Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Write with Thea (“we,” “us,” or “our”) operates the website at writewiththea.org (“the Service”). We are committed to protecting the privacy of all users, with special attention to the privacy of children who use our Service. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and how we protect it.

2. Information We Collect

From Teachers

• Email address: used for account creation and magic link authentication
• Full name: provided optionally in profile settings
• School and state: provided optionally in profile settings
• Class information: class names, grade levels, and writing focus areas you create

From Students

• First name: entered when joining a class (used for display purposes only)
• Writing content: notes, outlines, drafts, and other work created during the writing process
• Chat history: conversations with Thea (the AI coach), when the Ask Thea feature is enabled by the teacher

We do not collect email addresses, passwords, dates of birth, phone numbers, physical addresses, or any other personally identifiable information from students. Students access the Service using a class code and a first name only.

Automatically Collected Information

We use essential cookies for authentication (teacher sessions only). We do not use advertising cookies, analytics tracking pixels, or third-party marketing tools. We do not track students across websites.

3. How We Use Information

• Teacher email: to authenticate accounts via magic link and to communicate important Service updates
• Student first name: to display the student’s name in the writing interface and on teacher dashboards
• Student writing content: to provide the step-by-step writing experience, to enable teachers to monitor progress, and to generate AI-powered feedback when Ask Thea is enabled
• Chat history: to maintain conversational context within a writing session

We do not sell, rent, or share personal information with third parties for marketing purposes.

4. AI Features and Third-Party Processing

When the Ask Thea feature is enabled by a teacher, student writing and questions are sent to Anthropic (our AI provider) to generate personalized coaching feedback. This processing is subject to the following safeguards:

• Only the content needed for feedback is transmitted (the current step context and student input)
• Anthropic does not use student data to train AI models (per Anthropic’s API data usage policy)
• Teachers can disable Ask Thea for any class at any time, preventing AI processing of student content
• AI interactions are stored only as chat history within the student’s project record

5. Children’s Privacy (COPPA Compliance)

Write with Thea is designed for use in classroom settings with primary-age students. We take children’s privacy seriously and have designed the Service with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) in mind:

• We do not require or collect email addresses or other personal contact information from students
• Students are identified only by a first name and a system-generated project code
• Student access is initiated by teachers who provide class codes in a classroom setting
• We do not display advertising of any kind
• We do not enable students to make their content publicly available
• Teachers act as the school’s authorized agent for the purpose of providing consent for the collection of student information in the educational context, consistent with COPPA regulations

6. FERPA Compliance

Write with Thea supports compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Student writing and project data are considered education records under the control of the teacher and school. As a service provider:

• We use student data solely for the educational purposes for which it was provided
• Student data is accessible only to the teacher who created the class
• We do not disclose student information to third parties except as necessary to operate the Service (see Section 4 regarding AI processing)
• Teachers and schools may request deletion of student data at any time

7. Data Storage and Security

Data is stored using Supabase, a hosted database service built on PostgreSQL. We implement the following security measures:

• Row-level security policies ensure teachers can only access their own classes and student data
• All data transmission is encrypted in transit using HTTPS/TLS
• Teacher authentication uses passwordless magic links (no passwords are stored)
• Student access uses unique, system-generated codes that do not contain personally identifiable information

8. Data Retention

Student project data (including writing content and chat history) is retained for as long as the associated class exists. Teachers may delete classes and all associated student data from their dashboard. Teacher accounts and data are retained until the teacher requests deletion.

To request data deletion, contact us at feedback@writewiththea.org.

9. Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services to operate Write with Thea:

• Supabase: database hosting and teacher authentication
• Anthropic (Claude API): AI-powered student feedback (only when Ask Thea is enabled)
• Resend: transactional email delivery for teacher magic links
• Vercel: website hosting and deployment

Each of these services has its own privacy policy governing their handling of data.

10. Your Rights

Teachers and schools have the right to:

• Access the student data associated with their classes
• Request correction or deletion of teacher account information
• Request deletion of all student data associated with their classes
• Disable AI features (Ask Thea) for any or all classes
• Export student data upon request

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at feedback@writewiththea.org.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be communicated via the Service or by email to registered teachers. Continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

12. Contact Us

If you have questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

Write with Thea
Email: feedback@writewiththea.org