Terms of Use

LAST UPDATED: [6/13/2011]

Please read this Termbs of Use agreement (the Agreement) carefully. Your use of the Site (as defined below) constitutes your agreement to this Agreement.

This Agreement is between you (you) and the StudentMentor.org (we, us), which owns and operates StudentMentor.org, concerning your use of the online site currently located at http://www.studentmentor.org (together with any successor site(s) and all Services (as defined below), the Site). We provide users of the Site with access to certain content and services related to our programs and services, which may include, without limitation, registration functionality, news, tools, text, technical resources, photos, audio and video clips, and links to third party websites, and other similar content (such content and services, collectively, the “Services”). The Services include, without limitation, the student-mentor matching service made available on the Site (the Mentor Service).

1. Acceptance of Terms. The Site is made available by us subject to this Agreement. We reserve the right to update or make changes to this Agreement from time to time in our sole discretion, which changes we may provide to you by any reasonable means, including without limitation, by posting the revised version of this Agreement on the Site. You can determine when this Agreement was last revised by referring to the LAST UPDATED legend at the top of this Agreement. When using any Services (as defined below), you agree that you are subject to any additional posted guidelines, rules, terms and conditions applicable to such Services, which are hereby incorporated by reference into this Agreement.

We reserve the right, at any time and from time to time, temporarily or permanently, in whole or in part, to: modify or discontinue the Site, with or without notice; charge fees in connection with the use of the Site; modify and/or waive any fees charged in connection with the Site; and/or offer opportunities to some or all users of the Site. You agree that neither we nor any of our affiliates (collectively, Affiliated Entities) shall be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension or discontinuance of the Site, in whole or in part, or of any Service, content, feature or product offered through the Site. Your continued use of the Site after such changes will indicate your acceptance of such changes.

2. Eligibility for Student Mentor Service

a. Minimum Age. You must be at least 18 years old to register for the Mentor Service. By using the Mentor Service, you represent and warrant that you are at least 18 years old.

b. U.S. Resident. You must be a U.S. resident to register or use the Site and the Mentor Service. By using the Site and the Mentor Service, you represent and warrant that you are a U.S. resident.

c. Criminal History. By requesting to use, registering to use, and/or using the Mentor Service, you represent and warrant that you have never been convicted of a felony and are not required to register as a sex offender with any government entity. WE DO NOT CURRENTLY CONDUCT CRIMINAL BACKGROUND SCREENINGS ON USERS OF THE SERVICES. However, we reserve the right to conduct a criminal background check, at any time and using available public records, to confirm your compliance with this section.

d. Unique and Bona Fide Profile. You will only create one unique Profile for the Mentor Service, and your use of the the Mentor Service must be for bona fide educational or career advice or career counseling purposes.

3. Risk Assumption and Precautions. Without limitation of Section 15 of this Agreement, you assume all risk when using the Services, including but not limited to all risks associated with any online or offline interactions with others. You understand that we do not in any way attempt to verify the statements of users who registered on the Site. You agree to take reasonable precautions in all interactions with other users of the Services, particularly if you decide to meet offline or in person. You understand that we make no guarantees, either express or implied, regarding your educational compatibility with individuals you meet through the Services.

4. Geographic Limitations. We control and operate the Site from the United States, and the Site is not intended to subject us or any Affiliated Entity to the laws or jurisdiction of any state, country or territory other than that of the United States. We do not represent or warrant that the Site, or any part thereof, is appropriate or available for use in any particular jurisdiction. Those who choose to access the Site do so on their own initiative and at their own risk, and are responsible for complying with all local laws, rules and regulations. We may limit the Site’s availability, in whole or in part, to any person, geographic area or jurisdiction we choose, at any time and in our sole discretion. You are also subject to United States export controls and are responsible for any violations of such controls, including any United States embargoes or other federal rules and regulations restricting exports.

5. Rules of Conduct. While using the Site you will comply with all applicable laws, rules and regulations. In addition, we expect users of the Site to respect the rights and dignity of others. Your use of the Site is conditioned on your compliance with the rules of conduct set forth in this section, and your use or participation in the Mentor Service is conditioned upon your compliance with our behavioral guidelines for mentors or mentees; your failure to comply with such rules may result in termination of your access to the Site pursuant to Section 17 below. You agree to the following:

Posting and Communication Restrictions. You will not post on the Services, transmit to other users, communicate any content (or links thereto), or otherwise engage in any activity on the Site or through the Services, that:

o Is or may be (a) threatening, harassing, degrading, hateful or intimidating; (b) defamatory; (c) fraudulent or tortious; (d) obscene, indecent, pornographic or otherwise objectionable; or (e) protected by copyright, trademark, trade secret, right of publicity or other proprietary right without the express prior consent of the owner of such right.

