Platform Terms of Use

Welcome to HSCred.app, a performance-based college readiness assessment platform located at https://hscred.app (the “Platform”) operated by HSCred Inc. (the “Company”, “HSCred”, “we”, “us”, or “our”). This Platform is maintained as a service to our users. By using this site, you agree to comply with and be bound by the following terms and conditions of use. Please review these terms and conditions carefully.

BY CLICKING THE "I AGREE" BUTTON WHEN YOU REGISTER FOR AN ACCOUNT ON THE PLATFORM OR BY ACCESSING, VISITING, BROWSING, USING OR ATTEMPTING TO INTERACT WITH OR USE ANY PART OF THIS PLATFORM, OR ANY HSCRED SERVICES OR CONTENT (COLLECTIVELY "SERVICE"), YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE READ, UNDERSTAND AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THESE TERMS OF USE. THE MOST CURRENT VERSION OF THE TERMS OF USE, WHICH SUPERSEDES ALL PREVIOUS VERSIONS, CAN BE REVIEWED BY GOING TO HTTPS://TERMS.HSCRED.COM. WE WILL PROVIDE NOTICE OF MATERIAL CHANGES AND REQUIRE YOUR RE-ACCEPTANCE AT YOUR NEXT SIGN-IN, AS DESCRIBED IN SECTION 1; MINOR, NON-MATERIAL CHANGES ARE EFFECTIVE WHEN POSTED. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS, YOU SHOULD NOT USE THIS PLATFORM. USE OF THE PLATFORM IS STRICTLY LIMITED TO INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE 14 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER.

GENERAL TERMS OF USE

1. Agreement; Updates

By creating an account or using the Platform, you accept these general terms of use (the “Master Terms”) and the Role Addendum(s) that apply to you (collectively, the “Terms of Use”). These Terms of Use, our Privacy Policy, any applicable data-privacy addenda (including, if applicable/relevant, the New York Education Law §2-d/Part 121 addendum), and any referenced order forms, written agreements, or policies are collectively referred to as this “Agreement”. This Agreement specifies the terms and conditions for access to and use of the Platform and describes the terms and conditions applicable to your access of and use of the Platform.

We may update this Agreement from time to time; material changes require re-acceptance at next sign-in, and minor, non-material changes are effective when posted. Your continued use after minor changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of those changes.

2. Privacy

Your visit to our site is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which is hereby incorporated by reference into this Agreement. Please review our Privacy Policy at https://privacy.hscred.com.

3. Accounts & Eligibility

The Platform is available to: (i) high school students, primarily in 11th and 12th grade, who submit academic work for evaluation and potential publication and who may build a verified portfolio and transcript of Published Works; (ii) educators and other Guides who support students in preparing submissions; (iii) academic reviewers and evaluators, including Channel Editors and Experts, who evaluate Student Submissions for publication; and (iv) postsecondary institutions and other organizations that access the Platform to administer Channels, evaluate Student Submissions, or review Published Works, including as Verified Institutions where applicable; and (v) parents and legal guardians of Students, who may provide or withdraw consents required by this Agreement and act on a minor Student’s behalf.

By using the Platform, you represent and warrant that you are (a) a student eligible to use the Platform, (b) an educator/Guide or other adult user supporting students, (c) a Channel Editor or Expert acting in an individual capacity (unless your institution is a Verified Institution under a separate written agreement), or (d) an authorized representative of an institution using the Platform under a written agreement, or (e) a parent or legal guardian of a Student, acting for that Student where this Agreement or applicable law requires, and in each case you have the right, authority, and capacity to enter into this Agreement.

You must provide accurate, current, and complete information, keep your credentials confidential, and are responsible for all activity under your account. You agree to notify us immediately of any unauthorized use or security incident.

USE OF THE PLATFORM IS LIMITED TO INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE 14 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER. BY CREATING AN ACCOUNT, YOU REPRESENT AND WARRANT THAT YOU ARE AT LEAST 14 YEARS OLD. THE COMPANY DOES NOT KNOWINGLY COLLECT PERSONAL INFORMATION FROM CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF 14 AND DOES NOT PERMIT SUCH INDIVIDUALS TO REGISTER OR USE THE PLATFORM. If we learn that a user under 14 has registered in violation of this policy, we will take appropriate steps to terminate the account and delete the associated information.

4. Key Definitions

For purposes of this Agreement:

• “Channel” means a topic- or institution-specific publication space on the Platform with defined rubrics, submission requirements, and review criteria, which hosts associated Published Works and Publication Decisions.

• “Channel Editor” or “Editor” means an individual user who creates and administers a Channel, including setting the Channel’s rubric, evaluation criteria, and submission requirements and inviting and managing Channel Experts. If a Channel is designated by HSCred as administered under a Verified Institution program, the Channel Editor for that Channel must be authorized by the applicable Verified Institution (acting through its designated administrator or representative) and remains subject to the institution’s Channel-level governance for that Channel (including appointment/removal of Editors and applicable Channel policies).

• “Expert” means a user authorized by a Channel Editor to evaluate Student Submissions for publication in a Channel.

• “Expert Panel” means the panel of Experts assigned to evaluate a submission for publication (as designated by the Channel Editor).

• “Guide” means an educator, mentor, or other adult user who supports a Student in preparing and submitting Student Submissions. A Guide does not evaluate Student Submissions for publication unless separately authorized as an Expert by the applicable Channel Editor. A Guide’s primary role is to provide iterative feedback and revision cycles sufficient to support the integrity of the Student’s work, including attesting (where the Platform requires) that the Student’s submission is the Student’s own original work.

• “minted” means, with respect to a Publication, that the Student Submission has been approved for publication in a Channel and converted by the Platform into its finalized published format (including assigning a persistent identifier and generating the associated Published Work page and/or exportable publication record).

• “Partner” means a user who is an Institutional Partner or an Individual Partner, as those terms are described in the Partner Addendum. The Partner Addendum sets forth additional terms applicable to Partners (including Channel administration, institutional branding, disclosures, security, and export controls).

• “Publication” means the Platform’s process of evaluating a Student Submission for acceptance into a Channel and, if accepted, making that submission available on the Platform as a Published Work, together with any associated Publication Decision and overall score between zero and 2. For clarity, “Publication” includes the review, acceptance, and display of the submission within the applicable Channel.

• “Published Work” means a Student Submission that has been accepted for publication through the Channel’s evaluation process and is published on the Platform (including any associated published transcript/credential page or record).

• “Publication Decision” means the publication decision and any rubric scoring associated with a Student Submission.

• “Student” means an individual user who creates a student account on the Platform and submits or participates in the preparation and submission of Student Submissions for evaluation and potential Publication in a Channel, including any Student who accesses or maintains a portfolio, transcript, or other record of Published Works through the Platform.

• “Student Submission” means any Student-authored or Student-provided work product submitted to the Platform for evaluation or publication, including any audio/video, files, project outlines, written responses, and associated submission metadata.

• “Access Card” (or “Access Code”) means a prepaid credit, currently valued at $100, redeemable for one complete expert evaluation of one Student Submission, issued by HSCred and funded by a school, district, Sponsor, a scholarship program, or a Student.

• “Scholarship Queue” means the queue described in Section 3.7 of the Student Addendum.

• “Sponsor” means an organization — typically a nonprofit — that holds a Sponsor account on the Platform, funds evaluations for students (through Access Cards, card decks, or a scholarship program), and, where the Platform’s payment architecture so provides, receives evaluation fees and pays Expert Panel members directly as its own independent contractors. The Academic Capital Foundation is the initial Sponsor.

• “Verified Institution” means an academic institution that has entered into a written Verified Institution agreement with HSCred providing for the institution’s formal participation, use of its name and branding, and governance of one or more Channels (including appointment and removal of Channel Editors and Experts for those Channels).

5. License to Use the Platform

1. Grant of License. Subject to these Terms (including any applicable Role Addendum) and timely payment of any fees, HSCred grants you a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-sublicensable license to access and use the Platform and its publicly available materials solely for permitted educational purposes and your use (including use in connection with paid features made available through the Platform).

2. Reservation of Rights; Ownership. Except for the limited license above (or as provided in a separate written agreement), no other rights are granted by HSCred as to the Platform Content. HSCred and its licensors own all right, title, and interest in and to the Platform, software, interfaces, designs, databases, documentation, and all improvements and derivatives (collectively, “Platform Content”). All rights not expressly granted are reserved.

