, and current and potential donors and supporters of the university (“our constituents”) for the purpose of implementing and managing all advancement and fundraising services for the benefit of Rutgers University.

The RUF/RUAA processes the information outlined in this privacy notice in pursuit of our legitimate interest in:

  • communicating with our constituents;
  • providing benefits and services to our constituents (e.g., alumni programs and activities, including events, alumni magazine or newsletters, the receipt and acknowledgement of charitable gifts, chartered alumni association activities, etc.); and
  • furthering our charitable mission of advancing Rutgers University through fundraising and securing the support of our constituents.

In pursuing our legitimate interest, we may contact you by telephone, email or post. At any time, you can request the RUF/RUAA no longer use your personal information to contact you. In addition, you may state your preferences in the way we contact you and for what purposes. You may opt out of a specific form of communication, at any time. You may also opt out of specific categories of communications on events or fundraising solicitations.

Please email us at Dataservices@ruf.rutgers.edu or call 848-932-7061 and we’ll be happy to assist you with your preferences.

Whose Information is Collected?

  • Alumni—Rutgers University and predecessor schools
  • Students
  • Parents of students
  • Faculty and staff
  • Donors and potential future donors
  • Friends—spouses, family members, and supporters of Rutgers University
  • Employment applicants—individuals who apply for positions within the RUF/RUAA
  • Patients of Rutgers Health—very limited information as permitted under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) as needed for our patient and family fundraising program

What Information is Collected?

The RUF/RUAA collects:

  • Contact information—home and business addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, social media contact information, as well as wealth assessment information and indicators of your interest in giving
  • Demographic information—names, titles, gender, birth and death dates, religious affiliation, and ethnicity
  • Student information primarily obtained from university systems—degrees, majors, organization involvement, activities, awards, and athletic participation
  • Employment information—company names, job titles, industry information, occupation codes, and veteran and military status
  • Family information—spouse’s name, children’s names and birth dates, and familial relationships
  • Alumni information—event attendance, volunteer interests and activities, organization affiliations, committee participation, awards and honors, attitudes, and preferences
  • Donor information—giving information regarding any donation you make or for which you receive credit
  • Correspondence—copies of correspondence, as well as records of our individual discussions with you
  • Philanthropic interests—interests that you have expressed to us or we have collected through public donor information
  • Analytical information—data related to web visitor activity and email marketing actions
  • Employment applications—information you provide as part of an employment application to the RUF/RUAA, as well as pre-employment screening
  • Patient—billing and contact information from Rutgers Health

How is Information Collected?

We collect information about you from a variety of sources. A significant portion of the information we maintain is that which you have provided to us, either by updating your profile online, registering for an event, communicating with us, or making a donation. For students and alumni, your personal data is transferred to the RUF/RUAA database from the Rutgers student record system. Specific sources include:

  • Self-provided information online, via phone or through personal contact
  • Information provided to process and record your donation
  • Event registrations
  • Student records—university student record system
  • U.S. postal records
  • RUF/RUAA surveys and focus groups
  • Public social media profiles
  • Web-based analytic services such as Google Analytics
  • Responses to emails sent from the RUF/RUAA
  • Other publicly available information sources, such as news services, websites, professional directories, and service bureaus
  • Research data obtained through commercial agencies (third parties)

What is Done with Collected Information?

Collected information is used only for RUF/RUAA purposes to advance our mission of engagement and service to our constituents and to advance the mission of Rutgers University, including:

  • Contact you with updates and information from the university and the RUF/RUAA
  • Send you invitations to events and activities
  • Contact you to request donations for your areas of interest at Rutgers
  • Offer you alumni benefits and programs
  • Personalize your experience and to allow us to deliver the type of content and engagement opportunities in which you are most interested
  • Process your event registrations and donations, including confirmations, receipts, and pre-and post-event emails
  • Connect you with fundraising and alumni relations professionals, faculty, and sanctioned volunteers who raise funds and foster engagement with the university
  • Conduct research and analysis to better understand constituent attitudes, preferences, and interests, so we can offer you opportunities to donate to areas which are relevant to your philanthropic interests
  • Process your application for employment

Who has Access to Collected Information?