o May give rise to criminal or civil liability; encourages conduct that constitutes a criminal offense; or encourages or provides instructional information about illegal activities or activities such as hacking, “cracking,” or “phreaking.”

o In any way results in distribution of any virus, worm, Trojan horse, Easter egg, time bomb, spyware, or other computer code, file, or program that is harmful or invasive or may or is intended to damage or hijack the operation of, or to monitor the use of, any hardware, software or equipment.

o Involves any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional material, “junk mail,” “spam,” “chain letter,” “pyramid scheme” or investment opportunity, or any other form of solicitation.

o Involves any material, non-public information about a company without the proper authorization to do so.

o Conduct or engage in a mentorship that pertains to seeking funding on business ideas or current business enterprises if you are a mentee. In addition, mentees that are not current students cannot seek advice on their business ideas or current business enterprises.

Use Restrictions. You will not:

o Use the Site for any fraudulent or unlawful purpose.

o Use the Site to defame abuse, harass, stalk, threaten or otherwise violate the legal rights of others, including without limitation others’ privacy rights or rights of publicity, or harvest or collect personally identifiable information about other users of the Site.

o Impersonate any person or entity, including without limitation any of our representatives; falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity in connection with the Site; or express or imply that we endorse any statement you make.

o Interfere with or disrupt the operation of the Site or the servers or networks used to make the Site available; or violate any requirements, procedures, policies or regulations of such networks.

o Restrict or inhibit any other person from using the Site (including without limitation by hacking or defacing any portion of the Site).

o Use the Site to advertise or offer to sell or buy any goods or services without our express prior written consent.

o Reproduce, duplicate, copy, sell, resell or otherwise exploit for any commercial purposes, any portion of, use of, or access to the Site.

o Modify, adapt, translate, reverse engineer, decompile or disassemble any portion of the Site.

o Remove any copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights notice from the Site or materials originating from the Site.

o Frame or mirror any part of the Site without our express prior written consent.

o Create a database by systematically downloading and storing Site content.

o Use any robot, spider, site search/retrieval application or other manual or automatic device to retrieve, index, “scrape,” “data mine” or in any way gather Site content or reproduce or circumvent the navigational structure or presentation of the Site without our express prior written consent. Notwithstanding the foregoing, we grant the operators of public search engines permission to use spiders to copy materials from the site for the sole purpose of and solely to the extent necessary for creating publicly available searchable indices of the materials, but not caches or archives of such materials. We reserve the right to revoke these exceptions either generally or in specific cases.

Additionally, you acknowledge and agree that you (and not we) are responsible for obtaining and maintaining all telecommunications, broadband, and computer hardware, equipment, and services needed to access and use the Site, and paying all charges related thereto.

Additionally, you will promptly report to us any violation of this Agreement by all others, including but not limited to, users of the Student Mentor Service.

6. Our Proprietary Rights. The information and materials made available through the Site, including the Services, are and shall remain our property and the property of our licensors and suppliers, and are protected by copyright, trademark, patent, and/or other proprietary rights and laws. Subject to your compliance with this Agreement, and solely for so long as you are permitted by us to access and use the Site, you may view one (1) copy of any content on the Site to which we provide you access hereunder on any single computer solely for your personal, non-commercial home use, provided that you keep intact all copyright and other proprietary notices.

Except as expressly authorized in advance by us in writing, you agree not to reproduce, modify, rent, lease, loan, sell, distribute, or create derivative works based (whether in whole or in part) on, all or any part of the Site or any materials made available through the Site.

All trademarks and service marks on the Site not owned by us are the property of their respective owners. The trade names, trademarks and service marks owned by us, whether registered or unregistered, may not be used in connection with any product or service that is not ours, in any manner that is likely to cause confusion. Nothing contained on the Site should be construed as granting, by implication, estoppel or otherwise, any license or right to use any of our trade names, trademarks or service marks without our express prior written consent.

7. Information Submitted Through the Site. Your submission of information through the Site is governed by our Privacy Policy, which is located at http://www.studentmentor.org/privacy-policy (the Privacy Policy), which is hereby incorporated into this Agreement by this reference. You represent and warrant that any information you provide in connection with your use of the Site is and shall remain true, accurate, and complete, and that you will maintain and update such information regularly. You agree that if any information you provide is false, inaccurate, obsolete or incomplete, we may terminate your use of the Site and/or any of the Services.

