Terms Of Use Agreement
for #GoOpenVA.org Platform and Website

Introduction:

The GoOpenVA.org website that serves as a digital repository and collaborative network owned and operated by the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE), with offices at 101 N. 14thStreet, Richmond, VA 23219, in its partnership with the Department of Education’s #GoOpen initiative. This Terms of Use Agreement (this “Agreement”) describes the terms according to which you may legally use the GoOpenVA.org website, and the content contained there (“GoOpenVA.org”).

By your use of this site, you agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of this Agreement, including any policies and procedures incorporated by reference, including this Terms of Use Agreement and our Privacy Policy, below.

You also represent and warrant that you have the legal authority to accept the Agreement. If you do not agree to all of the terms in this Agreement, you are not authorized to use or access the GoOpenVA.org website.

Disclaimer:

#GoOpenVA is an initiative of the Virginia Department of Education supported through a partnership with other educational entities around the state. The GoOpenVA.org site is not an endorsement of Open Educational Resources over other sources of educational materials. School divisions are not mandated or required to utilize any particular type of educational material. The GoOpenVA.org site is a resource that is voluntary to utilize and exists only to assist school divisions that are interested in learning about, developing, or gaining access to Open Educational Resources.

Indemnification:

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold the VDOE harmless from and against any and all liabilities and costs (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) we may incur in connection with any claim arising out of your breach of this Agreement or your use of the #GoOpenVA.org Platform. VDOE reserves the right, but have no obligation, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you.

Definitions of Parties:

Registered User: Educators in Virginia are eligible for registered accounts on GoOpenVA.org which allows them to not only read and download materials from the site, but allows them to contribute materials and comments and participate in discussions.

Read-only User: GoOpenVA.org is a member of the #GoOpen network of OER repositories around the country which are committed to sharing educational materials among states. The site is open to these users for read-only and download privileges.

The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE): Owner and operator for GoOpenVA.org which is a web site designed for collaboration and sharing among Virginia educators. Content located on the site, besides the usual information about the site and operations, and certain specific resources developed byVirginia Department of Education employees and/or partnerships, is not owned by the Department of Education. However, all content posted by Registered Users must abide by the rules and requirements set down in the Terms of Use.

ISKME: The Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education has developed the OERCommons.org web site for the promotion of OER and is working with several states around the nation to create a #GoOpen network of shared OER. VDOE contracted with ISKME to create and host the GoOpenVA.org site which includes the organizational features and certain security processes. The GoOpenVA.org web site and those OER Commons goods or services of ISKME that interact with it, including our API and mobile application are collectively the “#GoOpenVA Platform.”

Changes and Modifications:

VDOE and ISKME may change or amend this Agreement from time to time. If we make material changes, the #GoOpenVA Administrator will endeavor to notify you that our terms have changed, either through the user interface, in an email message, or through other reasonable means. Your use of the GoOpenVA.org website after the date such change(s) become effective will constitute your consent to the changed terms. If you do not agree to the change(s), you must immediately stop using the GoOpenVA.org website; otherwise, the new terms will apply to you.

As long as you comply with this Agreement, VDOE and ISKME grants you a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-assignable, non-sublicensable right to access and use the GoOpenVA.org website as it is intended to be accessed and used, and in accordance with this Agreement and applicable law. We grant you no other rights, implied or otherwise.

Adults Only:

The GoOpenVA.org website is intended for adults only. You must be 18 years of age or older to become a Registered User on the GoOpenVA.org website. In accordance with the Federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (“COPPA”), the #GoOpenVA Platform will never knowingly solicit, nor will we accept, personally identifiable information from users of the GoOpenVA.org website known to be under 13 years of age. Please see our privacy policy for additional information, including information regarding how to notify us of any concerns you may have in this regard.

Uses of the GoOpenVA.org Website by Registered Users

Prohibited Actions:

You agree not to, and will not assist, encourage, or enable others to:

