Data, Comments, and Surveys

Engage Winona takes seriously our commitment to appropriately using and protecting the honest input you provide through in-person conversations and online surveys in the interest of creating community change. 

Here’s a quick description of what we do and don’t do:

We always separate your personal information from your responses. Your name and identifying information will never be attached to any comments or input.

Engage Winona does not sell your data. Ever.

Engage Winona does not share any personal, demographic or identifying information. When we collect this information, it is used only by us to determine whether our data is accurate, and whether we’re capturing the input of a representative cross-section of the community on any given issue. It is always kept private, and separate from your survey responses.

Engage Winona does not share email or mailing addresses unless explicitly given permission by the user. When we require collection of this information, it is only for us to reach back to you to update you on the project we’re collecting information for. In other circumstances, we provide email and mailing list signups, where users opt in to receiving communication from us or our partner organizations.

Engage Winona shares and publicizes lots of anonymous responses that individuals give about specific issues – spotlighting and sharing people’s voices in a collective, curated, and safely anonymous way is at the foundation of our changemaking and advocacy work. Those responses are always anonymous – not attached to any name or identifying information.

Questions? Comments? Concerns? Reach out to engage@engagewinona.org.

COMMON QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Why do you ask for my email?
It gives us a way to report back to you. We let you know what other folks are saying about the same issue, invite you to any public gatherings, and update you on how your input is being used to create change. We give folks separate opportunities to sign up for email lists, and make it clear what they’re signing up for.

Why do you ask for my age, income, education and other demographic info?
We ask for demographic information because it helps us understand who we’re hearing from, and whether we’re reaching an appropriately diverse cross-section of the community.

It also lets us know whether we’re done a good job within the project. If, for example, 90 percent of respondents on a given survey are ages 40-49 and have two kids at home, we know we’re not capturing the full voice of Winona – and can make changes in the moment.

This data, collected over multiple projects, also gives us insight into who we’re doing a good job reaching, and who we need to work harder to reach. In short, your input helps us be and do better.

This data is detached from your contact information and your survey responses, always kept private, and never shared.

Why do you require me to enter my information?
All responses other than providing an email and, at times, non-identifying information like city of residence are optional – and it’s up to you to give us permission (or not) to use that email in any way.

You use SurveyMonkey for online surveys. Do they have access to my data?
No.

What happens to my data when you’re collecting it on behalf of another organization?
When Engage Winona asks and collects data on behalf of other community organizations, we only share with them collective, anonymized data. Additionally, we require those organizations to sign privacy and use contracts that ensure they only use or publicize the data in the same methods Engage Winona does. 

Where do you keep your data?
Engage Winona safely stores raw data offline on hard drives owned and managed by the organization. Anonymized, collective data is also stored online in a password-protected account provided by a company that uses standard encryption practices.

Who owns the data I provide?
Engage Winona owns the data. We are a nonprofit organization dedicated to community transformation; our ownership is in the interest of public good and community change! When Engage Winona is working on behalf of another organization, including public entities like local governments, Engage Winona still owns the data, with the organization receiving reports with collective, anonymized data.