Terms & Conditions

Last Modified: June 26, 2024

Acceptance of these Terms of Use

These terms and conditions (collectively, the “Terms of Use”) are an agreement between you and Massachusetts Higher Education Assistance Corporation dba American Student Assistance® and its affiliates (collectively, “ASA”, “we”, or “us”). These Terms of Use govern your access to and use of our website at evolveme.asa.org (the “Site”) and the services, content, and functionality made available on or through the Site (the “Services”), whether you are a guest or registered or unregistered user. As used in these Terms of Use, the “Services” include all of their pages, functionality, and features, and all services, content, information, links, and other materials (collectively, “Materials”) made available on or through the Services. As used in these Terms of Use, the “Services” do not include any services, videos, content, information, links, or other materials offered on or through third-party websites or otherwise by third parties, such as YouTube, TikTok, Webz.io, and/or websites of our partners (“Third-Party Services”).

All personal information that we may collect on or through the Services, including personal information you provide to register with the Services and personal information collected by us through or in connection with your use of any features of the Services, is subject to our privacy policy (the “Privacy Policy”). By using the Services, you consent to all actions taken by us with respect to your personal information in compliance with the Privacy Policy.

Please read these Terms of Use and the Privacy Policy carefully before you start to use the Services. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE “ARBITRATION” SECTION OF THESE TERMS OF USE CONTAINS A BINDING ARBITRATION CLAUSE AND A CLASS ACTION WAIVER THAT AFFECT YOUR RIGHTS FOR RESOLVING DISPUTES WITH ASA AND PROVIDERS (AS DEFINED BELOW).

By accessing or using the Services or by clicking to accept or agree to the Terms of Use when this option is made available to you, you accept and agree to be bound by and comply with these Terms of Use and acknowledge that you have read and understand our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to these Terms of Use, or if you object to the Privacy Policy, you must not access or use the Services.

The Services are directed to users who are 13 years of age or older and who reside in the United States (including its territories and possessions, “United States”). Certain functionality of the Services, including access to all or any part of the Services, may be limited or disabled for users under 13 years of age or over 20 years of age, and users under 13 years of age are not permitted to register an account on the Services. If you are under 18 years of age, you represent and warrant that a parent or legal guardian has reviewed and agreed to be bound by and comply with these Terms of Use on his or her behalf and on your behalf. If you are the parent or legal guardian of a user under 18 years of age, you agree to these Terms of Use on your own and your child’s behalf, specifically including the Disclaimer of Warranties and Limitation of Liability, below. By using the Services, you represent and warrant that you meet all of the foregoing eligibility requirements. If you do not meet all of these requirements, you must not access or use the Services.

Our Services utilize certain third-party services and link to Third-Party Services. Except as otherwise disclosed in our Privacy Policy, your access to Third-Party Services, whether or not initiated through the Services, is subject to the terms of service, privacy policies, and other terms and conditions of such Third-Party Services, as applicable, and you should be sure that you (and, if you are under the age of 18, your parent or legal guardian) have read and understand such terms of service, privacy policies, and other terms and conditions. If the Services contain links to other websites or to Third-Party Services or other Materials available from or provided by third parties (including, without limitation, our partners), these links are provided for your convenience only. This includes links contained in advertisements, including banner advertisements and sponsored links. We do not control the Third-Party Services and other Materials of those websites or of such third parties (including, without limitation, our partners) and accept no responsibility for them or for any loss or damage that may arise from your use of them. If you decide to access any of the third-party websites linked to the Services, you do so entirely at your own risk and subject to any terms of use, privacy policies, or other terms and conditions of use for such third-party websites.

As between you and us, these Terms of Use are effective from the first moment you access the Services and will remain effective thereafter in perpetuity, unless terminated earlier as provided hereinafter.

Changes to these Terms of Use

We may revise and/or update these Terms of Use from time to time in our sole discretion. All changes are effective immediately when we post them and apply to all of your access to and use of the Services thereafter. If you continue to use the Services after we post the revised and/or updated Terms of Use, it means that you accept and agree to the revisions and/or updates. When our revisions and/or updates to these Terms of Use would materially affect your rights, it is our practice to post a notice that we have made such revisions and/or updates to these Terms of Use on the applicable Services. You are expected to check this page from time to time so you are aware of any changes, as they are binding on you. The date these Terms of Use were last revised and/or updated is identified at the top of this page.

No Use or Access by Users not Located in the United States

The Services are made available from the United States and the Services are strictly for use by and solely directed to persons located in the United States. If you are not in the United States, YOU MAY NOT ACCESS OR USE THE SERVICES. We make no claims that the Services or any of their Materials are accessible or appropriate outside of the United States. The Services may not comply with laws of certain countries; if you are not in the United States, your access to and use of the Services may not be legal. If you access or use the Services from outside the United States, you do so at your own risk and are responsible for compliance with local laws.

Accessing the Services and Account Security

We reserve the right to withdraw or amend the Services, including the right to remove any links to Third-Party Services, in our sole discretion and without notice to you. We will not be liable if all or any part of the Services becomes unavailable for any reason, at any time, or for any period.

To access the Services or any of their Materials or any Third-Party Services made available on or through the Services, you may be asked to provide certain registration details or other information. It is a condition of your use of the Services that all the information you provide on the Services is correct, current, and complete. You agree that we may use this information to communicate with you about the Services and that our communications to you will satisfy any requirements for legal notices.

You are responsible for both:

• Making all arrangements (including obtaining any internet connection) necessary for you to have access to the Services; and
• Ensuring that all persons who access or use the Services through your account agree to these Terms of Use and comply with them.