3. General Platform Use. We do not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of any information or content. You agree that you must evaluate, and bear all risks associated with, the use of any content, including any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of such content. The use of the Services by both users is at the discretion of the Company, and the Company may terminate the use of the Services by any user at any time.

4. Restrictions. You will not (and will not permit anyone to):

   1. copy, modify, adapt, translate, or create derivative works of the Platform;

   2. reverse-engineer, decompile, disassemble or otherwise attempt to derive source code or underlying ideas (except to the extent a restriction is prohibited by law);

   3. scrape, harvest, spider, or use automated means (including bots, crawlers, scripts) to access the Platform, bypass rate limits, or extract data other than through features we provide;

   4. rent, lease, sell, resell, sublicense, or otherwise commercialize access to the Platform or its content;

   5. access the Platform to build a competitive product or for benchmarking that is published to third parties without our prior written consent;

   6. remove or obscure proprietary notices or branding;

   7. introduce viruses, malware, or other harmful code

   8. interfere with or impair the Platform’s operation, performance, or security, or attempt to gain unauthorized access to accounts, systems, or data;

   9. use the Platform in any manner that infringes the intellectual property or privacy rights of others or involves the transmission of unsolicited commercial communications;

   10. use the Platform in violation of law, student privacy obligations, or this Agreement.

5. User Content; Role-Based Uses. Your use of Student Submissions, evaluations, and education records is limited by the Role Addendum that applies to you (e.g., Student, Guide/Expert, Channel Editor, Institution) and any written agreement with an educational agency. You may not download, retain, or re-use education records outside HSCred except as expressly authorized by this Agreement, the applicable institution, or by law.

6. Third-Party Services; Open Source. The Platform may interoperate with third-party services (e.g., SSO, storage, payouts). Your use of those services is governed by their terms. Components of the Platform may include open-source software subject to applicable licenses; those licenses control solely for the covered components.

7. Feedback. The Company encourages suggestions and comments regarding the Platform from users. By providing any feedback, comments, or suggestions, you agree that: (a) your feedback does not contain confidential or proprietary information of third parties, (b) the Company is under no obligation of confidentiality, express or implied, with respect to the feedback, (c) the Company may have something similar to the feedback already under consideration or in development, (d) you grant the Company an irrevocable, non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual, worldwide license to use, modify, prepare derivative works, publish, distribute, and sublicense the feedback, and (e) you irrevocably waive, and cause to be waived, against the Company and its users any claims and assertions of any moral rights contained in such feedback.

8. Use of Information. the Company reserves the right, and you authorize us, to use and assign all information regarding site uses by you and all information provided by you in any manner consistent with our Privacy Policy.

9. Beta/Preview Features. We may offer features labeled beta, preview, or similar. They are provided as-is, may change or be withdrawn at any time, and may be subject to additional terms or limits.

10. Suspension; Termination of License. Your license may automatically suspend or terminate if you violate this Agreement, exceed permitted use, or (if applicable) if your access is ended by your institution. Upon termination, you must stop using the Platform and destroy any materials obtained in violation of these Terms. Sections that by their nature should survive (including Ownership, Restrictions, Feedback, Disclaimers, Limitation of Liability, and Governing Law) survive termination.

6. Fees; Refunds; Taxes

1. Fees and pricing. Per-Publication fees and any subscription or pilot fees are disclosed in-product, on applicable order forms, or in a separate written agreement. Prices are in the currency stated at checkout or on the order form and exclude taxes unless expressly stated.

2. Billing and payment. Fees are due at the time of purchase or as otherwise stated on the order form. Payments are processed through our designated third-party payment processor(s) (currently, Stripe). HSCred does not store full payment card numbers or bank account credentials; payout onboarding and tax documentation may be collected by our payout processor (currently Stripe) and are subject to that processor’s terms and privacy practices. You authorize HSCred and our processor(s) to charge your selected payment method for all amounts due. We may suspend or disable access to features or services for non-payment.

3. Refunds. Except where required by law or expressly stated in writing, all fees are non-refundable once a Publication is minted/published or a subscription term has begun. If a refund policy is offered for a specific product or promotion, its terms will control for that purchase only. A fee associated with a submission that is never evaluated is not forfeited; it is handled under Section 6.9(b) below.

4. Chargebacks; Clawbacks. If you initiate a chargeback or reversal without first contacting us in good faith to resolve a billing issue, we may suspend access pending resolution. To the extent permitted by law, we may recover (including by offsetting future payouts or amounts otherwise owed) any amounts paid or credited to you in error or as a result of fraud, duplicate payments, chargebacks, refunds, or violations of this Agreement.

5. Taxes. You are responsible for all sales, use, VAT/GST, withholding, and similar taxes arising from your purchases, other than taxes based on HSCred’s net income. Where required, we may collect, withhold, and remit such taxes, or request that you provide valid exemption documentation.

6. Changes to pricing. We may update fees prospectively. Subscription price changes will take effect at the next renewal term and will be communicated in advance as required by applicable law or contract.

7. Disputed charges. You must notify us in writing of any billing dispute within 30 days of the charge. Failure to do so constitutes your acceptance of the charge. Initiating an unauthorized chargeback may result in suspension of access.

8. Promotions and trials. Any free trial, discount, or promotional pricing is offered as-is, may be modified or discontinued at any time, and, unless stated otherwise, applies only for the specified period and then reverts to the standard price.

9. Access Cards and Codes. (a) Disclosure at issuance. Every Access Card states its value, its funding source, and any deadline by which it must be used. (b) Deadlines; cards are never kept by HSCred. If a card is not redeemed by its deadline — including where a submission misses its certification deadline under Section 6.10 — HSCred does not keep the value: the card returns to its funding source (the purchasing school, district, or Sponsor, or the Scholarship Queue) for reissue to another student, unless the funding source directs otherwise. A Student who purchased their own card instead receives a one-time credit toward a future cycle. (c) Extensions, reissue, transfer. Cards may be extended, reissued, or transferred between students as described in the card rules posted on the Platform. (d) Human appeal. Any decision about a card’s expiration, extension, reissue, or transfer may be appealed to a human reviewer, and the outcome is provided in writing.

10. Publication Cycle. Evaluations run on a calendar-month cycle. A Student may submit one project per calendar month; a scheduled month may be changed at no cost until the 15th of that month; after the 15th the Student is committed and expert reviewer time is reserved; the submission must be certified by the Student’s Guide by 11:59 PM on the last day of the month; evaluations are completed by the 20th of the following month; and results are released on the 1st of the month after that. If a submission is not certified by the deadline, no evaluation occurs and the Access Card is handled under Section 6.9(b). Current details and any updates to this cycle are posted on the Platform.

7. Intellectual Property & Affiliations

1. Trademarks. HSCred.app, HSCred, and others are either trademarks or registered trademarks of the Company. Other product and company names mentioned on this Platform may be trademarks of their respective owners. The Company and any party that provides intellectual property to the Company retain all rights with respect to any of their respective intellectual property appearing on this website, and no rights in such materials are transferred or assigned to you.

2. Affiliations; No Institutional Endorsement. Users may identify their professional affiliation (e.g., employer or academic institution) as part of their profile. Any such affiliation is provided for identification purposes only and does not imply endorsement, sponsorship, or participation by the affiliated institution. You may not use any institution’s name, trademarks, logos, or other branding in a manner that implies endorsement, partnership, or formal institutional participation unless (i) you have express written authorization from the institution and (ii) where required by HSCred, the institution has entered into a separate written agreement with HSCred (e.g., as a Verified Institution).

8. Links to Third-Party Websites

This Platform may provide links to third-party websites or resources. Because we do not control such websites and resources, you acknowledge and agree that the Company is not responsible or liable for the content, products, or performance of such third-party websites and resources, and you hereby irrevocably waive any claim against the Company with respect to such websites and resources. The Company reserves the right to terminate any link at any time without notice. The inclusion of a link to such another website or resource does not constitute or imply an endorsement, authorization, sponsorship, or affiliation by the Company of that website or resource, or any products or services provided therein. We recommend that you review any terms of use and privacy policy of any linked third-party website before providing any information to that website or using its products and services.

9. Compliance with Laws

You agree to comply with all applicable laws regarding your use of the Platform. You further agree that information provided by you is truthful and accurate to the best of your knowledge.

Users in Japan. HSCred offers the Platform to users in Japan, including through hscredjp.org. If you use the Platform from Japan, your information is transferred to and processed in the United States, as described in the Privacy Policy.

