Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

The Pennsylvania Association of Career and Technical Administrators (“PACTA,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) is a professional membership association that promotes excellence in career and technical education through leadership, advocacy, and service. We are committed to protecting the privacy of our members, event attendees, and website visitors.

This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect when you visit our website, become or renew a membership, register for events, contact us, or otherwise interact with PACTA, and the choices you have about that information.

2. Information we collect

Information you provide directly

We collect information you give us when you choose to interact with PACTA, including when you:

• Register for or renew a membership, or create a member-portal account;
• Register for conferences, workshops, symposiums, or other events;
• Submit a contact form, email us, or request information;
• Make a purchase through our online store or pay dues or event fees;
• Subscribe to news, updates, or other communications.

This information may include your name, job title, school or organization, mailing address, email address, phone number, and login credentials. When you make a payment, billing information is collected and processed by our third-party payment processor; PACTA does not store full payment-card numbers on its own systems.

Information collected automatically

When you visit our website, certain information is collected automatically through cookies and similar technologies, including your IP address, browser type and version, device information, pages visited, referring website, and the dates and times of your visits. See Cookies and analytics below for details.

3. How we use information

We use the information we collect to:

• Provide and administer memberships, accounts, events, and purchases;
• Process payments and send receipts, confirmations, and renewal reminders;
• Respond to your questions, requests, and feedback;
• Send association news, event announcements, advocacy updates, and other communications (you may opt out at any time);
• Operate, maintain, secure, and improve our website and services;
• Understand how our website is used through aggregate analytics;
• Comply with legal obligations and enforce our terms and policies.

4. Cookies and analytics

Our website is built on WordPress and uses cookies and similar technologies. Cookies are small text files stored on your device that help the site function and help us understand how visitors use it. We use the following general categories:

Specific tracking technologies we use

The following third-party services may set cookies or collect usage data when you visit our website.
Each is governed by its own privacy policy, linked below.

Most web browsers let you refuse or delete cookies through their settings. If you disable cookies, some features of the site — including the member portal — may not work as intended. Some browsers also offer a “Do Not Track” setting; because there is no common industry standard for responding to these signals, our site does not currently respond to them.

5. How we share information

PACTA does not sell your personal information. We share information only as needed to operate the association and as described below:

• Service providers. With vendors that perform services on our behalf — such as website hosting, membership-management software, email delivery, event registration, and payment processing — who are permitted to use the information only to provide those services.
• Membership directory and events. If you participate in a member directory, event roster, or networking feature, certain information you provide may be visible to other members or attendees consistent with that feature.
• Legal and safety reasons. When required by law, subpoena, or legal process, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of PACTA, our members, or others.
• Organizational changes. In connection with a merger, reorganization, or transfer of association operations, where information may be transferred as part of that transaction.

6. Student and minor data (FERPA)

PACTA is an association of career and technical education administrators. Our website and services are directed to education professionals and are not intended for use by children or students, and we do not knowingly collect personal information directly from individuals under 18.

To the extent PACTA ever receives student records or other personally identifiable information about students from a member school or career and technical center, we treat that information as confidential and handle it consistent with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and applicable Pennsylvania law. Such information is used only for the limited purpose for which it was shared, is not used for marketing, and is not disclosed except as permitted by the originating school and applicable law. Member schools remain responsible for obtaining any consents required before sharing student information with PACTA.

If you believe a student or a child under 18 has provided us personal information, please contact us and we will take reasonable steps to delete it.

7. Your California privacy rights (CCPA/CPRA)

If you are a California resident, the California Consumer Privacy Act, as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (“CCPA/CPRA”), gives you certain rights regarding your personal information. These include:

• Right to know. Request the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you, the sources, the purposes for collecting it, and the categories of third parties with whom we share it.
• Right to delete. Request that we delete personal information we have collected from you, subject to certain exceptions.
• Right to correct. Request that we correct inaccurate personal information we maintain about you.
• Right to opt out of sale or sharing. PACTA does not sell or share your personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising, so no opt-out is necessary; if this ever changes, we will update this policy and provide an opt-out mechanism.
• Right to non-discrimination. We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of these rights.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us using the details in the Contact us section. We will verify your request, which may require confirming information we already hold about you. You may use an authorized agent to submit a request on your behalf, subject to verification.

8. Data retention

We retain personal information for as long as needed to provide our services, maintain your membership, comply with our legal and recordkeeping obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. When information is no longer needed, we take reasonable steps to delete or de-identify it.

9. How we protect information

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect personal information against unauthorized access, loss, or misuse. However, no method of transmission or storage over the internet is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. You are responsible for keeping your member-portal login credentials confidential.

10. Third-party links

Our website contains links to third-party sites and services — for example, our member portal, online store, learning platform, social media pages, and patron-member websites. These are operated by other organizations and are governed by their own privacy policies. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties and encourage you to review their policies.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Last updated” date above and post the new version on this page. Significant changes may be communicated through our website or by email. Your continued use of our website after an update means you accept the revised policy.

12. Contact us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to exercise your privacy rights, please contact us:

Pennsylvania Association of Career and Technical Administrators (PACTA)
Email: info@pacareertech.org
Phone: 717-761-3381
Web: pacareertech.org