You acknowledge that your account is personal to you. If you choose or are provided with a user name, a password, or any other information as part of our security procedures, you must keep that information confidential and not disclose it to any other person or entity. You may not provide any other person with access to the Services or portions of them using your user name, password, or other security information. You are responsible for all activity occurring under your account or with use of your user name and password.

You agree to notify us immediately of any unauthorized access to or use of your user name or password or any other breach of security. You may report unauthorized access by sending an email to support@accounts.asa.org.

We have the right to disable any user name, password, or other identifier, whether chosen by you or provided by us, at any time in our sole discretion.

Trademarks

The ASA name, the ASA trademark, the ASA logo, and all related names, trademarks, logos, product and service names, designs, and slogans, including those of our platforms (including, without limitation, EvolveMe) are trademarks of ASA and its affiliates or licensors. You must not use such trademarks without the prior written permission of ASA. All other names, trademarks, logos, product and service names, designs, and slogans on the Services are the trademarks of their respective owners.

Ownership

The Services and the Materials (including all information, software, text, displays, images, video, and audio, and the design, selection, and arrangement thereof) are owned by ASA, its affiliates, licensors, service providers, or other providers of such Services or Materials (collectively, “Providers”), and are protected by United States and international copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, and other intellectual property or proprietary rights laws. All rights not expressly granted to you in these Terms of Use are reserved by ASA. You do not acquire any interest, right, or title in or to the Services or any Materials.

These Terms of Use permit you to access and use the Services and the Materials for your personal, non-commercial use only, and you must not access or use the Services or the Materials for any commercial purpose. You must not reproduce, distribute, modify, create derivative works of, publicly display, publicly perform, republish, download, store, or transmit any part of the Services, including any Materials, except as follows:

• Your computer may temporarily store copies of the Materials in its RAM, cache, or other transient, short-term memory incidental to your accessing and viewing those Materials;
• You may store files that are automatically cached by your Web browser for purposes of using the Services in accordance with these Terms of Use;
• You may print or download one copy of a reasonable number of pages of the Services for your own personal, non-commercial use and not for further reproduction, publication, or distribution; and
• If we provide social media features with certain Materials, you may take such actions as are enabled by such features.

You must not:

• Modify or make any changes to copies of any of the Services’ Materials;
• Use any illustrations, photographs, video or audio sequences, or graphics separately from the accompanying text; or
• Delete or alter any copyright, trademark, or other proprietary rights notices from copies of the Materials.

If you wish to make any use of any of the Materials other than as described in these Terms of Use, please contact us at: support@accounts.asa.org.

Without limiting any other of our rights to suspend or terminate your access to the Services, if you print, copy, modify, download, or otherwise use or provide any other person with access to any part of the Services in breach of these Terms of Use, we may suspend your right to use the Services without notice, and you must, at our option, immediately return or destroy any copies of the Materials you have made. In addition, we reserve our right to seek any other applicable remedies, including our right to bring any claims related to infringement of intellectual property.

Prohibited Uses

You may use the Services only for lawful purposes and in accordance with these Terms of Use. Any use of the Services or the Materials in a way not expressly permitted by these Terms of Use is a breach of these Terms of Use. In addition to any other prohibitions stated in these Terms of Use, you agree not to use the Services or any of their Materials:

• In any way that violates applicable law (including any fraudulent conduct or any conduct that violates any laws regarding the export of data or software to and from the United States or other countries);
• For the purpose of exploiting, harming, or attempting to exploit or harm minors in any way by exposing them to inappropriate content, asking for personal information, or otherwise;
• To send, knowingly receive, upload, download, use, or re-use any material that does not comply with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use;
• To transmit, or procure the sending of, any advertising or promotional material, including any “junk mail,” “chain letter,” “spam,” or any other similar solicitation or material;
• To impersonate or attempt to impersonate ASA (including any Services of ASA), an ASA employee, another user, or any other person or entity (including by using e-mail addresses, user names, trademarks, or other identifiers associated with any of the foregoing); or
• To engage in any other conduct that restricts or inhibits anyone’s use or enjoyment of the Services, or which, as determined by us in our sole discretion, may harm ASA or users of the Services, or expose us or them to liability.

Additionally, you agree not to:

• Use the Services in any manner that could disable, overburden, damage, or impair the Services or interfere with or otherwise inhibit any other person’s or entity’s access to or use of the Services, including their ability to engage in real-time activities through the Services;
• Manipulate or otherwise engage with any Experience (as defined below) in a manner intended to accumulate Points (as defined below) without completing or otherwise properly engaging with such Experience, including, without limitation, by fast-forwarding through a video made available on or through an Experience or creating multiple accounts to engage with Experiences;
• Use any robot, spider, or other automatic device, process, or means to access the Services for any purpose, including monitoring, scraping, or copying any of the Services’ Materials;
• Use any manual process to monitor or copy any of the Services’ Materials, or for any other purpose not expressly authorized in these Terms of Use, without our prior written consent;
• Use any device, software, or routine that interferes with or otherwise inhibits the proper working of the Services;
• Introduce any viruses, trojan horses, worms, logic bombs, or other software code or other material which is malicious or technologically harmful;
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to, interfere with, damage, or disrupt any parts of the Services, the servers on which the Services are stored, or any server, computer, database, or other website connected to the Services;
• Attack the Services via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of-service attack; or
• Otherwise attempt to interfere with or inhibit the proper working of the Services.

User Contributions

The Services may contain interactive features that allow users to post, submit, publish, display, or transmit (“post”) content (collectively, “User Contributions”), on or through the Services (collectively, “Interactive Services”).