10. Compliance with NY ED Law 2-D and NYCRR 121

HSCred Inc. is committed to maintaining the privacy and security of student, teacher, and principal data. To the extent applicable to us, we comply with New York Education Law §2-d and its implementing regulations under NYCRR Part 121 with respect to personally identifiable information (“PII”) received from or on behalf of educational agencies in the State of New York. Such compliance includes the following measures:

• Use of Personally Identifiable Information: We use PII only for the purposes expressly authorized in our written agreements with educational institutions, and solely in furtherance of the educational services provided through the Platform.

• Prohibition on Selling and Disclosing PII: We do not sell, use, or disclose PII for marketing or commercial purposes, nor do we allow any other party to do so.

• Access and Sharing Limitations: Access to PII is limited to those employees who need it to perform their job functions in connection with authorized educational services. We do not disclose PII to subcontractors or other third parties except as expressly permitted under a written agreement and in accordance with applicable law.

• Subcontractor Compliance: Where we engage subcontractors or service providers who may receive access to PII, we require such parties to implement and maintain privacy and security practices consistent with applicable federal and state laws, including § 2-d and Part 121.

• Adoption of NIST Standards: We use technologies, safeguards, and practices that align with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework.

• Safeguards for PII: We maintain technical and physical safeguards to protect the security, confidentiality, and integrity of PII in our possession, including using encryption technology to protect against unauthorized disclosure of data while in motion or in our custody.

• Parent's Access: To the extent we possess educational records subject to New York Education Law § 2-d, parents or legal guardians have the right to inspect and review their child’s educational record in accordance with applicable law and the policies of the relevant educational agency.

Nothing in this section shall be interpreted as an admission or representation that HSCred Inc. is subject to New York Education Law § 2-d in all contexts. Our obligations under this section apply solely to the extent we receive, and process covered PII on behalf of an educational agency subject to that law.

11. Copyright Infringement and DMCA Compliance

If you believe that your copyrighted work has been used or displayed on the Platform in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please notify us in accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) by submitting a written notice to:

DMCA Agent, HSCred, Inc.
244 5th Avenue
Suite N269
New York, NY 10001
dmca@hscred.com

12. Disclaimers; Limitation of Liability; Indemnity

1. Disclaimer. THIS PLATFORM (AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN) IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS," "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS. YOU AGREE THAT USE OF THIS PLATFORM IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. HSCRED DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY EXPRESS WARRANTIES, STATUTORY WARRANTIES, AND ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. THE COMPANY MAKES NO WARRANTY THAT (A) THE PLATFORM WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS, (B) THE PLATFORM WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE, (C) THE RESULTS THAT MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE USE OF THE PLATFORM WILL BE ACCURATE OR RELIABLE, (D) THE QUALITY OF ANY PRODUCTS, SERVICES, INFORMATION, OR OTHER MATERIAL ON OR OBTAINED BY YOU THROUGH THE PLATFORM WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS, AND (E) ANY ERRORS OR DEFECTS IN THE PLATFORM WILL BE CORRECTED. ANY CONTENT OR MATERIAL DOWNLOADED OR OTHERWISE OBTAINED FROM THE PLATFORM IS DONE AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION AND RISK; THE COMPANY SHALL NOT BE LIABLE, AND YOU WILL BE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE, FOR ANY AND ALL LOSS OR CORRUPTION OF DATA UPLOADED OR INPUTTED BY YOU THROUGH THE USE OF THE PLATFORM, AND ALL SERVICING, REPAIR, OR CORRECTION AND ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE THAT MAY RESULT FROM THE USE OF THE PLATFORM.

   TO THE EXTENT YOUR JURISDICTION DOES NOT ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON WARRANTIES, THIS LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY RELATING TO YOUR USE OF THE PLATFORM SHALL BE TO DISCONTINUE USING THE PLATFORM.

2. Limitation of Liability. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL HSCRED, ITS SUBSIDIARIES, AFFILIATES, LICENSORS, SERVICE PROVIDERS, CONTENT PROVIDERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, OFFICERS, AND DIRECTORS BE LIABLE OR RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL (INCLUDING DAMAGES FROM LOSS OF BUSINESS, LOST PROFITS, LITIGATION, OR THE LIKE), SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE, OR OTHER DAMAGES, UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY, ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY RELATING TO THE PLATFORM, YOUR PLATFORM USE, OR THE CONTENT, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. IN NO EVENT WILL THE COLLECTIVE LIABILITY OF HSCRED AND ITS SUBSIDIARIES, AFFILIATES, LICENSORS, SERVICE PROVIDERS, CONTENT PROVIDERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, OFFICERS, AND DIRECTORS, REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF ACTION (WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT, OR OTHERWISE), EXCEED THE GREATER OF $100 OR THE TOTAL AMOUNT PAID BY YOU TO HSCRED FOR THE SERVICES DURING THE TWELVE (12) MONTHS IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM.

   You may have additional rights under certain laws (including consumer laws) which do not allow the exclusion of implied warranties, or the exclusion or limitation of certain damages. If these laws apply to you, the exclusions or limitations in this Agreement that directly conflict with such laws may not apply to you.

3. Indemnification. You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold the Company and our partners, employees, affiliates, content providers, service providers, employees, agents, officers, directors, and contractors (the “Indemnified Parties”) harmless from any liability, loss, claim, damages, awards, costs, and expenses, including reasonable attorney's fees, related to your breach of this Agreement or use of the Platform. You agree that the Indemnified Parties will have no liability in connection with any such breach or unauthorized use. You will also indemnify and hold the Indemnified Parties harmless from and against any claims brought by third parties arising out of your unauthorized use of any content or information or service accessed from this Platform.

4. Termination and Suspension

   1. Our rights. We may suspend or terminate your access (in whole or part) immediately if we reasonably determine there is: (i) a breach of this Agreement or applicable law; (ii) a security, privacy, or operational risk; (iii) non-payment; or (iv) a request by an authority or a court. We may also modify or discontinue the Platform or any feature. For paid subscriptions, we will provide advance notice of material discontinuation where commercially reasonable.

   2. Your rights. You may terminate your account at any time through the account settings or by written notice to us.

   3. Effect of termination. Upon termination, your license to use the Platform immediately ends and you must stop all use. We may delete or disable access to content in your account, subject to Section 13.4 below. Except where required by law or expressly stated otherwise, fees are non-refundable; if we discontinue the Platform in its entirety during a paid term (and not due to your breach), we will refund any prepaid, unused fees on a pro-rata basis.

   4. Records and exports.

      1. Consumer/student accounts: we will provide a reasonable window after termination to export your data, unless prohibited by law or security risk.

      2. Institution-managed records: solely to the extent applicable, education records we process for an educational agency may be retained, returned, or deleted only as directed by that agency and by law (e.g., FERPA/NY §2-d).

      3. Backup. We may retain minimal logs/backup copies as required for legal, security, or audit purposes.

   5. Survival. Sections that by their nature should survive (including ownership, restrictions, privacy, disclaimers, limitations of liability, indemnity, governing law, dispute resolution, and this Section 13.5) shall survive termination.

   6. No liability for changes. The Company reserves the right at any time and from time to time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the Platform or any service provided by the Platform (or any part thereof) with or without notice. You agree that to the maximum extent permitted by law, we are not liable to you or any third party for any modification, suspension, or discontinuance of the Platform or any service, subject to the pro-rata refund in Section 13.3 for prepaid subscriptions.

5. Academic Review; Channel Management; Disputes. The Platform provides tools to support academic review and publication workflows, including Channels, rubrics, Expert Panels, and publication records. Each Channel is administered by the applicable Channel Editor (which may be an individual academic, or the representative of a university or other organization). Channel Editors are solely responsible for: (i) establishing Channel standards, rubrics, and publication criteria; (ii) selecting, supervising, and training Experts; (iii) administering the Expert Panel process; and (iv) making and maintaining Publication Decisions and Channel governance.

   TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, DISPUTES REGARDING ACADEMIC JUDGMENT, EVALUATION CRITERIA, RUBRIC SCORING, PUBLICATION DECISIONS, OR CHANNEL STANDARDS ARE MATTERS BETWEEN THE CHANNEL EDITOR AND THE RELEVANT GUIDES/EXPERTS AND/OR THE STUDENT (AS APPLICABLE), AND NOT HSCRED. HSCred may provide technical tools, logs, audit trails, and process support, but HSCred does not serve as the academic adjudicator and does not guarantee outcomes, publication decisions, or acceptance into any Channel.