  • Use GoOpenVA.org to harass, threaten, impersonate, or intimidate anyone.
  • Upload, post, email, transmit, or otherwise make available any content that is unlawful, harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, tortious, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, libelous, hateful, or that is racially, ethnically, or otherwise objectionable, or any content that is in violation of copyright or trademark law – or any other law protecting intellectual property in any jurisdiction – or that violates an individual’s publicity or privacy rights.
  • Upload, post, email, transmit, or otherwise make available any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, “junk mail,” “spam,” “chain letters,” “pyramid schemes,” “affiliate links,” or any other form of solicitation, or any worms or viruses or any code of a destructive nature.
  • Reverse engineer any portion of the GoOpenVA.org website.
  • Use any robot, spider, site search/retrieval application, or other automated device, process, or means not provided by the VDOE to access, retrieve, scrape, or index any portion of GoOpenVA.org.
  • Record, process, or mine information about other users or about GoOpenVA.org.
  • Take any action that imposes, or may impose, in our sole discretion, an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on our technology infrastructure or otherwise make excessive traffic demands on GoOpenVA.org.
  • Interfere with the proper working of GoOpenVA.org, circumvent or otherwise interfere with any security-related features of GoOpenVA.org, or attempt to gain unauthorized access to GoOpenVA.org, registered user accounts, or any computers/networks associated with GoOpenVA.org through hacking, password mining, or any other means.
  • Use the GoOpenVA.org for any illegal or unauthorized purpose. You agree to comply with all applicable laws, including the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia regarding online conduct and acceptable content (including but not limited to intellectual property laws).

Your Account:

If you create an individual Registered User account, you must accurately provide us with all requested information when you sign-up. You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account information, including your password, and for any and all activity that occurs under your Registered User account. You agree to immediately notify us of any unauthorized use of your account or password, or any other breach of security.

Adding Content to the GoOpenVA.org Website

Educational Materials:

#GoOpenVA Members with Registered User accounts are encouraged to contribute resources to GoOpenVA.org.

With regard to any resource that you contribute to GoOpenVA.org you represent and warrant that you have the full legal right to post the resource and that use of the resource by us and all other persons and entities as set forth in its license will not (i) infringe the trademark, copyright, privacy, or publicity rights of any person or entity; (ii) violate any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or agreement; or (iii) disclose any confidential or private information of any third party. If you are creating or contributing a resource to GoOpenVA.org, you must indicate the terms of use, such as an approved license, applicable to the resource.

Unless otherwise noted, the contents of this site are licensed under Creative Commons Licenses which allow for editing and re-sharing: Public Domain (CC0); Attribution (CC BY); Attribution ShareAlike (CC BY-SA); Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC); Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (CC BY-NC-SA).

If you contribute resources, metadata, or comments, you grant to the VDOE a perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, irrevocable license to reproduce, distribute, publicly display, publicly perform, create derivative works of, transfer, sublicense, and make any other use in any form or medium of such metadata, without restriction of any kind. The VDOE offers no guarantee or assurance that all pertinent information is provided or that the information provided is correct in each circumstance. In all cases, it is your sole responsibility to determine what permission(s) you may need in order to use a resource and, if necessary, to obtain such permission(s).

All content that is uploaded to GoOpenVA.org is scanned using a system put in place by ISKME and which screens for profanity or pornographic language. You will be notified if your uploaded material failed the scan. If you believe the language should be allowed in a specific instance, please request a review from the System Administrator at info@goopenva.org.

User Content:

Certain features of GoOpenVA.org may allow you to contribute content that is not itself either a resource or resource metadata, for example in the form of comments, feedback, discussion thread responses, announcements, or other content for access, use, viewing, and downloading by #GoOpenVA Administrator and by other users of GoOpenVA.org (“User Content”). When you post User Content, you represent and warrant that you have the full legal right to post the User Content and that use of the User Content by us and all other persons and entities will not (i) infringe the trademark, copyright, privacy, or publicity rights of any person or entity; (ii) violate any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or agreement; or (iii) disclose any confidential or private information of any third party. Upon your submission of User Content, you grant us a fully-paid, royalty-free, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, transferable, license to access, use, distribute, reproduce, display, modify, create derivative works based upon, and sublicense the User Content for the purposes of providing and promoting the GoOpenVA.org, all without any additional compensation to you whatsoever. Please note that Educational Materials and metadata are not considered User Content, but rather are discussed above, in the section titled Educational Materials.

Identifying Problems with GoOpenVA.org Content:

If you believe that a user of GoOpenVA.org has:

  • violated your intellectual property rights – for example by improperly posting your trademarks or copyrighted content to GoOpenVA.org;
  • uploaded content from a copyrighted resource; or
  • posted material which is demonstrably incorrect
please contact us (info@goopenva.org).

Removal of User Content or Resources:

The #GoOpenVA Platform makes User Content and Resources (including resource metadata) available at our sole discretion and may disable access to any User Content or Resources at any time and for any reason. By using GoOpenVA.org, you acknowledge and agree that we do not guarantee access to and/or hosting of User Content or Resources that is published through GoOpenVA.org. For example, if a resource violates this Agreement, access to it may be disabled. If you feel that a resource you posted was improperly removed, please contact info@goopenva.org to begin an appeal process.