All User Contributions must comply with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use.

By providing any User Contributions on or through the Services, you grant us and our affiliates and each of their and our respective licensees, successors, and assigns a non-exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, transferable, sublicensable, worldwide license to use, reproduce, modify, perform, display, distribute, and otherwise disclose to third parties your User Contributions for purposes of making the Services and Materials and any Third-Party Services available to you and other users of the Services, developing, improving, providing, and otherwise making available (to you and others) the Services, Materials, our and our affiliates’ other products and services, and any Third-Party Services.

You represent and warrant that:

• You own or control all rights in and to your User Contributions and have the right to grant the assignment and the license granted above to us and our affiliates, partners, and service providers, and each of their and our respective licensees, successors, and assigns; and
• All of your User Contributions do and will comply with these Terms of Use (including the Content Standards).

You understand and acknowledge that:

• You are responsible for any User Contributions you post, submit, publish, display, or transmit, and you, not ASA, have full responsibility for such User Contributions, including the legality, reliability, accuracy, and appropriateness of such User Contributions;
• We will not be responsible or liable to you or any third party for the content or accuracy of any User Contributions posted by you or any other user of the Services or for any loss or unavailability of your User Contributions; and
• Your User Contributions may not be treated as confidential.

Content Standards

The following content standards (the “Content Standards”) apply to any and all User Contributions and use of Interactive Services. User Contributions must in their entirety comply with all applicable law. Without limiting the foregoing, User Contributions must not:

• Contain any material that is defamatory, obscene, indecent, abusive, offensive, harassing, violent, hateful, inflammatory, or otherwise objectionable;
• Contain, exhibit, or promote sexually explicit or pornographic material, violence, or discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, or age;
• Infringe or misappropriate any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, or other intellectual property or other proprietary rights of any other person or entity;
• Violate the legal rights (including the rights of publicity and privacy) of others or contain any material that could give rise to any civil or criminal liability under applicable law or that otherwise may be in conflict with these Terms of Use or our Privacy Policy;
• Be likely to deceive any person;
• Promote any illegal activity, or advocate, promote, or assist any unlawful act;
• Cause annoyance, inconvenience, or needless anxiety or be likely to upset, embarrass, alarm, or annoy any other person;
• Impersonate any person, or misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person or organization;
• Involve commercial activities or sales, such as contests, sweepstakes, and other sales promotions, barters, or advertising;
• Give the impression that they emanate from or are endorsed by us or any other person or entity, if that is not the case; or
• Otherwise, as determined in our sole discretion, have the potential to harm us or others or expose us or them to liability.

Monitoring and Enforcement

We have the right to:

• Remove or refuse to post any User Contributions for any or no reason in our sole discretion;
• Take any action with respect to any User Contribution that we deem necessary or appropriate in our sole discretion, including if we believe that such User Contribution violates the Terms of Use, including the Content Standards, infringes any intellectual property right or other right of any person or entity, threatens the personal safety of users of the Services or the public, or could create liability for ASA;
• Disclose your identity or other information about you to any third party who claims that information, content or other material posted, submitted, published, displayed, or transmitted on or through the Services by you violates such third party’s rights, including such third party’s intellectual property rights or their right of publicity or privacy;
• Take appropriate legal action, including referral to law enforcement, for any fraudulent or other illegal or unauthorized use of the Services;
• Terminate or suspend your access to all or part of the Services for any or no reason, including any fraudulent or other illegal conduct or violation of these Terms of Use; or
• Fully cooperate with any law enforcement authorities or court order requesting or directing us to disclose the identity or other information of anyone posting, submitting, publishing, displaying, or transmitting any information, content or other material on or through the Services.

Links to and from the Services; Social Media Features

You may link to the Services, provided you do so in a way that is fair and legal and does not, as determined by us in our sole discretion, damage our reputation or take advantage of it, but you must not establish a link in such a way as to suggest any form of association, approval, or endorsement on our part without our express written consent.

The Services may provide certain social media features that enable you to:

• Link from your own or certain third-party websites to certain Materials on the Services;
• Send e-mails or other communications with certain of the Materials on the Services, or links thereto; or
• Cause limited portions of the Materials on the Services to be displayed or appear to be displayed on your own or certain third-party websites.

You may use these features solely as they are provided by us, including with any citations or credits to third-party sources, solely with respect to the specific Materials that they are displayed with, and otherwise in accordance with any additional terms and conditions we provide with respect to such features. Subject to the foregoing, you must not:

• Establish a link from any website that is not owned by you;
• Cause the Services or any portions of them to be displayed, or appear to be displayed by, for example, framing, deep linking or in-line linking, on any other website; or
• Otherwise take any action with respect to the Materials that is inconsistent with any other provision of these Terms of Use.

The website from which you are linking, or on which you make certain content accessible, must comply in all respects with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use.

You agree to cooperate with us in causing any unauthorized framing or linking immediately to cease. We reserve the right to withdraw linking permission without notice.

We may disable all or any social media features and any links at any time without notice in our discretion.

Feedback

You hereby grant to ASA an irrevocable, royalty-free, perpetual license to use all feedback, ideas, or suggested improvements you provide to ASA regarding the Services (collectively, “Feedback”), as applicable, including in connection with ASA’s development and marketing of the Services or other products or services. You further agree that ASA and Providers may use all or part of your Feedback or any derivative thereof in any manner or media without any remuneration, compensation, or credit to you, including to improve the Services and create other products and services.