8. Accuracy of Information. We attempt to ensure that information on this Site is complete, accurate and current. Despite our efforts, the information on this Site may occasionally be inaccurate, incomplete or out of date. We make no representation as to the completeness, accuracy or currentness of any information on this Site, including any information or materials provided by users of the Site. In addition, we may make changes in information about price and availability without notice. We reserve the right, without prior notice, to limit any product or service and/or to refuse service to any customer. We also may require verification of information prior to the acceptance of your user registration.

9. Registration; User Names and Passwords. This Section 9 does not limit the specific requirements regarding the Mentor Service described in Section 2, but also applies to the Mentor Service. You are required to register with us in order to access certain Services or areas of the Site. With respect to any such registration, we may refuse to grant you, and you may not use, a user name (or e-mail address) that is already being used by someone else; that may be construed as impersonating another person; that belongs to another person; that personally identifies you; that violates the intellectual property or other rights of any person; that is offensive; or that we reject for any other reason in our sole discretion.

Your user name and password are for your personal use only, and not for use by any other person. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of any password you may use to access the Site, and agree not to transfer your password or user name, or lend or otherwise transfer your use of or access to the Site, to any third party. You are fully responsible for all interaction with the Site that occurs in connection with your password or user name. You agree to immediately notify us of any unauthorized use of your password or user name or any other breach of security related to your account or the Site, and to ensure that you log off/exit from your account with the Site (if applicable) at the end of each session. We are not liable for any loss or damage arising from your failure to comply with any of the foregoing obligations.

10. Profiles and Forums. We and/or our service providers may make available through the Site services (for example, blogs, chat functionality, messaging functionality and comment functionality on the Site, among other services) to which you are able to post information and materials (each, a “Forum”).

Information contained in the Forums, and in any user profiles created in connection with the Forums or otherwise in connection with the Site (Profiles), may be provided by our employees and employees of the Affiliated Entities as well as by third party visitors to the Site. Please note that Site visitors may post messages or make statements in the Profiles and Forums that are inaccurate, misleading or deceptive. We, the Affiliated Entities and our and their respective employees, officers, directors, shareholders, affiliates, agents, representatives, licensors, suppliers and service providers (StudentMentor.org Parties) neither endorse nor are responsible for any opinion, advice, information or statements made in the Profiles and Forums by such Site visitors. Without limitation of Section 15 of this Agreement, the StudentMentor.org Parties are not responsible for any information or materials made available through the Profiles and Forums by parties other than us (including without limitation errors or omissions in Profiles and Forum postings or links or images embedded in a Profile or in Forum messages) or results obtained by using any such information or materials. Under no circumstances will the StudentMentor.org Parties be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on such information or materials. The opinions expressed in the Profiles and Forums reflect solely the opinions of the individuals who submitted such opinions, and may not reflect our opinions.

In addition, the StudentMentor.org Parties have no control over, and shall have no liability for, any damages resulting from the use (including without limitation republication) or misuse by any third party of information voluntarily made public through a Profile or a Forum or any other part of the Site. IF YOU CHOOSE TO MAKE ANY OF YOUR PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE OR OTHER INFORMATION PUBLICLY AVAILABLE IN A PROFILE OR A FORUM OR OTHERWISE ON THE SITE, YOU DO SO AT YOUR OWN RISK.

11. License. For purposes of clarity, you retain ownership of any information, content and/or materials you submit through a Profile or a Forum or otherwise through the Site (each, a Submission). However, please note that we need certain rights to your Submissions to be able to make them available on the Site. As such, you hereby grant to us, the Affiliated Entities and our and their respective service providers and designees a worldwide, non-exclusive, transferable, sublicenseable (through multiple tiers), royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license, without compensation to you: to use, reproduce, distribute, adapt (including without limitation edit, modify, translate, and reformat), create derivative works of, transmit, publicly display and publicly perform such Submission, in any media now known or hereafter developed.

This license is non-exclusive (so you can license your Submissions to others), worldwide (as the Internet is global in its reach), fully-paid up and royalty-free (so that we do not have to pay you for posting your Submissions), sublicenseable through multiple tiers (so that we can use our service providers and subcontractors to provide Services).

For each Submission, you represent and warrant that you have all rights necessary for you to grant the licenses granted in this section, and that such Submission, and your provision thereof to and through the Site, comply with all applicable laws, rules and regulations. You further irrevocably waive any moral rights or other rights with respect to attribution of authorship or integrity of materials regarding each Submission that you may have under any applicable law under any legal theory. We request this waiver to help ensure that we have all the rights we may need to provide the Services available through the Site.