If the #GoOpenVA Administrator receives notice that User Content or Resources posted to or through GoOpenVA.org may infringe the rights of thirds parties, including their intellectual property rights, we reserve the right (in our sole discretion) to disclose information, including PII, about the poster of such material to those third parties, so that they can contact the poster directly regarding their concerns.

Violation of this Agreement – Termination

Your right to access and use GoOpenVA.org terminates automatically upon your breach of any of the terms of this Agreement. You agree that the #GoOpenVA Platform may, in our sole discretion and without prior notice to you, terminate your access to GoOpenVA.org and/or block your future access to the GoOpenVA.org for any reason, including if we determine that you have violated this Agreement. Please note that it is our policy to terminate the accounts of Registered Users who violate the copyrights, trademark rights, or other rights of third parties.

If VDOE takes any legal action against you as a result of your violation of this Agreement, we will be entitled to recover from you, and you agree to pay, all reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs of such action, in addition to any other relief granted. You agree that we will not be liable to you or to any third party for termination of your access to GoOpenVA.org. The disclaimer of warranties, the limitation of liability, and the jurisdiction and applicable law provisions will survive any termination.

Uses of the GoOpenVA.org Website by Read-Only Users

Prohibited Actions:

You agree not to, and will not assist, encourage, or enable others to:

  • Use any robot, spider, site search/retrieval application, or other automated device, process, or means not provided by the VDOE to access, retrieve, scrape, or index any portion of GoOpenVA.org.
  • Record, process, or mine information about other users or about GoOpenVA.org.
  • Take any action that imposes, or may impose, in our sole discretion, an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on our technology infrastructure or otherwise make excessive traffic demands on GoOpenVA.org.
  • Interfere with the proper working of GoOpenVA.org, circumvent or otherwise interfere with any security-related features of GoOpenVA.org, or attempt to gain unauthorized access to GoOpenVA.org, registered user accounts, or any computers/networks associated with GoOpenVA.org through hacking, password mining, or any other means.
  • Use the GoOpenVA.org for any illegal or unauthorized purpose. You agree to comply with all applicable laws, including the laws of your local jurisdiction, regarding online conduct and acceptable content (including but not limited to intellectual property laws).

Use of Resources:

Unless otherwise noted, the contents of this site are licensed under Creative Commons Licenses which allow for editing and re-sharing: Public Domain (CC0); Attribution (CC BY); Attribution ShareAlike (CC BY-SA); Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC); Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (CC BY-NC-SA). If you use a resource downloaded from GoOpenVA.org, you must abide by the terms of its Creative Commons License.

Identifying Problems with GoOpenVA.org Content:

If you believe that a user of GoOpenVA.org has:

  • violated your intellectual property rights – for example by improperly posting your trademarks or copyrighted content to GoOpenVA.org;
  • uploaded content from a copyrighted resource; or
  • posted material which is demonstrably incorrect
please contact us (info@goopenva.org).

Links

To Third Party Sites. GoOpenVA.org may link to third party sites that are not under the control of the VDOE. Links from GoOpenVa.org are provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only; they do not indicate endorsement, sponsorship of, or affiliation with the third party or content of the linked website, including any advertisements that may be posted. The VDOE has no control over and bears no responsibility for the accuracy, legality, or content of the externally linked sites. Privacy policies and practices for such linked sites may differ from our Privacy Policy and practices. You access and use such linked sites entirely and solely at your own risk. We urge you to read the privacy policies of such linked sites before disclosing your personal information on such sites.

From Third Party Sites. If you present a link to any portion of GoOpenVA.org from any third party site, you agree to present the link in a manner that does not convey the impression that the VDOE endorses, whether expressly or implicitly, any products, services, or opinions provided on your website.

Accessibility:

The VDOE is committed to making GoOpenVA.org usable and accessible to all users, regardless of technology or ability. Please report any problems to the support team at GoOpenVA.org (info@goopenva.org).

