Signed MOA to download MIT AI2 Companion app

MIT App Inventor Help
1

My district technology officer needs a signed MOA for me to be able to download the MIT AI2 Companion app. How do I go about getting this?

3

MIT will get back to you @Tucker_Davis . What does the MOA need to include according to your district technology officer. Companion is used by 100's of school districts without issue.

4

Hello @Tucker_Davis,

Unfortunately, MIT App Inventor is not able to execute any such documents.

Regards,
Evan W. Patton, Ph.D.
Lead Software Engineer, MIT App Inventor

8

Here is the statement from my district technology officer:

"If it is a Google Play Android App then I will need to authorize it. As I will not be able to stop students from installing it if I authorize it. Please get with your Media Specialist and get an MOA signed."

I do not know what he needs.

9

Ask him. MIT provides this to users of App Inventor
https://appinventor.mit.edu/about/termsofservice

Perhaps that will satisfy him. Your school district is asking for something virtually all others do not require. Where is your school district located?

Note: The MIT AI2 Companion is not a stand-alone application. It is intended to be used with the MIT App Inventor system, a web based App Building tool which is free to use.

You can learn more about MIT App Inventor at http://appinventor.mit.edu

10

Here's a loophole for you:

You can get a better version of the Companion directly from the MIT AI2 web site
http://ai2.appinventor.mit.edu/companions/MITAI2Companion.apk

11

I appreciate the link, but my district technology officer has all downloads blocked on our devices. The link is not working.

12

I contacted my media specialist, and she said it should be a privacy policy MOA all about what data is collected and how they use it.

13

I contacted my media specialist, and she said it should be a privacy policy MOA all about what data is collected and how they use it. My students will not be able to download the Chromebook app without it.

14

MIT's privacy policy link is in post #8. part of which indicates MIT will not sign any MOA.

Special Information for Schools

MIT App Inventor values its relationship with the educational community and is honored that many educators have found MIT App Inventor to be a valuable tool for classroom learning. MIT also values the privacy of its users as explained in the MIT App Inventor Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. As many states have now passed laws regarding the use of online platforms in the classroom, MIT App Inventor has been asked to execute certain “addenda” to service contracts in order to continue the use of MIT App Inventor for classroom use. MIT App Inventor is unable to execute agreements of these sort as it does not maintain contractual agreements with school districts as part of this service. Instead, MIT App Inventor is a free, online tool available to anyone who registers for an account. If you are seeking to use MIT App Inventor for classroom use, we have developed a different version of the platform which does not collect or maintain any personally identifiable information (PII). This version is available at http://code.appinventor.mit.edu and may be more appropriate for your use. If you have any additional questions, please contact us at appinventor@mit.edu.

You need to reconcile this with her using this information. Otherwise your class will be unable to use App Inventor.

15

This is the MOA that my district technology officer is wanting. He says that it has to be signed in order for him to grant access to our students. My course that I am teaching requires this app, and the course is through the Alabama State Department of Education.
GCBOEMOAAgreementfromDataGovernancePolicy4-5-2022.pdf (95.4 KB)

16

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17

That's fine Tucker. However, MIT App Inventor has already stated that they will NOT execute the MOA. :cry: Privacy issues are dealt with in App Inventor's terms of service.

Negotiate with your district technology officer. The state says the software is required and district 'policy' is interfering. There certainly is a happy solution. :wink: You could take this up with the Alabama State Department of Education and/or ask your school principal to interven.