15. Governing Law; Venue; Actions

If there is any dispute about or involving the Platform or this Agreement, you agree that any dispute shall be governed by the laws of the State of New York without regard to its conflict of law provisions. You agree to personal and exclusive jurisdiction by and venue in the state and federal courts of the State of New York, Manhattan County. YOU AGREE THAT REGARDLESS OF ANY STATUTE OR LAW TO THE CONTRARY, ANY CLAIM OR CAUSE OF ACTION ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THE PLATFORM, ANY SERVICE PROVIDED BY THE PLATFORM, OR THE TERMS OF USE MUST BE FILED WITHIN ONE (1) YEAR AFTER SUCH CLAIM OR CAUSE OF ACTION AROSE OR BE FOREVER BARRED; PROVIDED THAT THIS ONE (1) YEAR LIMITATION SHALL NOT APPLY TO CLAIMS BROUGHT BY A POSTSECONDARY INSTITUTION OR OTHER ORGANIZATION THAT (I) CREATED AND CONTROLS A CHANNEL OR (II) HAS ENTERED INTO A WRITTEN AGREEMENT WITH HSCRED (INCLUDING AS A VERIFIED INSTITUTION). TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, YOU AND THE COMPANY EACH KNOWINGLY, VOLUNTARILY, AND INTENTIONALLY WAIVE ANY RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY ACTION OR PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT, THE PLATFORM, OR ANY TRANSACTION OR COMMUNICATION BETWEEN YOU AND THE COMPANY. THIS WAIVER APPLIES TO ANY ACTION, WHETHER SOUNDING IN CONTRACT, TORT, OR OTHERWISE.

16. Severability

If any provision of this Agreement shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be unenforceable or invalid, that provision shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary so that this Agreement will otherwise remain in full force and effect.

17. Waiver

The failure of the Company to exercise or enforce any right or provision of this Agreement shall not operate as a waiver of such right or provision. Any waiver of this Agreement by the Company must be in writing and signed by an authorized representative of the Company.

18. Relationship of the Parties

Nothing contained in this Agreement or your use of the Platform shall be construed to constitute either party as a partner, joint venturer, employee, or agent of the other party, nor shall either party hold itself out as such. Neither party has any right or authority to incur, assume or create, in writing or otherwise, any warranty, liability, or other obligation of any kind, express or implied, in the name of or on behalf of the other party, it being intended by both parties that each shall remain independent contractors responsible for its own actions.

19. Entire Agreement

This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between you and the Company and governs the terms and conditions of your use of the Platform, and supersedes all prior or contemporaneous communications and proposals, whether electronic, oral, or written, between you and the Company with respect to this Platform. Notwithstanding the foregoing, you may also be subject to additional terms and conditions, posted policies (including but not limited to the Privacy Policy), guidelines, or rules that may apply when you use the website. the Company may revise this Agreement as described in Section 1: material changes take effect for you upon your re-acceptance at sign-in (or, if you do not sign in, thirty (30) days after notice), and minor, non-material changes are effective when posted. Your continued use after minor changes are posted signifies your acceptance of those minor changes.

20. Contact Information

If you have any questions regarding these Terms of Use, please contact us at:

• (212) 518-1586

• info@hscred.com

ROLE ADDENDA

1. Student Addendum

Student accounts are created by individuals who initiate registration via the Platform’s sign-up link. Upon submitting basic information, the Student will receive a confirmation email with a secure link to complete setup. If demand exceeds system capacity, the Platform may temporarily place students on a waitlist and notify them when registration is available. Students must comply with the Master Terms, this Student Addendum, and all posted rules and policies. Certain submissions may require a Student to associate with a Channel, Verified Institution, Guide, or other program sponsor (e.g., to access rubrics and publication criteria, submit work for evaluation, and receive a Publication Decision and potential publication as a Published Work).

1. Age; Parent/School-Mediated Access

NO ONE UNDER THE AGE OF 14 MAY USE OR ACCESS THE PLATFORM. You may create a Student account if you are at least 14 years old. If you are under 18, you represent that you are using the Platform with permission from your parent/guardian, and you agree that certain features may require your parent/guardian to agree on your behalf and that your use may be directed or supervised by a parent/guardian. Publication consent. No Student Submission that includes a Student’s face, voice, name, or other identifying information will be published on the Platform — including display in the Scholarship Queue — until the Platform has recorded affirmative consent from both (i) the Student and (ii) a parent or legal guardian, for any Student under 18. Consent is captured through the Platform’s consent flow or a release form HSCred provides, and is recorded with the date and the consenting parties. Contracts entered into by minors may be voidable under applicable law; however, to the maximum extent permitted, (i) rights already granted to HSCred to host and process submissions for credentialing and educational purposes will continue to apply to actions already taken, and (ii) your continued use after turning 18 constitutes ratification of your prior assents.

2. License to Student Users

The Company grants Student users a limited, revocable, nonexclusive license to use the Platform solely for personal educational purposes. This license enables Students to participate in the HSCred process, submit academic work for evaluation, and maintain a verified portfolio and transcript of Published Works and Publication Decisions. Student users agree not to reproduce, distribute, assign, sublicense, sell, create derivative works from, publicly display, or otherwise exploit the Platform or Platform Content for commercial purposes. Students may not use the Platform in any manner that could damage, disable, or impair its functionality or interfere with other users’ access, or in violation of any law.

3. Publication; Visibility; Student-Controlled Metadata

1. Publication by design. By submitting a Student Submission for evaluation, you acknowledge and agree that the Platform is designed for publication and that submissions are evaluated for potential publication in a Channel. If a submission is accepted, it may be published as a Published Work on the Platform. Removal of a Published Work after publication is governed by Section 3.2 below.

2. Removal of Published Works. Publication is designed to be durable: colleges rely on Published Works precisely because they do not quietly disappear. A Student may nonetheless have any of their own Published Works permanently removed, as follows. (a) Request. The request is made through the Platform’s controls or by written notice to info@hscred.com. While the Student is under 18, the request requires confirmation by a parent or legal guardian, and a parent or legal guardian may also initiate it on the Student’s behalf. (b) Processing fee. Removal is subject to a $100 processing fee, which covers the work of unwinding a published credential: removing the Published Work page and the transcript entry, disabling shared links, and, where feasible, notifying recipients with active access. (c) When the fee does not apply. The fee is waived where (i) removal is required by applicable law; (ii) a parent or legal guardian withdraws consent to the display of a minor Student’s name, image, likeness, or voice; (iii) removal is requested for safety, harassment, or similar protective reasons; or (iv) HSCred grants a documented hardship waiver. Waiver requests are decided by a human reviewer and answered in writing. (d) Effect. On removal, the Published Work page and transcript entry are removed and associated links are disabled; the license in Section 5.2 ends prospectively, except that HSCred may retain archival copies for audit, security, dispute-resolution, and legal-compliance purposes; and Channel-level statistics may continue to reflect the evaluation on a de-identified basis. Removal does not require HSCred or any recipient to retrieve copies lawfully accessed before removal. (e) Account deletion. Deleting an account does not by itself remove Published Works; removal is requested under this Section.

3. Audio/video access vs. personal metadata. Access to Published Works requires an active Platform account. Each Published Work consists of the Student’s academic data, which includes the Student’s audio/video submission and the applicable evaluation criteria and rubric scoring. In addition, the Platform may associate Student metadata with a Published Work. Student metadata falls into two categories: (i) Personally Identifiable Information (“PII”) (such as name, email address, date of birth, mailing address, and school information) and (ii) social history (such as survey responses and background information). Student metadata (including PII and social history) will be displayed or shared with a Published Work only if the Student affirmatively elects to include it through the Platform’s controls. If the Student does not affirmatively elect to include such metadata, the Published Work may be viewable only with academic data and without Student metadata, subject to any Channel-specific requirements enabled by the Platform.

4. No search engine indexing. HSCred intends that Published Work pages are not indexed by external search engines (e.g., through “noindex” controls). However, we cannot guarantee that third parties will never copy, repost, or index content that has been made accessible to them.

5. Audit trail and watermarking. HSCred may add watermarks, recipient identifiers, timestamps, or attribution to Published Works or exported materials to deter redistribution and maintain an audit trail.

6. Student-Directed Sharing of Personal Metadata. You may direct HSCred to disclose certain personal metadata or other PII associated with your transcript of Published Works to one or more designated recipients through the Platform. Such sharing requires an affirmative, dated consent captured through the Platform that specifies (i) the recipient(s) and (ii) the categories of information to be disclosed. For clarity, rubric scores associated with a Published Work may be visible to authorized users in connection with review of the Published Work, but narrative evaluator comments are not shared externally unless expressly authorized in writing by HSCred and the applicable Institution or Channel Editor.

