Privacy Policy

Last updated: June 12, 2026. DRAFT pending University of South Carolina privacy and legal review.

Who we are

SNM AI (Scientific Numerical Model) is an educational and scientific tool operated by Dr. Joseph E. Johnson and colleagues at the University of South Carolina. This policy explains what information we collect, why, and how we handle it.

What we collect

Account information: your first and last name and email address (your username).
Optional information: cell phone number, school or affiliation, and student ID, only if you choose to provide them.
Age confirmation: a checkbox confirming you are 18 or older. We do not collect your date of birth.
Your work: the expressions you submit in Practice and Training, and the results, saved with a timestamp so you can review your own history.
Class activity: exam answers, scores, and a record of when you sign onto a class (attendance), visible to the faculty member for that class.
Security data: a hashed (not reversible) form of your password, and short-lived email verification codes.

What we do NOT collect

We do not collect your date of birth, and we do not collect or store images of driver's licenses, passports, or any other government-issued identification.

Why we collect it & how we use it

To create and secure your account and verify that you control your email address.
To save your submissions and exam results so you can retrieve them.
To let faculty administer classes, quizzes, and attendance.
To compile aggregate statistics about how the system is used.

We do not sell your personal information or use it for advertising.

Where it is stored

Your data is stored on the server that hosts SNM AI. Passwords are stored only as salted, stretched hashes. You can download your own submission history at any time from the "My History" page.

Student education records (FERPA)

When SNM AI is used for a course, exam results and related records may be "education records" under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). These are handled in accordance with University of South Carolina policy. If data is ever used for research, it is subject to Institutional Review Board (IRB) review.

Your choices

You may request access to, correction of, or deletion of your account and personal data by contacting us at the address below. Phone, affiliation, and student ID are optional and may be left blank.

Contact

Questions about this policy or your data: Dr. Joseph E. Johnson, University of South Carolina (contact information to be added before launch).