12. Monitoring. You acknowledge and agree that we reserve the right (but have no obligation) to do any or all of the following, at our discretion: (i) monitor Submissions; (ii) alter, remove, or refuse to post or allow to be posted any Submission; and/or (iii) disclose any Submissions, and the circumstances surrounding their transmission, to any third party in order to operate the Site; to protect the StudentMentor.org Parties and the Site’s users and visitors; to comply with legal obligations or governmental requests; to enforce this Agreement; or for any other reason or purpose.

13. Links. The Site may provide links to other web sites and online resources. Because we have no control over such sites and resources, you acknowledge and agree that the StudentMentor.org Parties are not responsible for the availability of such external sites or resources, and neither endorse nor are responsible or liable for any content, advertising, products or other materials on or available through such sites or resources. Other web sites may provide links to the Site with or without our authorization. You acknowledge and agree that the StudentMentor.org Parties do not endorse such sites, and are not and shall not be responsible or liable for any links from those sites to the Site, any content, advertising, products or other materials available on or through such other sites, or any loss or damages incurred in connection therewith.

YOU AGREE THAT YOUR USE OF THIRD PARTY WEB SITES AND RESOURCES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, YOUR USE OF ANY CONTENT, INFORMATION, DATA, ADVERTISING, PRODUCTS, OR OTHER MATERIALS ON OR AVAILABLE THROUGH SUCH WEB SITES AND RESOURCES, IS AT YOUR OWN RISK AND IS SUBJECT TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF USE APPLICABLE TO SUCH SITES AND RESOURCES.

We shall have the right, at any time and in our sole discretion, to block links to the Site through technological or other means without prior notice.

14. Disclaimer of Warranties. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, THE SITE, THE SERVICES, AND ANY GOODS OR SERVICES MADE AVAILABLE THROUGH OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SITE ARE PROVIDED TO YOU AS IS WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY. YOU AGREE THAT YOU MUST EVALUATE, AND THAT YOU BEAR ALL RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH, THE USE OF THE SITE, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY RELIANCE ON THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS OR USEFULNESS OF ANY MATERIALS AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SITE, INCLUDING ANY INFORMATION OR MATERIALS PROVIDED MADE BY OTHER USERS OF THE SITE. THE StudentMentor.org PARTIES DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE SITE AND ANY PRODUCT OR SERVICE (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, THIRD PARTY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES) OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NONINFRINGEMENT AND TITLE. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES WILL BE SECURE, UNINTERRUPTED, ALWAYS AVAILABLE, ERROR-FREE OR WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS, OR THAT ANY DEFECTS IN THE SERVICES WILL BE CORRECTED. WE DISCLAIM LIABILITY FOR, AND NO WARRANTY IS MADE WITH RESPECT TO, THE CONNECTIVITY AND AVAILABILITY OF THE SERVICES.

15. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, THE StudentMentor.org PARTIES WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, UNDER ANY CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHER THEORY, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION:

A. DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE CONDUCT OF YOU OR ANYONE ELSE IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OF THE SERVICES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION OF THE GENERALITY OF THE FOREGOING, DEATH, BODILY INJURY, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, AND ANY OTHER DAMAGES RESULTING FROM COMMUNICATIONS OR MEETINGS WITH OTHER REGISTERED USERS OF THE SERVICES OR PERSONS YOU MEET THROUGH THE SERVICES, WHETHER ONLINE OR OFFLINE.

B. DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, USE, DATA, LOSS OF OTHER INTANGIBLES, LOSS OF SECURITY OF INFORMATION YOU HAVE PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH YOUR USE OF THE SITE, OR UNAUTHORIZED INTERCEPTION OF ANY SUCH INFORMATION BY THIRD PARTIES, OR DAMAGES RESULTING FROM OR RELATING TO YOUR USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SITE OR FROM ANY CONTENT POSTED ON THE SITE BY US OR ANY THIRD PARTY EVEN IF ADVISED IN ADVANCE OF SUCH DAMAGES OR LOSSES.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, THE StudentMentor.org PARTIES MAXIMUM LIABILITY FOR ALL DAMAGES, LOSSES AND CAUSES OF ACTION, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION NEGLIGENCE) OR OTHERWISE, SHALL BE THE TOTAL AMOUNT, IF ANY, PAID BY YOU TO US TO ACCESS AND USE THE SITE.

YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY FOR DISSATISFACTION WITH THE SITE IS TO STOP USING THE SITE.

The Site may include inaccuracies, errors and materials that violate or conflict with this Agreement. Additionally, third parties may make unauthorized alterations to the Site. If you become aware of any unauthorized third party alteration to the Site, contact us at info[at]studentmentor[dot]org with a description of the material(s) at issue and the URL or location on the Site where such material(s) appear.