7. Scholarship Queue. A Student without funding may submit work to the scholarship queue operated with the Academic Capital Foundation (“ACF”), an independent nonprofit. Work in the queue is displayed on the Platform before expert evaluation, clearly labeled as awaiting review, and the publication-consent requirements of Section 1 of this Student Addendum apply in full before any queue display. When funding becomes available for the next place in line, the submission moves to expert review under the ordinary process. Donations to ACF’s scholarship fund are made to ACF, are governed by ACF’s own terms and receipts, and are not payments to HSCred; HSCred does not direct ACF’s selection of recipients.

8. Portfolio limit. The Platform may limit the number of Published Works displayed per Student (currently ten); the current limit is stated on the Platform.

4. Portfolio & Shareable Links

1. Intentional publication; Shareable Links.

   1. Certain features allow you to publish items from your portfolio or generate shareable links (e.g., to a finalized, credentialed transcript of Published Work). By default, content you publish or share through these features is made available only to individuals who have an active account on the Platform and who access the content through the Platform. However, the Platform may offer an optional “Recipient View” feature that allows you to generate a limited, guest-viewable link for a specific disclosure purpose (e.g., admissions review) without requiring the recipient to create an account. If you enable Recipient View, the shared page will display only the categories of information you select (and only those categories permitted by the Platform for Recipient View), and the link may be subject to access controls such as expiration, view limits, password/PIN, or recipient verification, as determined by the Platform.

   2. Recipient View links are provided solely for the limited purpose specified at the time of sharing (e.g., admissions/enrollment review) and may not be used for marketing, advertising, resale, or redistribution. You acknowledge that a recipient with access may still copy, record, or redistribute content, and you agree to share only content you are comfortable disclosing. HSCred may apply watermarks, recipient identifiers, timestamps, and other audit-trail measures to Recipient View pages and exported materials.

2. Your responsibility; no third-party PII. Only publish content you have the right to share. Do not include third-party personal information (e.g., another person’s full name, contact details, ID numbers, health/education records) or content you do not own without that person’s express permission (or another valid legal basis). You are responsible for the legality of what you publish or share.

3. Identity display; student-controlled metadata. Published pages may show your name or a display identifier as configured in your profile, subject to Platform settings. Personal metadata and other personally identifiable information (including Social History, grades, and demographic information) will not be displayed to other users unless you affirmatively authorize such display through the Platform’s controls. For Recipient View links, the Platform may restrict sharing of Social History and other sensitive metadata and may limit Recipient View to academic data and audio/video content (and related rubric scores/Publication Decisions), unless you separately provide explicit authorization for additional categories.

4. Search engines and linking. Published pages are intended to be accessible only to registered Platform users and not indexed by external search engines (e.g., via technical “noindex” controls). However, we cannot guarantee that third parties will not copy, repost, share, or otherwise redistribute content that has been made accessible to them through their Platform account.

5. Removal; prospective changes to metadata. Removal of a Published Work is governed by Section 3.2 of this Student Addendum. You may be able to change certain profile fields or metadata settings prospectively (to the extent the Platform provides such controls), but such changes do not require HSCred or any recipient to retrieve or delete copies that were already accessed, downloaded, cached, or otherwise saved by third parties.

6. Safety and takedown. HSCred may, in its discretion, limit, hide, disable access to, or remove any Published Work, Student Submission, or shared page (including any Recipient View link) if it appears unlawful, infringing, harassing, threatening, sexually exploitative, or otherwise violates this Agreement, or if it poses a security, privacy, or safety risk, or in response to a valid legal request. HSCred may also suspend or disable Recipient View links or adjust access controls where reasonably necessary to protect users or the integrity of the Platform.

7. Watermarking and attribution. HSCred may add watermarks, recipient identifiers, timestamps, or attribution to published or exported pages or materials to deter redistribution and to maintain an audit trail.

5. Student Data and IP

1. Ownership. Students shall retain ownership of their personal data and original academic submissions provided through the Platform, including audio and video recordings, project outlines, and other Student-created media (“Student Submissions”).

2. License. The Company does not claim ownership over Student Submissions. By uploading or submitting Student Submissions, the Student grants the Company and its authorized service providers and educational participants (including assigned Editors and Institutions) a non-exclusive, worldwide, sublicensable, royalty-free license to access, use, host, reproduce, evaluate, store, display, publish, transmit, and distribute such content as necessary to: (i) assess Student work through the Platform; (ii) issue and maintain verifiable academic credentials and Published Works; (iii) make Published Works and related Publication Decisions available to other Platform users and to third parties only as directed by the Student through Platform sharing tools and consents; (iv) demonstrate the validity, quality, and transparency of the publication and credentialing process; (v) operate, maintain, secure, and improve the Platform in accordance with applicable law and the Privacy Policy; and (vi) create, use, and commercialize De-Identified Data as described in Section 5.6 below. This license includes the right to create account-accessible transcript links to finalized, credentialed presentations. Where appropriate, names and other identifiers may be withheld or pseudonymized unless explicit consent is provided.

3. Service Providers and Sublicensing. The license in Section 5.2 above includes the right for the Company to sublicense Student Submissions to its vetted service providers (e.g., hosting, storage, content delivery, security, and processing vendors) solely to provide the services to the Company and users, subject to confidentiality and data-protection obligations.

4. Likeness, Voice, and Media Releases. To the extent a Student Submission includes the Student’s name, image, likeness, or voice, the Student grants the Company a limited license of rights of publicity to host, display, and transmit such materials only for the purposes in Section 5.2 (assessment, credentialing, transcript display if authorized, and platform operations). The Company will not use Student Submissions for advertising or marketing without the Student’s (or, if applicable, parent/guardian’s) prior written consent.

5. Future Institutional Agreements (if applicable). If HSCred later enters into a written agreement with a school, district, or postsecondary institution under which HSCred processes student data on behalf of that institution and such data constitutes “education records” under applicable law, HSCred will process such records in accordance with the governing agreement and applicable law.

6. De-identified and Aggregated Data; Research. The Company may create, use, and commercialize de-identified, anonymized, or aggregated data derived from Student Submissions, Published Works, evaluations, and Platform usage (collectively, “De-Identified Data”) for research, analytics, product development, platform improvement, credential-quality insights, and related purposes. As between you and the Company, the Company owns all De-Identified Data and all right, title, and interest therein, including all intellectual property and other proprietary rights in and to such De-Identified Data. The Company will never sell De-Identified Data. The Company may use De-Identified Data internally for research, analytics, product development, platform improvement, and credential-quality insights, may publish aggregate statistics, and may provide access to De-Identified Data, at no charge, to academic researchers and evaluation partners under written agreements that prohibit re-identification and commercial use. The Company will not attempt to re-identify De-Identified Data and will contractually require service providers and research counterparties not to do so.

7. Prohibited Secondary Uses. Except as expressly permitted in this Section 5 or by a separate written consent/contract, the Company will not: (a) use Student Submissions for behavioral advertising; (b) disclose Student Submissions to unrelated third parties for their independent commercial purposes. For clarity, this Section 5.7 does not restrict the Company’s use of De-Identified Data as described in Section 5.6 above; De-Identified Data is never sold.

8. Evaluator Content Distinction. Evaluator Content (e.g., evaluator notes, rubric scores, and feedback authored by Guides/Experts) is not a Student Submission. Rights in Evaluator Content are governed by the Guide/Expert Addendum; however, the Company will treat Evaluator Content that refers to an identified Student as confidential educational information and will disclose it only as permitted under this Agreement or by law, by the Student’s consent, or by the institution.

9. Takedown; Safety; Error Correction. The Company may limit, hide, or remove Student Submissions that appear unlawful, infringing, harassing, unsafe, or submitted in error, or in response to a valid legal request. Students (or schools for school-managed accounts) may request review through the Report Content/DMCA channel. Removal or hiding does not affect previously made lawful disclosures or transcript artifacts.

10. Duration; Effect of Account Changes. The license in Section 5.2 continues for as long as the Student Submission or Published Work is hosted on the Platform or forms part of a Published Work or credential record, and for a reasonable archival period thereafter for audit, security, dispute resolution, and legal compliance. For clarity, with respect to any Published Work and related credential/transcript record, the license continues for as long as the Published Work remains on the Platform and ends prospectively upon removal under Section 3.2 of this Student Addendum, subject to the archival retention described there and to limited takedown as expressly permitted under this Agreement (e.g., unlawful content, infringement, safety concerns, or legal compliance). Deleting an account or changing profile/metadata settings operates prospectively and does not require retrieval of copies already lawfully accessed, cached, logged, or disclosed to recipients.