Disclaimer of Warranties

YOU EXPRESSLY UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT YOUR USE OF THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. THE GoOpenVA.org PLATFORM, AND ANY RESOURCES DOWNLOADED OR USED THROUGH OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM, IS PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS. WE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL REPRESENTATIONS, WARRANTIES, AND CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, MERCHANTABLE QUALITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, TITLE, OR ANY WARRANTY OR CONDITION ARISING BY USAGE OF TRADE, COURSE OF DEALING, OR COURSE OF PERFORMANCE. WE MAKE NO WARRANTY THAT (a) THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS; (b) THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE; (c) CONTENT AND MATERIAL WILL BE HOSTED AND/OR TRANSMITTED WITHOUT INTERRUPTION OR CESSATION; (d) ANY PRODUCTS, SITES, INFORMATION, OR OTHER MATERIAL, WHETHER IN TANGIBLE OR INTANGIBLE FORM, DOWNLOADED OR OBTAINED BY YOU THROUGH THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM, WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS OR ANY STANDARD OF QUALITY; AND (e) ANY DEFECTS IN THE OPERATION OR FUNCTIONALITY OF THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM OR RELATED SOFTWARE WILL BE CORRECTED.

ANY MATERIAL, INFORMATION, OR DATA DOWNLOADED, VIEWED, SHARED, OR OTHERWISE ACCESSED ON OR THROUGH THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM IS ACCESSED AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION AND RISK; YOU WILL BE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR LOSS OF DATA THAT RESULT FROM THE DOWNLOADING, VIEWING, SHARING, OR OTHERWISE ACCESSING OF SUCH MATERIAL. NO ADVICE, REPRESENTATION, OR INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, OBTAINED BY YOU EITHER FROM US OR THROUGH THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM SHALL CREATE ANY WARRANTY.

Limitation of Liability

YOU EXPRESSLY UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT the #GoOpenVA PLATFORM WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES THAT MAY BE INCURRED BY YOU, HOWEVER CAUSED AND UNDER ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY. THIS INCLUDES, BUT IS NOT LIMITED TO, ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, GOODWILL, OR BUSINESS REPUTATION; ANY LOSS OF DATA; ANY COST OF PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; OR ANY OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES. THIS ALSO INCLUDES ANY LOSS OR DAMAGES THAT MAY BE INCURRED BY YOU AS A RESULT OF (a) ANY CHANGES THAT WE MAY MAKE TO THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM; (b) ANY PERMANENT OR TEMPORARY CESSATION OF THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM; (c) THE DELETION OR CORRUPTION OF, OR FAILURE TO STORE, ANY CONTENT OR DATA (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION USER CONTENT, EDUCATIONAL MATERIAL, AND METADATA) MAINTAINED THROUGH THE #GoOpenVA PLATFORM; OR (d) YOUR FAILURE TO KEEP YOUR PASSWORD OR REGISTERED USER ACCOUNT DETAILS SECURE. THE LIMITATIONS AND EXCLUSIONS OF LIABILITY ABOVE SHALL APPLY IRRESPECTIVE OF THE THEORY OF LIABILITY, INCLUDING CONTRACT (INCLUDING FUNDAMENTAL BREACH), WARRANTY, PRODUCT LIABILITY, STRICT LIABILITY, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), OR OTHER THEORY, EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

YOU SPECIFICALLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR USER CONTENT, EDUCATIONAL MATERIAL, AND/OR METADATA, OR FOR THE INFRINGING, DEFAMATORY, OFFENSIVE, OR ILLEGAL CONDUCT OF ANY THIRD PARTY, AND THAT THE RISK OF HARM OR DAMAGE FROM THE FOREGOING RESTS ENTIRELY WITH YOU.

General Terms

Entire Agreement. These Terms of Use contain the entire agreement between you and the VDOE regarding the use of the #GoOpenVA.org Platform, and supersede any prior agreement between you and the VDOE on such subject matter. The parties acknowledge that no reliance is placed on any representation made but not expressly contained in these Terms of Use.

Governing Law. Virginia law will govern this Agreement.

No Waiver of Sovereign Immunity. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT VDOE IS AN AGENCY OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA. NOTHING IN THIS AGREEEMENT SHALL BE CONSTRUED AS WAIVING THE SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA. Further, you understand that you are responsible for the content that you post to GoOpenVA.org, and as such, you understand legal issues may arise from the content that you post, and that VDOE is not responsible for those outcomes.

Severability of Terms; Non-waiver of Terms; Assignment. If any portion(s) of the Agreement is held to be invalid or unenforceable, such provision(s) shall be stricken and the remainder of the Agreement enforced as written.

Notices. VDOE may provide you with notices, including those regarding changes to the Agreement, by email, by regular mail, or by postings to GoOpenVA.org. If you have general questions or concerns regarding these Terms of Use, please contact us in writing at info@goopenva.org.