  • RUF/RUAA employees and contract employees
  • University faculty and employees working in conjunction with the RUF/RUAA, for example, a dean connecting with an alumnus or donor
  • Sanctioned volunteers working on behalf of and under the supervision of the RUF/RUAA
  • Select business partners who offer products, services, and benefits to you
  • The Associate Alumnae of Douglass College—their alumnae, donors, and friends
  • Law enforcement agencies, as required, to comply with state and federal law
  • Vendors who perform services under contract with us, such as data research and telemarketing: Bentz Whaley Flessner, Blackbaud, Factary and Google Analytics

All RUF/RUAA employees, contract employees, university employees, volunteers, business partners, and vendors are required to comply with our privacy policies and sign a confidentiality statement, which informs them on the proper use and protection of your data.

How is Information Stored and Secured?

Rutgers University and the RUF/RUAA use administrative, technical, and physical security measures to protect your personal information. Only authenticated users with specific permissions and training may access the data in our systems. We use firewalls and regular monitoring to evaluate any attempts at accessing the systems without permission. The university performs periodic security audits and vulnerability scans of our systems. Cloud vendors undergo a security audit by the RUF/RUAA IT department and the University Department of Information Protection and Security.

How Long is Information Retained?

We value our relationship with our constituents and consider it to be a lifelong connection. This means that we will maintain a record for you until such time that you request otherwise.

Rights for Individuals in the European Economic Area Impacted by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

Rutgers University and the RUF/RUAA is committed to the lawful, fair and transparent processing of your personal data, where we will only collect personal data for specific and legitimate purposes, ensure that processing is limited to what is necessary, update or remove inaccurate data and maintain policies and procedures to keep personal data safe and protected against unauthorized or unlawful processing.

In certain circumstances, you have the following data protection rights:

  • Right to be Informed – through this Privacy Notice you are being informed about the collection and use of your personal information
  • Right of Access – you have the right to ask us for a copy of your personal information
  • Right of Rectification – you have the right to ask us to correct information you think is inaccurate or incomplete
  • Right to Erasure (“the right to be forgotten”) – under certain circumstances, you have the right to ask us to delete your personal information
  • Right to Restrict Processing – you have the right to limit the processing of your personal information
  • Right to Data Portability – you have the right to ask that we transfer your personal information to another organization
  • Right to Object – you have the right to object to the processing of your personal information
  • Rights in Relation to Automated Processing and Profiling – you have the right not to be subject to solely automated decisions in the processing of your personal information

To the extent applicable, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation provides further information about your rights. You also have the right to lodge complaints with your national or regional data protection authority.

If you are inclined to exercise these rights, we request an opportunity to discuss with you any concerns you may have. To protect the personal information we hold, we may also request further information to verify your identity when exercising these rights. Upon a request to erase information, we will maintain a core set of personal data to ensure we do not contact you inadvertently in the future or subsequently add additional data about you during a periodic update. The RUF/RUAA may also need to retain some information for legal purposes, including U.S. IRS compliance. In the event of an actual or threatened legal claim, we may retain your information for purposes of establishing, defending against, or exercising our rights with respect to such claim.

If you provide information directly to the RUF/RUAA from the European Economic Area (EEA), you consent to the transfer of your personal information outside of the EEA to the United States. You understand that the current laws and regulations of the United States may not provide the same level of protection as the data and privacy laws and regulations of the EEA. You are under no statutory or contractual obligation to provide any personal data to us.

Additional Information

The RUF/RUAA may change this Privacy Notice from time to time. The most current version of this privacy notice can be viewed online at alumni.rutgers.edu. You may also direct any questions to RUAlumni@alumni.rutgers.edu or by mail at the address below.

The controller for your personal information is Rutgers University Foundation.

This notice was last updated on October 24, 2019.

Rutgers University Foundation
Office of Information Technology and Security
335 George Street
New Brunswick, NJ 08901