11. Representations and Warranties by Student. Students represent and warrant that they: (i) own or have sufficient rights to the Student Submissions; (ii) the Student Submissions do not infringe or misappropriate third-party rights or contain unlawful content; and (iii) they have obtained all required permissions and consents for any third-party materials included in their Student Submissions.

12. Conflicts; Priority. If a conflict exists between this Section 5 and a written agreement with a participating educational agency covering education records, that agreement will control for those records to the extent of the conflict.

6. Conduct & Academic Integrity

1. Core obligation. You must do your own work and act honestly. Cheating, plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, or use of a fraudulent identity is prohibited.

2. What you may not do (examples). You will not:

   1. submit work that is not your own or that uses third-party content without proper attribution/permission;

   2. buy, sell, trade, or solicit assignments, evaluations, Publication Decisions, or Published Works;

   3. collude on individual work beyond what a rubric explicitly allows;

   4. fabricate/falsify data, citations, results, time logs, or participation;

   5. impersonate any person or misstate authorship, credentials, or affiliations;

   6. submit the same work for multiple Publications unless the rubric allows it and you clearly disclose the reuse.

3. Use of AI and external tools (Channel Rules). The permissibility of generative AI and other external tools is determined by the applicable Editor and the rubric and submission requirements for the relevant Channel. Channel Editors are responsible for specifying whether, and under what conditions, AI or other tool assistance is permitted, including any disclosure requirements. You are responsible for complying with the applicable Channel’s rules. If the Channel’s rubric or requirements prohibit AI/tool use, then use of such tools may constitute academic misconduct under that Channel’s policies and may result in rejection, removal from consideration, or other consequences determined by the Channel Editor.

4. Content standards & third-party privacy. Do not upload unlawful, infringing, harassing, hateful, or sexually explicit content. Do not include another person’s personal information (e.g., full name, contact details, IDs, health/education records) without permission or a valid legal basis.

5. Consequences. HSCred may, in its discretion and/or at a Channel Editor’s direction, void, hide, retract, flag, annotate, or otherwise restrict access to Published Works; invalidate scores; limit features; or suspend/terminate your account. HSCred may also notify affected Channel Editors or relevant Experts/Guides. Records relevant to suspected misconduct may be retained for investigation and prevention.

6. Review process & cooperation. HSCred may place a Published Work or submission under review while investigating. You must cooperate, which may include providing sources, drafts, datasets, or tool-use disclosures. Where the issue concerns academic judgment, rubric application, or Publication Decisions, HSCred may defer to the Channel Editor’s process and implement the Channel Editor’s outcome.

7. Appeals (Students). Appeals of Publication Decisions and academic judgments are handled by the applicable Channel Editor under its Channel policies (if any). HSCred may provide logs or process support but does not adjudicate academic appeals. If HSCred imposes an account-level enforcement action (e.g., suspension for policy violations), you may request one appeal within ten (10) days of notice, with your explanation and supporting materials; HSCred’s decision on account-level enforcement is final.

7. Access & Data Requests

Requests to access, correct, export, or delete your account information should be made using the Platform’s tools (if available) or by contacting HSCred as described in the Privacy Policy. Student-directed sharing controls allow you to determine what non-public information (if any) you disclose to third parties.

2. Guide/Channel Editor/Expert Addendum

This Guide/Channel Editor/Expert Addendum (“Guide/Channel Editor/Expert Addendum”) is part of the Agreement and applies when you act as a reviewer, evaluator, mentor, or similar role on the Platform. Capitalized terms not defined here have the meanings in the Master Terms.

1. Eligibility & Role

1. Eligibility. You must be 18 years or older, have legal capacity to contract, and maintain an active account in good standing. Additional eligibility criteria may apply by role. Guides must (i) be an educator currently employed by, or formally affiliated with, a secondary school — or a postsecondary institution or program that supervises secondary-school students’ academic work (for example, a dual-enrollment or college-access program) — and (ii) register using an email address issued by that school, institution, or program and matching HSCred’s database of verified institutions, or complete another verification method approved in writing by HSCred. Experts and Channel Editors affiliated with an Institution Channel must register using an email address issued by that university (or another method approved in writing by HSCred and the Institution).

2. Onboarding. Access to evaluator features may require completion of onboarding steps, which can include identity verification, tax forms, acceptance of this Guide/Channel Editor/Expert Addendum and the Evaluator Code of Conduct, and, where applicable, a background check.

3. Roles.

   1. Guide. A Guide provides formative, non-scoring support (e.g., comments, coaching, and rubric interpretation) on Student submissions. Guides do not make Publication Decisions, finalize Publications, or create official evaluation records; however, Guides may be required to (i) certify that they have provided the required feedback and revision cycles (at least two cycles of feedback and revision) and that, to the best of their knowledge, the Student’s submission reflects the Student’s own original work, and (ii) provide preliminary or estimated rubric scores or scoring indicators as part of the submission workflow, which may be used for calibration and to identify potential future Expert candidates. For purposes of this Agreement, “two cycles of feedback and revision” means that (i) the Guide provides substantive feedback on a draft or equivalent work product, (ii) the Student revises in response, and (iii) the Guide reviews and provides a second round of substantive feedback followed by a further Student revision.

   2. Channel Editor. A Channel Editor administers a Channel on behalf of HSCred or, if applicable, the Verified Institution, including setting rubrics and evaluation expectations, and may assign Experts to an Expert Panel as permitted by the Institution.

   3. Expert. An Expert performs summative evaluations, including applying rubrics, assigning scores, and issuing or recommending credential decisions, which form part of the official evaluation record. Users may not perform Expert actions unless expressly designated as an Expert by HSCred, the Channel Editor, or the participating Verified Institution) and after completing any required onboarding.

4. Deadlines; Reassignment; Payment Conditions.

   1. Deadlines. Where an Expert accepts or is assigned an evaluation, the Expert must complete and submit the evaluation through the Platform by the applicable deadline communicated in the Platform or by the Channel Editor (the “Evaluation Deadline”).

   2. Condition to payment. Payment is earned only upon timely completion and submission of the evaluation in accordance with the applicable rubric and the Platform’s requirements. If an Expert does not submit a completed evaluation by the Evaluation Deadline, the Expert will not be paid for that evaluation, unless HSCred (and/or Channel Editor) approves an extension in advance in writing or through Platform controls.

   3. Reassignment. If an evaluation is not completed by the Evaluation Deadline (or if the Expert becomes unavailable), the Channel Editor may reassign the evaluation to another Expert to preserve workflow timing and quality. The Channel Editor is responsible for managing such reassignment, and HSCred may provide tooling and audit trails to facilitate it.

   4. Repeated missed deadlines. Repeated failure to meet Evaluation Deadlines may result in reduced assignments, removal from Expert Panels, suspension of evaluator privileges, or termination of the Expert’s account, in HSCred’s reasonable discretion.

   5. No liability for delays. HSCred is not liable for delays in evaluation or publication resulting from an Expert’s failure to timely complete evaluations, and the relevant Institution remains responsible for Channel-level timing expectations.

   6. Reserved time. Where an Expert’s availability was reserved for a scheduled evaluation and the Student’s submission was not certified by the deadline, the Expert is compensated for the reserved evaluation slot as stated in the Platform’s evaluator compensation schedule.

2. Confidentiality

1. Confidentiality of Platform Information. You will keep confidential and not disclose any non-public information you access through the Platform, including Student information, Student Submissions not publicly accessible within the Platform, rubric materials, evaluation materials, Channel criteria, and any non-public information relating to Channels or their administration (“Confidential Information”). You will protect Confidential Information using at least reasonable care and will use it only as necessary to perform your role on the Platform.

2. No offline copying or reuse. Except as expressly permitted below, you will not download, retain, screenshot, record, print, or otherwise copy identifiable Student information or Student Submissions outside the Platform, nor reuse or redistribute such information.

   1. Guides. Guides may access and use Student Submissions and related Student information outside the Platform solely to provide instructional support to the applicable Student (e.g., coaching, feedback, preparation, and submission support), provided that Guides: (i) limit offline access to the minimum necessary; (ii) do not share such information with any third party except as permitted under subclause (iv) below; (iii) store any offline copies securely and restrict access to authorized personnel; and (iv) may retain and use such information to the extent required or expressly permitted by applicable law and the Guide’s employer policies (including gradebook documentation, record retention, audits, and district/school paperwork), and otherwise will delete or de-identify offline copies when no longer needed for the support purpose or required retention. Nothing in this Agreement expands or limits a school’s obligations or rights under its own policies or applicable law; Guides remain responsible for compliance with those requirements.