Points and Rewards

You may be able to accumulate points (“Points”) by engaging with certain Materials and Third-Party Services made available on or through the Services (including on websites of our third-party partners) (such Materials and Third-Party Services, “Experiences”). When you access an Experience, we or the Experience will notify you of the amount of Points that you may accumulate by engaging with such Experience as well as what you must do to accumulate these Points. For example, to accumulate Points by engaging with an Experience, you may be required to watch a video or complete a quiz made available on or through such Experience. You may access and view the amount of Points that you have accumulated through your account; however, Points may not become available to access or view on your account immediately after you complete engagement with an Experience. Restrictions, such as age limitations, may apply to how you can accumulate Points, and our practice is to notify you of any such restrictions.

When we issue Points, you obtain a limited license to those Points, which do not (a) have an equivalent value in real currency; (b) act as a substitute for real currency; or (c) earn interest. Points are not redeemable or exchangeable for real or virtual currency, monetary value, or convertible for other credits or tokens from us or any other third party, except as expressly provided in these Terms of Use or otherwise required by applicable law. Your license to use Points will terminate upon termination of these Terms of Use or your account and as otherwise provided herein, except as otherwise required by applicable law. You may not transfer, assign, sell, gift, exchange, trade, convert, lease, sublicense, rent, or distribute Points except through the Services and as expressly permitted by us. Any disposition or attempted disposition of Points in violation of these Terms of Use will be void and may result in immediate termination of your account and your license to use Points. We, in our sole discretion, have the absolute right to manage, modify, suspend, revoke, and terminate your license to use Points without notice, refund, compensation, or liability to you, except as otherwise prohibited by applicable law.

We may, from time to time, provide ways for you to use your Points, such as to redeem them for gift cards or other rewards (“Rewards”). Gift cards are valid at participating merchants only, and are subject to the issuer’s terms and conditions, which, if permitted by applicable law, may address expiration policies and non-usage fees and may be changed at the sole discretion of the issuer. Redemption values for Rewards may vary, and the amount of time it takes for you to receive a Reward may vary. Restrictions, such as minimum or maximum amounts, may apply to how you use your Points, and our practice is to notify you of any such restrictions. Users who are or become 20 years of age or older may be subject to additional limitations on their ability to accumulate and redeem Points; for example, such users may not be able to redeem Points for Rewards, even if such Points were accumulated before the user reached 20 years of age.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, neither we nor any third party has any obligation to exchange Points for anything of value, including, but not limited to, gift cards or real currency, except as expressly provided in these Terms of Use or otherwise required by applicable law. We make no guarantee as to the nature, quality, or value of Points or the availability or supply thereof.

You are responsible for how your Points are used. Once your Points have been used, the transaction in which your Points were used is considered final and may not be canceled unless otherwise noted. We are not responsible for how your redeemed Rewards are used.

We may, in our sole discretion, revise and/or update any features or functionalities related to Points, including, without limitation, how you accumulate Points, how you use Points, the amount of points associated with engaging with any Experience, the value of Points (including, without limitation, by increasing or decreasing the amount of your Points), and what Rewards may be redeemed for Points. We may also, in our sole discretion, for any or no reason (including for any violation by you of these Terms of Use), temporarily or permanently prohibit you from accumulating Points, using Points that you have already accumulated (including to redeem such Points for Rewards), or accessing or using any other features or functionalities related to Points.

We do not control the Experiences made available by third parties and/or the website on which you can redeem your Points for Rewards, and we accept no responsibility for such Experiences or website or for any loss or damage that may arise from your access to and engagement with them. If you decide to access or engage with any Experiences made available by third parties and/or the website on which you can redeem your Points for Rewards, you do so entirely at your own risk and subject to the applicable third party’s terms of use, privacy policies, or other terms and conditions of use applicable to such Experiences or websites.

Contests and Sweepstakes

We may, from time to time, in our sole discretion, make available contests, sweepstakes, and other promotions on or through the Services, including on websites of our third-party partners (“Sweepstakes”). Any Sweepstakes will be subject to supplemental terms and conditions in addition to these Terms of Use (“Sweepstakes Terms”), which may include eligibility criteria and other participation requirements. If you wish to participate in any Sweepstakes, please first read the applicable Sweepstakes Terms carefully. If the terms and conditions of any Sweepstakes Terms conflict with these Terms of Use, then such conflicting terms and conditions of the Sweepstakes Terms will govern with respect to the applicable Sweepstakes. All content that you submit to the Services in connection with any Sweepstakes constitutes User Contributions and is subject to all provisions of these Terms of Use applicable to User Contributions.

SMS Messages for One-Time Passcodes

You may be asked to provide your phone number to enable ASA to send you a one-time passcode via SMS message to verify your account. If you consent and provide your phone number for this purpose, applicable message and data rates may apply. You will receive 1 message to verify your account. Contact your wireless provider for more information about your text plan or data plan.

We are able to deliver messages to U.S. mobile phone carriers, subject to availability. If you do not receive an SMS verification message, please follow the instructions and/or provide your email address to receive a verification code. Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages.

Please refer to our Privacy Policy for more information about the collection and use of your personal information.

Changes to the Services

We may permanently or temporarily modify or remove the Services and any Materials, or any portion thereof, including any links to Third-Party Services, from time to time, in our sole discretion, without notice to you. To the fullest extent permitted under applicable law, we will not be liable for any modification or removal, or unavailability, of the Services or any portion thereof. From time to time, we may restrict access to some parts of the Services, or entire Services, to all users or particular users, without notice, in our sole discretion. Any of the Services or any Materials may be out of date at any given time, and we are under no obligation to update such Services or Materials.

