Terms of Participation

Download a PDF of the CIPSSE Terms of Participation

1. Purpose of the CIPSSE Survey.
   1. The College-in-Prison Survey of Student Engagement Participation Agreement ("Agreement") is entered into between The Trustees of Indiana University on behalf of the College-in-Prison Survey of Student Engagement ("CIPSSE") and Participating Institution.
   2. The CIPSSE Survey is designed to document the extent to which students enrolled in college-in-prison programs engage in empirically proven educational activities and inform programs and practices that foster student engagement. The results of the CIPSSE Survey will help Participating Institution identify aspects of the undergraduate student experience worthy of attention and discussion.
   3. Participating Institution will contact individual students enrolled at Participating Institution to seek their voluntary participation in the CIPSSE Survey. CIPSSE will provide Participating Institution with a suite of reports and a data file.
2. CIPSSE Procedures and Safeguards.
   1. CIPSSE may use aggregated survey data for national and sector reporting purposes and other undergraduate improvement initiatives. CIPSSE may also make de-identified data available to researchers.
   2. CIPSSE uses public key encryption with an SSL connection to support the secure transmission of data across the Internet. Access by CIPSSE staff to servers storing institutional data is controlled by user IDs and passwords.
   3. CIPSSE utilizes Qualtrics survey and dashboard products. The Qualtrics data security statement can be found here. Access by CIPSSE staff to servers storing institutional and self-reported student survey data are controlled by user IDs and passwords.
   4. CIPSSE may disclose the name of Participating Institution, but institutionally identifiable CIPSSE results shall not be made public by CIPSSE except by mutual agreement between CIPSSE and Participating Institution, or in accordance with any applicable law, such as the Indiana Access to Public Records Act.
   5. CIPSSE will send students’ responses to Participating Institution in a de-identified format, but participant-provided answers to certain demographic questions may make participants identifiable by Participating Institution.
   6. CIPSSE Survey administration protocol is approved by the Indiana University Institutional Review Board (IRB).
3. Participating Institution Procedures and Requirements.
   1. Participating Institution shall comply with CIPSSE Survey preparation deadlines and maintain a minimum of two campus contacts with access to CIPSSE's Institution Interface. Participating Institution shall promptly inform CIPSSE when staffing changes necessitate updates to campus contacts.
   2. Participating Institution must present the CIPSSE Survey as a voluntary activity; no coercion can be used to increase participation.
   3. Participating Institution shall not mislead students about the extent to which participation is anonymous or confidential.
   4. Participating Institution will ensure that participation or refusal to participate in this research will not impact decisions made by prison officials or parole boards.
   5. Participating Institution shall not release personally identifiable survey response data to any third party, unless required to do so by law. Further, Participating Institution shall not intentionally analyze survey response data for the purpose of re-identifying survey participants and linking them to survey responses. Notwithstanding the above, in the event Participating Institution becomes aware that one or more survey responses are linked to a certain survey participant, Participating Institution shall not use such knowledge to take any sort of specific action against or toward that individual. Participating Institution may only use survey response data on an aggregate or anonymous basis.
   6. CIPSSE is a locally administered survey, which means that the Participating Institution will be solely responsible for contacting entering students to solicit their participation.
4. Use of Student Data.
   1. The use of student data is regulated by the U.S. Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act ("FERPA"), which covers how educational institutions may share student data with outside organizations conducting research and assessment for the purpose of improving instruction.
   2. CIPSSE understands that Participant Information is subject to FERPA and will exercise due care in handling and processing student data.
   3. CIPSSE may include experimental items at the end of the survey. Data from these items are used for future updates to CIPSSE and/or for future research purposes. Participating Institution may opt out by emailing cipsse@iu.edu at least one month prior to the start of administration.
5. CIPSSE Pricing.
   1. Participating Institution will not be charged fees for administering the CIPSSE survey during the pilot administrations.
6. Indiana Access to Public Records. Participating Institution understands and acknowledges that CIPSSE, an auxiliary unit of the Center for Postsecondary Research at Indiana University, is subject to Indiana's open records law, the Indiana Access to Public Records Act ("APRA"), Ind. Code §§ 5-14-3-1 to -10, and that compliance with APRA shall not constitute a breach of this Agreement.
7. Assignment. This Agreement shall not be assignable by either party without the prior written consent of the other party.
8. Force Majeure. Neither party shall be responsible or liable to the other party for nonperformance or delay in performance of any terms or conditions of this Agreement due to acts of God, acts of governments, wars, riots, fire, flood, or other causes beyond the reasonable control of the nonperforming or delayed party.
9. Limitation on Liability. Participating Institution agrees that CIPSSE, IU, and its trustees, affiliates, employees, agents, and contractors, shall not be liable to Participating Institution for any claims, liabilities, consequential or incidental damages, costs, or expenses relating to this Agreement for an aggregate amount exceeding the fees paid by Participating Institution to CIPSSE.
10. Entire Agreement. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between the parties regarding the subject matter described herein and supersedes any prior negotiations and agreements. This Agreement may not be modified or amended in any respect except by a written agreement executed by both parties. The terms and conditions of this Agreement shall extend to, be binding upon, and inure to the benefit of the heirs, administrators, representatives, executors, successors and assigns of the parties.