   2. Experts and Channel Editors. Experts and Channel Editors may not retain or use identifiable Student information or Student Submissions outside the Platform, except (i) through Platform functionality expressly enabled by HSCred for their role, (ii) with express written authorization from HSCred and the applicable Institution, or (iii) as required by law.

   3. General exceptions. Any user may copy or disclose information where required by law, or where expressly permitted through Platform functionality and the applicable consent settings.

3. Security incident reporting. You will promptly notify HSCred of any suspected or actual unauthorized access to, or disclosure of, Confidential Information and will reasonably cooperate with HSCred’s investigation and remediation efforts.

3. Conflict of Interest; Disclosure; Code of Conduct; Disputes

1. Expert Conflicts. As an Expert, you must disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest (including family relationships; current or former supervisory relationships; financial interests; employment or admissions roles; or any personal relationship with a submitting Student, the Student’s Guide, or the Student’s school). You may not evaluate a submission (or serve on an Expert Panel) for any Student where you have a personal connection to the Student, the Student’s school, or any personnel involved in the Student’s submission process. You must promptly update disclosures if circumstances change and recuse yourself when appropriate or when instructed by HSCred or the Channel Editor.

2. Guide/Channel Editor Affiliation and Eligibility Updates. As a Guide or Channel Editor, you must promptly update your account information and notify HSCred (or update through the Platform, if available) if any information relevant to your eligibility or professional affiliation changes, including if you no longer work for a school or institution, your employer or role changes, or the academic or employment affiliation shown on your profile becomes inaccurate. HSCred may require re-verification of eligibility, adjust your role-based permissions (including removing Guide or Channel Editor access), or suspend or terminate your account if we reasonably determine that your eligibility criteria are no longer satisfied or your affiliation information is inaccurate or misleading.

3. Conduct. You agree to the following Code of Conduct:

   1. Professional & unbiased. Perform fair, independent evaluations; avoid favoritism and bias; disclose/recuse per Section 3.1.

   2. Confidentiality. Treat Student information as confidential and use it only for evaluation within the Platform; no downloading, screenshotting, or redisclosure outside HSCred without written authorization.

   3. Student safety. The Platform is designed to support Students in preparing submissions and participating in Channels, and certain interactions may occur outside the Platform. Guides may communicate with Students off-platform (including by email, phone, video conferencing, messaging platforms, or in-person) for the purpose of supporting Students’ academic development and preparation of submissions.

      Experts and Channel Editors may not engage in off-platform private contact with Student users and may not request or share personal contact details with such users, except as expressly authorized in writing by the Institution responsible for the applicable Channel and HSCred for a defined program.

      Guides are solely responsible for ensuring that any off-platform communications with Students comply with (i) applicable law, (ii) the Student’s school or program policies (if any), and (iii) appropriate safeguarding practices. Guides must not engage in conduct that is abusive, harassing, exploitative, sexual, or otherwise inappropriate; must not solicit or request sensitive personal information from Students; and must immediately report to HSCred any suspected child safety issue, unlawful conduct, or credible threat of harm encountered in connection with the Platform.

   4. Respectful communication. No harassment, discrimination, or abusive language; provide constructive, professional feedback.

   5. No gifts/inducements. Do not solicit, accept, or offer anything of value related to evaluations or outcomes.

   6. Rubric fidelity & timeliness. Follow rubric instructions, meet deadlines, and document scoring rationale when requested.

   7. Tool use. Use only permitted tools; disclose any AI/automation assistance if required by rubric; never upload Student content to external tools/services without authorization.

   8. Security. Use only your assigned account, keep credentials confidential, enable MFA if required, and promptly report suspected breaches.

   9. Data minimization. Access only records necessary for assignments; do not retain copies after evaluation; comply with HSCred deletion/return instructions.

   10. Cooperation. Cooperate with HSCred quality checks, audits, and investigations; provide information needed to verify compliance.

4. No Monitoring; Not a Party to Off-Platform Interactions

HSCred does not control, monitor, or assume responsibility for off-platform communications between Guides and Students. HSCred is not a party to any off-platform relationship or interaction and has no obligation to supervise, record, or review off-platform communications, except to the extent required by applicable law or as expressly stated in this Agreement.

5. Channel Editors Responsibility; Disputes

Editors are responsible for (i) setting Channel criteria and rubrics, (ii) selecting and training Channel Experts, (iii) administering the Expert Panel process, and (iv) handling academic disputes relating to Publication Decisions for their Channels. To the maximum extent permitted by law, disputes regarding academic evaluation, Publication Decisions, or Channel standards are between the Editor and the relevant Experts (and/or the Student as applicable), and not HSCred. HSCred may provide tooling, logs, and process support but does not serve as the adjudicator of academic disputes.

6. Enforcement

HSCred may limit, suspend, or remove access for violations of this Agreement and, where appropriate, notify participating institutions.

7. IP in Evaluations

1. Evaluator Content. Your evaluation notes, rubric selections, narrative feedback, tags, and scores (“Evaluator Content”) are, upon creation, assigned to HSCred; where assignment is not permitted, you grant HSCred a perpetual, worldwide, irrevocable, royalty-free, transferable license (with rights to sublicense to service providers and participating institutions) to use, host, reproduce, display, adapt, analyze, and distribute Evaluator Content to: (i) operate the Platform; (ii) provide, audit, and improve evaluation quality; (iii) support institutional review/admissions workflows; and (iv) demonstrate process integrity (including use of anonymized or de-identified excerpts).

2. Student Submissions. This Section does not transfer ownership of Student Submissions, which remain governed by the Student Data & IP section of the Student Addendum and the Master Terms.

8. Payment & Taxes

1. Payouts. If your role is compensated, payment is made either (a) through HSCred’s designated payout provider, or (b) directly by the Sponsor that funds evaluations for the applicable Channel or program, as stated during your onboarding or in the Platform. You authorize deposits and, if necessary, correcting entries in accordance with the Agreement and the applicable provider terms. In every case you act as an independent contractor of the paying party.

2. Prerequisites. HSCred may require completed tax forms (e.g., W-9 / W-8BEN) and identity verification before releasing payments.

3. Taxes. You are responsible for all taxes due on your compensation. The paying party (HSCred, its payout provider, or the applicable Sponsor) is responsible for collecting required tax forms before releasing payment and may issue informational tax forms (e.g., 1099-NEC) where required.

4. No employment. Nothing in this Addendum creates an employment or agency relationship; you act as an independent contractor with no authority to bind HSCred.

9. Safeguarding & Background Checks

1. Safeguarding. You will follow applicable child-safeguarding and professional-standards policies, including those of participating institutions.

2. Checks & training. Where required by a partner or law, your access may be conditioned on passing a background check and completing safeguarding training. HSCred may limit, suspend, or revoke access if requirements are not met.

10. Security; Use of the Platform

1. Platform-only work. As an Expert, perform all evaluation activities within the Platform. Do not attempt to circumvent technical controls, scrape data, or use automated tools that interfere with the service.

2. Account security. Keep your credentials confidential, use only your assigned account, and enable (if applicable) any required MFA. You are responsible for activity under your account and must promptly report suspected compromise.

11. Records & QA

HSCred may retain and review Evaluator Content and related logs for quality assurance, calibration, research, audit, and dispute resolution, subject to confidentiality obligations.

12. Downloads; Export Controls

Downloading or exporting Published Works (including minted publications, publication files, or channel-level exports) is permitted only for the Verified Institution that owns or administers the applicable Channel, through its authorized Channel Editors, and only via Platform-enabled functionality. No other users (including Guides or Experts) may download or export Published Works unless expressly enabled by the Verified Institution and HSCred in writing. Nothing in this Section limits a Student’s right to download or export the Student’s own Student Submissions and Published Works; exported copies may carry watermarks and attribution.

13. Term; Suspension; Removal

1. Term. Your status as a Guide, Channel Editor, and/or Expert begins upon HSCred’s approval (and, where applicable, the Channel Editor’s authorization for the relevant role) and continues until the earliest of: (a) your resignation from the applicable role; (b) HSCred suspends or removes your role access under this Guide/Channel Editor/Expert Addendum or the Agreement; (c) you no longer meet the eligibility criteria for the role (including, for Guides, if you are no longer employed by or affiliated with the applicable school as required by the Platform’s eligibility rules); (d) for Experts and Channel Editors, you are no longer authorized or assigned by the applicable Channel Editor for that role; or (e) ended by HSCred in accordance with this Agreement. You agree to promptly update your affiliation and eligibility information as required by this Addendum and the Platform.