Reliance on Information Posted

The information presented on or through the Services (including information presented on or through any Materials or Third-Party Services) is made available solely for general information purposes. We do not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of this information. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. We disclaim all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on such information by you or any other visitor to the Services, or by anyone who may be informed of such information.

The Services may include Third-Party Services from or provided by third parties, including third-party partners, licensors, syndicators, aggregators, and/or reporting services. All statements and/or opinions expressed in these Third-Party Services are solely the opinions and the responsibility of the person or entity providing those Third-Party Services. These Third-Party Services do not necessarily reflect the opinions of ASA. We expressly disclaim all liability, and we are not responsible, or liable to you or any third party, for the content or accuracy of any Third-Party Services.

Termination

ASA may terminate these Terms of Use at any time, for any reason or for no reason, by notice to you, and these Terms of Use will terminate automatically without notice upon your breach of any provisions of these Terms of Use. You may also terminate these Terms of Use at any time, for any reason, by discontinuing your access to and use of the Services. Upon termination, the rights granted to you under these Terms of Use to access and use the Services will immediately terminate.

Upon termination of these Terms of Use or your access to the Services, ASA may at its option delete any data associated with your account. Any provision of these Terms of Use that (i) expressly states that it survives expiration or termination of these Terms of Use, or (ii) should survive following expiration or termination of these Terms of Use to fulfill its essential purpose will survive any such expiration or termination.

Indemnification

You agree, to the maximum extent permissible under applicable law, to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless ASA, its Providers, and its and their respective officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, licensors, suppliers, successors, and assigns (collectively, the “ASA Parties”) from and against all claims, demands, losses, damages, liabilities, judgments, awards, settlements, costs, and expenses of any kind (including legal fees and expenses) relating to or arising out of: (i) your access to or use or misuse of the Services or any Materials or Third-Party Services made available on or through the Services; (ii) your breach, alleged breach, or violation of these Terms of Use; (iii) your Feedback or User Contributions; (iv) your failure to comply with applicable law (including any failure to obtain or provide any necessary consent or notice); (v) the infringement by you or any third party using your account of any intellectual property, privacy, or other right of any person or entity; or (vi) any claim arising from or alleging fraud, intentional misconduct, gross negligence, or criminal acts committed by you. ASA reserves the right to employ separate counsel and assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you. In such event, you shall provide ASA with such cooperation as ASA reasonably requests.

Disclaimer of Warranties

YOUR USE OF, AND YOUR RELIANCE ON OR ACTIONS OR INACTION BASED ON, THE SERVICES OR ANY WEBSITES LINKED TO OR FROM THEM, OR ANY OF THE THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR MATERIALS AVAILABLE ON OR THROUGH THE SERVICES OR SUCH OTHER WEBSITES, IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMISSIBLE UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, THE SERVICES AND THE MATERIALS AND ANY LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY SERVICES AND THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, STATUTORY OR OTHERWISE, INCLUDING ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, OR FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NEITHER ASA NOR ANY PERSON ASSOCIATED WITH ASA MAKES ANY WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION, AND ASA DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES AND LIABILITIES, TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMISSIBLE UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, WITH RESPECT TO THE COMPLETENESS, COMPATIBILITY, UTILITY, SECURITY, RELIABILITY, QUALITY, ACCURACY, OR AVAILABILITY OF THE SERVICES, THE MATERIALS, OR ANY LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, NEITHER ASA NOR ANYONE ASSOCIATED WITH ASA REPRESENTS OR WARRANTS, AND ASA DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES AND LIABILITIES, TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMISSIBLE UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, THAT THE SERVICES OR ANY MATERIALS OR ANY LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES WILL BE ACCURATE, TIMELY, RELIABLE, ERROR-FREE, OR UNINTERRUPTED, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED, THAT OUR SERVICES, OUR MATERIALS, OR ANY THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR THIRD-PARTY LINKS, OR THE SERVERS THAT MAKE THEM AVAILABLE ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS, OR THAT THE SERVICES ARE COMPLETELY SECURE AGAINST HACKING OR OTHER UNAUTHORIZED INTRUSION, OR AS TO THE ACCURACY, CURRENCY, PRESERVATION WITHOUT LOSS, OR COMPLETENESS OF ANY INFORMATION MADE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SERVICES, WHETHER PROVIDED IN TEXT, AUDIO, VIDEO, GRAPHICAL, OR OTHER FORM, OR THAT THEY WILL OTHERWISE MEET YOUR NEEDS OR EXPECTATIONS. NEITHER ASA NOR ANY PROVIDER MAKES ANY REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO ANY THIRD-PARTY SERVICE PROVIDERS. ASA IS NOT RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR ANY DECISIONS YOU MAY MAKE IN RELIANCE ON THE SERVICES, THE MATERIALS, OR ANY LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES, OR FOR ANY DEFECTS OR ERRORS THAT MAY RESULT FROM YOUR PROVISION OF INCOMPLETE OR INACCURATE INFORMATION TO ASA OR THE SERVICES, YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES WITH HARDWARE THAT DOES NOT MEET ANY MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS SPECIFIED BY ASA, OR YOUR USE OF ANY VERSION OF THE SERVICES OTHER THAN THE MOST RECENT GENERALLY AVAILABLE RELEASE OF ANY OF THE SERVICES. YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT YOU ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR PROPERTY, INCLUDING YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR MOBILE DEVICE, OR ANY LOSS OF DATA, THAT RESULTS FROM USE OF THE SERVICES, THE MATERIALS, OR ANY LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY SERVICES OR THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES.

THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY WARRANTIES WHICH CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW.

