Almi Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how RespondWize, Inc. DBA Almi ("Almi," "we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, protects, and shares personal information when users access or use the Almi services. This Policy is incorporated by reference into the Almi Terms & Conditions.

1. Information We Collect

We collect the following types of personal information to facilitate alumni-student matching:

• Names
• University email addresses
• Graduation year and academic major
• Interests, career goals, and mentoring preferences
• Conversation Data (including phone call recordings, transcripts, and email content)
• Scheduling and match metadata
• Usage analytics

2. How We Use Information

We use collected information to:

• Facilitate matches between students and alumni mentors
• Draft and send introductions and follow-up communications
• Support program management and reporting for university administrators
• Monitor and improve our matching algorithms and service quality
• Comply with legal obligations, including FERPA compliance

3. Data Retention

Conversation transcripts and match data are retained for three (3) years after the last recorded interaction unless a shorter retention period is requested by the University.

4. Data Protection Measures

We take the security of personal information seriously. Data is:

• Encrypted in transit using TLS 1.2 or higher
• Encrypted at rest using AES-256
• Stored within AWS-hosted databases with restricted, role-based access
• Monitored via audit logging (CloudTrail and related services)

5. Access and User Rights

Users may request access to, correction of, or deletion of their personal information by contacting steve@respondwize.com. We will respond to verified requests within 30 days.

6. Data Sharing and Subprocessors

We share limited information with vetted third-party subprocessors who support our platform, including:

• Amazon Web Services (hosting and storage)
• Render (application hosting)
• Twilio (telephony infrastructure)
• Retell AI (voice transcription)
• OpenAI (language model services)

Subprocessors operate under Data Processing Addenda (DPAs) that require strong security controls and restrict the use of personal data.

We do not sell or share personal information with advertising networks, data brokers, or unrelated third parties.

7. AI Use and Data Processing

Almi uses OpenAI's hosted LLM services (inference-only mode) to assist with conversation summarization, match scoring, and email drafting. Prompts are processed through OpenAI under terms that prohibit model training on submitted data.

8. FERPA Compliance

Conversation Data and other student/alumni records are handled as "education records" under FERPA. RespondWize acts as a "school official" with a legitimate educational interest under FERPA definitions. We work with universities to meet all FERPA obligations.

9. Breach Notification

In the event of a confirmed breach affecting institutional data, RespondWize will notify the affected university's designated contacts within 24 hours of confirmation.

10. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact:

RespondWize, Inc.
108 Regal Ridge, Aledo, TX 76008, USA
Email: steve@respondwize.com