16. Indemnity. You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the StudentMentor.org Parties from and against all claims, losses, costs and expenses (including attorneys fees) arising out of (a) your use of, or activities in connection with, the Site and Services; or (b) any violation of this Agreement or applicable law by you.

17. Termination. This Agreement is effective until terminated. We, in our sole discretion, may terminate your access to or use of the Site, at any time and for any reason, including if we believe that you have violated or acted inconsistently with the letter or spirit of this Agreement. Upon any such termination, your right to use the Site will immediately cease. You agree that any termination of your access to or use of the Site may be effected without prior notice, and that we may immediately deactivate or delete your password and user name, and all related information and files associated with it, and/or bar any further access to such information or files. You agree that we and the Affiliated Entities shall not be liable to you or any third party for any termination of your access to the Site or to any such information or files, and shall not be required to make such information or files available to you after any such termination. Sections 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10 through 18, and 21 through 23 shall survive any expiration or termination of this Agreement.

18. Governing Law; Jurisdiction. This Agreement is governed by and shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California, U.S.A., without regard to its principles of conflicts of law. You agree to exclusive jurisdiction of the federal and state courts located in Santa Clara County, California, U.S.A., and waive any jurisdictional, venue or inconvenient forum objections to such courts.

19. Contact Us. If you have any questions regarding the meaning of application of this Agreement, please direct such questions to info[at]studentmentor[dot]org. Please note that e-mail communications will not necessarily be secure; accordingly you should not include credit card information or other sensitive information in your e-mail correspondence with us.

20. Filtering. Pursuant to 47 U.S.C. Section 230(d) as amended, we hereby notify you that parental control protections (such as computer hardware, software or filtering services) are commercially available that may assist you in limiting access to material that is harmful to minors. Information identifying current providers of such protections is available on the two web sites GetNetWise (http://kids.getnetwise.org/) and OnGuard Online (http://onguardonline.gov/). Please note that we do not endorse any of the products or services listed at such site.

21. Notice for California Residents. Under California Civil Code Section 1789.3, California users are entitled to the following consumer rights notice: If you have a question or complaint regarding the Site, please send an e-mail to info[at]studentmentor[dot]org. You may also contact us by writing to 524 Union Street #241 San Francisco CA 94133. California residents may reach the Complaint Assistance Unit of the Division of Consumer Services of the California Department of Consumer Affairs by mail at 1625 North Market Blvd., Sacramento, CA 95834, or by telephone at (916) 445-1254 or (800) 952-5210.

22. Claims of Copyright Infringement. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (the DMCA) provides recourse for copyright owners who believe that material appearing on the Internet infringes their rights under U.S. copyright law. If you believe in good faith that materials available on the Site infringe your copyright, you (or your agent) may send us a notice requesting that we remove the material or block access to it. If you believe in good faith that someone has wrongly filed a notice of copyright infringement against you, the DMCA permits you to send us a counter-notice. Notices and counter-notices must meet the then-current statutory requirements imposed by the DMCA. See http://www.copyright.gov/ for details. Notices and counter-notices should be sent to: ASHKON JAFARI, info [at] studentmentor [dot] org, 524 Union Street #241 San Francisco CA 94133

We suggest that you consult your legal advisor before filing a notice or counter-notice.

23. Miscellaneous. This Agreement does not, and shall not be construed to, create any partnership, joint venture, employer-employee, agency or franchisor-franchisee relationship between you and us. If any provision of this Agreement is found to be unlawful, void or for any reason unenforceable, that provision will be deemed severable from this Agreement and will not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provision. You may not assign, transfer or sublicense any or all of your rights or obligations under this Agreement without our express prior written consent. We may assign, transfer or sublicense any or all of our rights or obligations under this Agreement without restriction. No waiver by either party of any breach or default hereunder will be deemed to be a waiver of any preceding or subsequent breach or default. Any heading, caption or section title contained herein is inserted only as a matter of convenience, and in no way defines or explains any section or provision hereof. This, together with all policies referred to herein (including the Privacy Policy), is the entire Agreement between you and us relating to the subject matter herein and supersedes any and all prior or contemporaneous written or oral agreements or understandings between you and us relating to such subject matter. Notices to you may be made via posting to the Site, by e-mail, or by regular mail, in our discretion. The Site may also provide notices of changes to this Agreement or other matters by displaying such notices or by providing links to such notices. Without limitation, you agree that a printed version of this Agreement and of any notice given in electronic form shall be admissible in judicial or administrative proceedings based upon or relating to this Agreement to the same extent and subject to the same conditions as other business documents and records originally generated and maintained in printed form. We will not be responsible for failures to fulfill any obligations due to causes beyond its control.