Limitation on Liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PROVIDED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT WILL THE ASA PARTIES BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH YOUR USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, OR RELIANCE ON OR ACTIONS OR INACTION BASED ON, THE SERVICES, OR ANY WEBSITES LINKED TO OR FROM THEM, OR ANY OF THE THIRD-PARTY SERVICES, INCLUDING ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING PERSONAL INJURY, PAIN AND SUFFERING, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, LOSS OF REVENUE, LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF BUSINESS OR ANTICIPATED SAVINGS, LOSS OF USE, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF DATA, REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF ACTION, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), STRICT LIABILITY, OR OTHER THEORY, EVEN IF THE ASA PARTIES HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PROVIDED BY LAW, WE WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE CAUSED BY A DISTRIBUTED DENIAL-OF-SERVICE ATTACK, VIRUSES, OR OTHER TECHNOLOGICALLY HARMFUL MATERIAL THAT MAY INFECT YOUR COMPUTER EQUIPMENT, COMPUTER PROGRAMS, DATA, OR OTHER PROPRIETARY MATERIAL DUE TO YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES, ANY THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES LINKED TO OR FROM THE SERVICES, OR THIRD-PARTY SERVICES, OR YOUR DOWNLOADING OF ANY MATERIALS.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL THE ASA PARTIES’ TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ALL DAMAGES, LOSSES, AND CAUSES OF ACTION, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), OR OTHERWISE EXCEED, IN THE AGGREGATE, $100, EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT AN APPLICABLE LAW DOES NOT ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF CERTAIN DAMAGES. YOU AND ASA AGREE THAT THE FOREGOING LIMITATIONS ARE ESSENTIAL TO THESE TERMS OF USE.

THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY LIABILITY WHICH CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW.

Arbitration

PLEASE REVIEW AS THIS MAY AFFECT YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS. THIS “ARBITRATION” SECTION IS APPLICABLE TO THE FULL EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.

