Privacy Policy

Information We Collect

We collect only what we need to respond to you, process gifts, and run the Association.

Information you give us

• Contact form: your name, email address, and message.
• Donations: your name, email address, gift amount, the fund you choose, and whether the gift is one-time or monthly. Card details are entered directly with our payment processor; we do not see or store full card numbers.
• Membership registration: your name, chapter, contact details (such as email, phone, and mailing address), and date of birth, which sets your annual fee tier.
• Nkap Ntod mutual-support fund: enrollment details and the beneficiary information needed to pay a family benefit.
• Event registration: details you provide when registering for the Annual Convention, the Leadership Summit, or other events, which may include guest names, attire or meal preferences, and payment information.
• Emails and correspondence: anything you send to a BCA-USA email address.

Information collected automatically

• Technical data: IP address, browser type, device type, pages visited, and the date and time of your visit, recorded by our web host and security service.
• Cookies: small files that keep the site working and secure, and remember your sign-in to the member portal. See Cookies and Similar Technologies below.

We do not knowingly collect Social Security numbers, government ID numbers, or health information through the website.

How We Use Information

We use personal information only to serve our members, donors, and community:

• Respond to questions and route messages to the right officer, committee, or chapter.
• Process donations, send receipts, and keep the records a nonprofit is required to keep.
• Register and renew members, assign chapters, and set membership fee tiers.
• Administer the Nkap Ntod fund, including confirming eligibility and paying family benefits.
• Organize the Annual Convention, Leadership Summit, and other events.
• Send Association news, event notices, and fundraising appeals. You can opt out of non-essential email at any time.
• Keep the website and member portal secure, prevent fraud, and fix technical problems.
• Meet legal, tax, and audit obligations.

How We Share Information

We do not sell, rent, or trade personal information. We share it only in these cases:

Each service provider handles your information under its own privacy policy and may use it only to provide its service to us.

We may also disclose information when required by law, to protect the rights or safety of BCA-USA or others, or as part of a reorganization or merger of the Association.

Cookies and Similar Technologies

Our site uses a small number of cookies:

• Essential cookies keep the site secure, protect against spam and attacks, and keep you signed in to the member portal.
• Payment cookies set by Stripe help process gifts securely and detect fraud.
• Embedded content such as YouTube videos may set cookies from those services when you play them.

You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings. Blocking essential cookies may stop the member portal or donation form from working.

Donations and Payments

Online gifts are processed by Stripe through our OneAMS donation form. Card numbers go directly to Stripe over an encrypted connection; BCA-USA never receives or stores them.

We keep a record of each gift (your name, email, amount, date, and fund) to send receipts, honor your designation, and meet IRS record-keeping rules. We may list donor names in event programs or donor recognition, such as VIP Donors at the Charity Gala. To give anonymously, tell us at [email protected] and we will not publish your name.

For gifts by check, we keep the details on the check only as long as needed to record the gift.

Members, the Member Portal, and Nkap Ntod

Member portal. Your member account at members.bca-usa.org holds your profile, chapter, membership status, and payment history. You can view and update your profile after signing in. Keep your password private; we will never ask for it by email or phone.

Chapter and officer access. Your chapter president, chapter treasurer, the Membership Committee, and national officers may see your member record when needed to confirm membership, collect dues, or contact you about Association business.

Nkap Ntod. Enrollment and beneficiary details are seen only by the officers who administer the fund and are used only to confirm eligibility and pay benefits.

Photos and recordings. BCA-USA events are photographed and filmed. Photos may appear in the members-only gallery, on this website, and on our Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube pages. If you do not want a photo of you or your child published, contact [email protected] and we will remove it where we can.

Children and the Youth Wing

This website is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information online from them. If you believe a child under 13 has given us information, contact us and we will delete it.

The Youth Wing is open to members ages 14 to 25. For Youth Wing members under 18, we ask a parent or guardian to complete or approve registration and event forms, and we collect only what is needed to take part. Photos of youth under 18 are published only with a parent’s or guardian’s permission.

Data Retention

We keep personal information only as long as we need it:

• Donation records: 7 years, to meet tax and audit requirements.
• Member records: while you are a member and 3 years after your membership ends.
• Nkap Ntod records: while you are enrolled and as long as needed to settle any benefit.
• Contact-form messages: 2 years, unless they become part of a member or donor record.

Security

We use encrypted connections (HTTPS), a security service that blocks attacks, and access limited to officers who need the information. No website is perfectly secure, so we cannot guarantee that information will never be accessed without permission. If we learn of a breach that affects you, we will notify you as required by law.

Your Choices and Rights

You can:

• Unsubscribe from newsletters and appeals using the link in any email.
• Update your member profile in the member portal.
• Ask to see, correct, or delete the personal information we hold about you, subject to records we must keep by law.
• Ask us not to publish your name as a donor or a photo of you.

Send requests to [email protected]. We will respond within 30 days. Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights under state law; we will honor those rights where they apply.

Links to Other Sites

Our site links to Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and other websites. We are not responsible for their privacy practices; please read their policies.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. We will post the new version here with a new effective date, and we will notify members of significant changes by email.

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