• Mandatory Arbitration of Disputes. You and ASA each agree that any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms of Use or the breach, termination, enforcement, interpretation, or validity thereof or the use of the Services (each, a “Dispute” and collectively, the “Disputes”) will be resolved solely by binding, individual arbitration, unless expressly provided otherwise in this “Arbitration” Section, and not in a class, representative, or consolidated action or proceeding. You and ASA agree that the U.S. Federal Arbitration Act governs the interpretation and enforcement of these Terms of Use and that EACH OF YOU AND ASA IS WAIVING THE RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY OR TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION. This “Arbitration” Section shall survive the termination of these Terms of Use.
• Exceptions and Opt-out Option. The only exceptions to this “Arbitration” Section are the following:
  • You or ASA each may seek to resolve an individual Dispute in small claims court if it qualifies.
  • you or ASA each may seek injunctive or other equitable relief from a court to prevent (or enjoin) the infringement or misappropriation of your or ASA’s respective intellectual property rights.
  • you may opt out of arbitration entirely and litigate any Dispute individually if you provide us with a signed, written notice of your decision to do so pursuant to the “Effect of Changes on Arbitration” subsection of this “Arbitration” Section below; however, if you are opting out of an updated version of this arbitration provision, you understand that you will remain subject to the prior version of any arbitration provision to which you had previously agreed.
• Initial Dispute Resolution and Notification. You and ASA agree that, prior to initiating an arbitration or other legal proceeding, you and ASA will attempt to negotiate an informal resolution of the Dispute. To begin this process, and before initiating any arbitration or legal proceeding against ASA, you must send a Notice of Dispute (“Notice”) by certified mail to the attention of ASA’s Legal Department at the following address: 33 Arch Street, Suite 2100, Boston, MA 02110. For purposes of these Terms of Use, initiating an arbitration means filing an arbitration demand (“Demand”).
  Your Notice to ASA must contain all of the following information: (i) your full name, address, account, and the email address associated with your account; (ii) a detailed description of the nature and basis of the Dispute; (iii) a description of the relief you want, including any money damages you request; and (iv) your signature verifying the accuracy of the Notice and, if you are represented by counsel, authorizing ASA to disclose information about you to your attorney.
  After receipt of your Notice, you and ASA shall engage in a good-faith effort to resolve the dispute for a period of 60 days, which both sides may extend by written agreement (“Informal Dispute Resolution Period”). During the Informal Dispute Resolution Period, neither you nor ASA may initiate an arbitration or other legal proceeding.
  If the Dispute is not resolved during the Informal Dispute Resolution Period, you may initiate an individual arbitration as provided below.
• Conducting Arbitration and Arbitration Rules. Any arbitration must be initiated with and conducted by National Arbitration & Mediation (“NAM”) pursuant to its Comprehensive Dispute Resolution Rules and Procedures and/or its Mass Filing Supplemental Dispute Resolution Rules and Procedures (together, the “NAM Rules”), except as modified by these Terms of Use. The NAM Rules are available at www.NAMADR.org or by calling NAM at 1-800-358-2550. In any instance where the applicable NAM Rules and these Terms of Use are inconsistent, these Terms of Use shall control.
  An arbitration Demand filed with NAM must include a certification signed by the filing party verifying compliance with the Initial Dispute Resolution and Notification requirements and other requirements set out in this “Arbitration” Section.
  If NAM fails or declines to conduct the arbitration for any reason, we will mutually select a different arbitration administrator. If we cannot agree, a court will appoint the arbitration administrator.
  Any arbitration hearing will be a virtual hearing, unless you and ASA agree otherwise in writing.
  The arbitrator shall have exclusive authority to decide all issues relating to the interpretation, applicability, enforceability, and scope of this arbitration agreement, except that only a court of competent jurisdiction as set forth in the “Governing Law; Exclusive Jurisdiction” subsection of the “Miscellaneous” Section of these Terms of Use (and not an arbitrator) shall have the exclusive authority to resolve any claim that all or part of the Class Action Waiver set forth in these Terms of Use or the Mass Filing procedures set forth in the “Mass Filing Procedures” subsection of this “Arbitration” Section below are unenforceable, unconscionable, void, or voidable.
  The arbitrator may consider but will not be bound by rulings in other arbitrations where you and ASA were not both parties.
• Mass Filing Procedures. YOU AND ASA AGREE THAT, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, EACH OF YOU AND ASA IS WAIVING THE RIGHT TO BRING OR PARTICIPATE IN A MASS ARBITRATION. ASA’s receipt of one or more Notice(s) of substantially similar claims brought by or on behalf of 25 or more claimants (including you) within a 60-day period (“Mass Filing”) shall be subject to the additional procedures set forth below. Claims included in a Mass Filing, if not resolved during the Informal Dispute Resolution Period, may proceed only in accordance with the procedures set out below, and subject to the NAM Mass Filing Supplemental Dispute Resolution Rules and Procedures (“NAM Mass Filing Rules”, available at https://www.namadr.com/resources/rules-fees-forms/) to the extent not contrary to these Terms of Use. If a court determines that this “Mass Filing Procedures” subsection of this “Arbitration” Section is not enforceable as to your claim, then your claim may only proceed individually in court consistent with these Terms of Use.
  • Batching. You and ASA agree that your and other individuals’ claims deemed by ASA a Mass Filing may be filed with NAM in batches of no greater than 50 individuals’ claims at one time, with 25 claims (or half of the total number of claims in a batch, if less than 50) selected by counsel for you and other claimants and 25 claims (or half of the total number of claims in a batch, if less than 50) selected by ASA. After your claim is batched and permitted to be filed as a Demand, you and ASA agree that selection and appointment of an arbitrator for your Demand shall be governed by the NAM Mass Filing Rules.
  • First (Bellwether) Batch. The first batch of up to 50 Demands are the Bellwether Arbitrations. If your claim is included in the Bellwether Arbitrations, you and ASA shall cooperate with the arbitrator assigned to your arbitration to resolve your claim within 120 days of the initial pre-hearing conference.
  • Stay of Filing of Other Claims. If your claim is not among those selected for the Bellwether Arbitrations, your claim cannot be filed until it is assigned to a batch and authorized to be filed in a later stage of this process. No arbitration fees will be assessed on you or ASA in connection with your claim unless and until it is assigned to a batch and authorized to be filed with NAM.
  • Mediation. After the Bellwether Arbitrations are completed, if your claim remains unresolved, you and ASA agree to mediate your claim along with any other unresolved claims included in the Mass Filing (“Global Mediation”). The mediator will be selected according to the procedure set forth in the NAM Rules, and ASA will pay the mediator’s fees. The Global Mediation shall be completed within 120 days of the selection of a mediator, unless extended by written agreement between you and ASA.
  • Election To Proceed in Court. If Global Mediation is not successful in resolving your claim, and 100 or more claims included in the Mass Filing remain unresolved, you or ASA may opt out of arbitration and elect to have your claim resolved in court consistent with the “Governing Law; Exclusive Jurisdiction” subsection of the “Miscellaneous” Section of these Terms of Use. You or ASA must exercise this election within 45 days of the completion of Global Mediation.
  • Sequential Arbitration of Remaining Batches. If neither you nor ASA opt out of arbitration, another batch of no greater than 50 individuals’ claims will be selected from the Mass Filing, with 25 claims (or half of the total number of claims in a batch, if less than 50) selected by counsel for claimants and 25 claims (or half of the total number of claims in a batch, if less than 50) selected by ASA. If your claim is included in this next batch of 50 claims, your claim will be filed with NAM, and you and ASA shall cooperate with the arbitrator assigned to your arbitration to resolve your claim within 120 days of the initial pre-hearing conference. The process of batching up to 50 individual claims at a time will continue until the parties resolve all claims included in the Mass Filing. No unbatched claim can proceed to be filed as a Demand until the previous batch has been resolved.
  • Tolling. For any claim subject to these Mass Filing procedures, any statute of limitations applicable to your claim shall be tolled from the date the Informal Dispute Resolution Period begins until the earlier of (i) the date your arbitration Demand is filed, or (ii) the date you or ASA opts out of arbitration pursuant to the “Election to Proceed in Court” subsection of the “Mass Filing Procedures” subsection of this “Arbitration” Section.
• Arbitration Costs. Payment of all arbitration filing fees and costs will be governed by the applicable NAM Rules. If you prevail on your claim in arbitration, ASA will reimburse you for any portion of the arbitration filing fees you paid that exceeded the amount you would have paid to file a complaint in a court of competent jurisdiction pursuant to the “Governing Law; Exclusive Jurisdiction” subsection of the “Miscellaneous” Section. If ASA prevails on your claim in arbitration, and the arbitrator finds that your claim was frivolous or filed in bad faith, the arbitrator may award ASA reimbursement from you of ASA’s arbitration filing fees and costs.
• Offer of Settlement. Each of you and ASA may, but is not obligated to, make a written offer to settle your claim at least 14 days before the arbitration hearing date. The amount or terms of any settlement offer may not be disclosed to the arbitrator until after the arbitrator issues an award on the claim. If an award is issued in a party’s favor but is less than the other party’s settlement offer, the arbitrator may order such party to pay the arbitration costs incurred by such other party after its offer was made, unless otherwise prohibited by the underlying law governing your claim.
• Class Action Waiver. YOU AND ASA AGREE THAT, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, EACH OF YOU AND ASA MAY BRING CLAIMS (WHETHER IN COURT OR IN ARBITRATION) AGAINST THE OTHER ONLY IN AN INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, AND NOT AS A PLAINTIFF, CLAIMANT, OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY PURPORTED CLASS, COLLECTIVE, CONSOLIDATED, COORDINATED, PRIVATE ATTORNEY GENERAL, REQUEST FOR PUBLIC INJUNCTIVE RELIEF, OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING. This also means that you and ASA may not participate in any class, collective, consolidated, coordinated, private attorney general, request for public injunctive relief, or representative proceeding brought by any third party.   Notwithstanding this provision or any other language in these Terms of Use, you or ASA may participate in a class-wide settlement. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, YOU AND ASA WAIVE ANY RIGHT TO A JURY TRIAL.
• Effect of Changes on Arbitration. Notwithstanding the provisions of the “Changes to These Terms of Use” Section, if ASA modifies any terms of this “Arbitration” Section after the date you first accepted these Terms of Use or any subsequent changes to these Terms of Use, you may reject the new changes to this “Arbitration” Section by sending us written notice, personally signed by you, by certified mail to the attention of ASA’s Legal Department at the at the following address within 30 days of the date such change became effective, as indicated by the “Last Modified” date of the Terms of Use you seek to reject: 33 Arch Street, Suite 2100, Boston, MA 02110. Even if you reject a change, you will remain subject to this “Arbitration” Section of the last version of the Terms of Use you had accepted.
• Severability. If, after exhaustion of all appeals, a court finds any part of this “Arbitration” Section unenforceable as to any claim or request for a remedy, then you and ASA agree to arbitrate all claims and remedies subject to arbitration before litigating in court any remaining claims or remedies; all other claims (or requests for relief) remain subject to this “Arbitration” Section, and all other Terms of Use shall continue to be enforceable and valid.
• Third-Party Beneficiaries. All ASA Parties are intended third-party beneficiaries of this “Arbitration” Section.

Copyright Infringement

ASA takes copyright infringement seriously and complies with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). If you believe that any of the Materials or User Contributions available through, or displayed on, the Services violates your copyright, please notify us at support@accounts.asa.org, and submit a notice to our authorized copyright agent, who will accept and review all claims submitted to it. In order for us to take action upon receiving such notice, the notice must contain the following:

• A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed; Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site;
• Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material;
• Information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact the complaining party, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail address at which the complaining party may be contacted;
• A statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; or
• A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized.

Please submit your notice to: American Student Assistance Legal Department 33 Arch Street Suite 2100 Boston, MA 02110

Upon receiving notice in accordance with 17 U.S.C.A. § 512(c)(3) that such Materials are infringing, we will expeditiously take down such Materials.

It is our policy to terminate the user accounts of repeat or intentional infringers.

Miscellaneous

• Supplemental Terms. When using the Services, you agree to comply with and are subject to any posted guidelines, rules, or supplemental terms applicable to such Services, as may be posted from time to time. All such guidelines, rules, or terms are hereby incorporated by reference into these Terms of Use. To the extent that you are asked to review and accept any supplemental terms that expressly conflict with these Terms of Use, the supplemental terms associated with the applicable portion of the Services govern with respect to your use of such portion of the Services to the extent of the conflict.
• Section Headers. Section headers are provided for convenience and do not affect the interpretation of any provision or the rights of any party.
• Interpretation. For purposes of interpreting these Terms of Use, all references to “including” shall be understood to mean “including but not limited to”.
• Entire Agreement; No Assignment. These Terms of Use constitute the sole and entire agreement between you and ASA with respect to the Services and supersede all prior and contemporaneous understandings, agreements, representations, and warranties, both written and oral, with respect to the Services. These Terms of Use, and any rights and licenses granted hereunder, may not be transferred or assigned by you, but may be assigned by ASA without restriction. These Terms of Use operate to the fullest extent permissible by law.
• No Joint Venture, Partnership, Employment, or Agency Relationship. You agree that no joint venture, partnership, employment, or agency relationship exists between you and ASA as a result of these Terms of Use or your access to and use of the Services.
• Severability. If any provision of these Terms of Use is held by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable for any reason, such provision shall be eliminated or limited to the minimum extent such that the remaining provisions of these Terms of Use will continue in full force and effect.
• No Waiver. No waiver by ASA of any term or condition set forth in these Terms of Use shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or condition, or a waiver of any other term or condition, and any failure of ASA to assert a right or provision under these Terms of Use shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.
• Governing Law; Exclusive Jurisdiction. These Terms of Use shall be interpreted in accordance with the internal laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts without giving effect to any choice or conflict of law provision or rule, whether of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or any other jurisdiction. You agree that any legal suit, action, or proceeding arising out of, or related to, these Terms of Use or the Services that is not resolved by binding arbitration as set forth above will be instituted exclusively in the federal and state courts located in Suffolk County of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. However, subject to the arbitration provisions set forth above, we retain the right to bring any suit, action, or proceeding against you for breach of these Terms of Use in your state of residence or any other relevant state. You waive any and all objections to the exercise of jurisdiction over you by such courts and to venue in such courts.
• The Services are operated by Massachusetts Higher Education Assistance Corporation, dba American Student Assistance, and its affiliates, 33 Arch Street, Suite 2100 Boston, MA 02110. All feedback, comments, requests for technical support, and other communications relating to the Services should be directed to: support@accounts.asa.org.