2. Suspension/Removal. HSCred may limit, suspend, or remove your Guide/Expert access, with or without notice, if we reasonably determine that there is: (a) a breach of this Guide/Channel Editor/Expert Addendum , the Agreement, or applicable law; (b) failure to meet or maintain eligibility/onboarding requirements (e.g., identity, tax forms, background check, training, calibration, as well as continued employment/affiliation for Guides and continued Channel Editor/Institution authorization for Experts/Channel Editor); (c) an institutional request or policy conflict; (d) a security, privacy, or legal risk; or (e) concerns regarding evaluation integrity, bias, or misconduct.

3. Notice; Institutional Context. Where commercially reasonable (and except in emergencies), HSCred will provide notice of suspension/removal. If the activity involves a school-managed workflow, HSCred may notify the participating institution and follow its direction.

4. Effect of Suspension/Removal. During suspension or after removal you must cease all Guide/Expert activities. Access to evaluator tools, queues, and exports will be disabled. This does not limit HSCred’s ability to retain and review Evaluator Content and related logs for quality assurance, calibration, audit, dispute resolution, or legal compliance.

5. Reinstatement. Reinstatement (if any) may require you to cure the issue(s), complete or refresh onboarding requirements, and accept any updated terms or policies.

6. Survival. The following provisions of this Guide/Channel Editor/Expert Addendum survive any termination, suspension, or removal to the extent applicable: Section 2 (Confidentiality; “School Official”), Section 3 (Conflict of Interest; Code of Conduct), Section 4 (IP in Evaluations), Section 5 (Payment & Taxes), Section 6 (Safeguarding & Background Checks), Section 7 (Security; Use of the Platform), and Section 8 (Records & QA), as well as any other provisions that by their nature should survive.

14. Representations; Compliance

1. Representations. You represent and warrant that:

   1. you will comply with this Guide/Channel Editor/Expert Addendum, the Master Terms, the Evaluator Code of Conduct, and all applicable laws and institutional policies (including FERPA when acting as a school official);

   2. you will not misuse, retain, or redisclose education records or other confidential information except as expressly permitted by the applicable institution or by law;

   3. you hold and will maintain all permissions, qualifications, and authorizations required for your role (including any licenses or approvals required by a participating institution);

   4. the information you provide in onboarding and while using the Platform is true, accurate, and complete; and

   5. your participation does not create a prohibited conflict of interest, and any potential conflicts will be disclosed in accordance with Section 3 of this Guide/Channel Editor/Expert Addendum.

2. Ongoing compliance; notice of changes. You will promptly notify HSCred (and, if applicable, the participating institution) if: (i) any representation in section 11.1 of this Guide/Channel Editor/Expert Addendum becomes inaccurate; (ii) you are the subject of an investigation or restriction that could affect your eligibility (e.g., loss of required clearance, background-check failure, institutional bar); or (iii) you become aware of any suspected breach, unauthorized access, or disclosure involving Student information.

3. Cooperation and audit. You will cooperate with reasonable HSCred or institutional requests to verify compliance (including participation in quality checks, calibration reviews, or investigations) and will provide information reasonably necessary to assess adherence to this Addendum, the Master Terms, and applicable policies.

4. Consequences. Failure to comply with this Section 11 may result in limitation, suspension, or removal of Guide/Expert access under Section 10, and, where appropriate, notification to participating institutions or authorities, without limiting other remedies available at law or in equity.

3. Partner Addendum

This Partner Addendum (“Partner Addendum”) is part of the Agreement and applies when you: (a) act on behalf of a secondary school, postsecondary institution, or other organization that uses the Platform (an “Institutional Partner”), or (b) act in your individual capacity as an academic or professional who creates or administers a Channel (an “Individual Partner”) (each Institutional Partner and Individual Partner, a “Partner”). Capitalized terms not defined here have the meanings in the Master Terms.

For clarity, an Individual Partner’s use of an academic or employment affiliation is for identification purposes only and does not imply endorsement or participation by the affiliated institution.

1. Authority; Accounts

1. Authority to bind.

   1. Institutional Partners. The individual creating or administering an Institutional Partner account represents and warrants that they are duly authorized to bind the Institutional Partner to this Agreement and to provision and manage user access on its behalf.

   2. Individual Partners. An Individual Partner represents and warrants that they have full right, authority, and capacity to enter into this Agreement on their own behalf.

2. Admin responsibilities (Institutional Partners only). This Section applies only if the Partner is an Institution that maintains an organization account with administrative controls for multiple users (e.g., a Verified Institution). In that case, the Institutional Partner will: (a) assign least-privilege roles to staff; (b) keep admin credentials secure; (c) promptly remove access for departed or unauthorized personnel; and (d) maintain accurate organization profile and contact information (including a privacy/security contact).

3. Compliance with policies. Partner users will comply with the Master Terms, this Partner Addendum, and applicable Partner policies (including safeguarding policies for minors and academic integrity policies). Institutional Partners are responsible for ensuring their staff’s compliance.

4. Channel management and role assignment. Where the Partner creates or administers a Channel, the Partner (or its designated representative) is responsible for appointing and managing Channel Editors and Experts and ensuring that any Experts/Channel Editors act within the scope of their authorization and in accordance with the Platform’s requirements.

2. FERPA Consideration

1. Student-Initiated Accounts; Student-Directed Sharing. At this time, student accounts are created and managed directly by Students (and not provisioned by schools through rostering or SSO). Universities and other institutions may view non-public Student information (including personal metadata and other personally identifiable information beyond the audio/video content available to logged-in users) only to the extent a Student affirmatively chooses to share it through the Platform’s sharing tools and consents.

2. Institutional Agreements. If HSCred later enters into a written agreement with a school, district, or other educational institution under which HSCred processes student data on behalf of that institution and such data constitutes “education records” under FERPA, the parties will address FERPA and any other applicable education privacy requirements in a separate written addendum to the extent applicable.

3. New York Education Law § 2-d / Part 121 (if applicable)

If HSCred later enters into a written agreement with a New York public K–12 educational agency under which HSCred receives or processes student personally identifiable information (“Student PII”) as a third-party contractor subject to New York Education Law §2-d and 8 NYCRR Part 121, the parties will address those requirements in a separate written addendum to the extent applicable.

4. Content, Channels, and Academic Governance

1. Channel standards and responsibility. Where a Partner owns or administers a Channel, the Partner is responsible for: (a) establishing the Channel’s rubric, criteria, and submission requirements; (b) selecting and supervising Channel Editors and Experts; (c) administering the Expert Panel process; and (d) maintaining any Channel-level policies and procedures (including conflicts-of-interest and safeguarding procedures).

2. Individual capacity; no institutional agency (unless Verified Institution). Channel Editors and Experts participate in their individual capacities unless the relevant institution has entered into a separate written agreement with HSCred (e.g., as a Verified Institution) providing for institutional participation and branding. Individual Partners are not authorized to bind or represent any institution unless they represent that they have separate written authority from that institution.

3. Academic disputes. To the maximum extent permitted by law, disputes regarding academic judgment, evaluation criteria, rubric scoring, Publication Decisions, or Channel standards are matters between the Partner (as Channel manager) and the relevant Guides/Experts and/or the Student (as applicable), and not HSCred. HSCred may provide tooling, logs, audit trails, and process support but does not serve as the academic adjudicator. HSCred does not guarantee any Publication Decision, acceptance, rubric outcome, or evaluation result and is not responsible for appeals of academic judgments.

4. Evaluations and disclosures (scores only by default). By default, disclosures or exports facilitated through the Platform will include rubric scores and related Publication Decisions, but will not include narrative evaluator comments.

5. Verified Institutions; Institutional Branding

1. No implied endorsement. References to an institution (including through user affiliations) are for identification purposes only and do not imply endorsement, sponsorship, partnership, or formal participation by the institution, unless the institution is a Verified Institution under a separate written agreement with HSCred.

2. Name/logo use; Verified Institution agreement required. Except as expressly permitted in a separate written agreement with HSCred (e.g., a Verified Institution agreement), HSCred will not display an institution’s logos, seals, trademarks, or other branding (collectively, “Institutional Marks”) or use an institution’s name in a manner that implies endorsement, sponsorship, or formal institutional participation, including in public-facing materials or in connection with any Channel or Published Work. If the Partner enters into a Verified Institution agreement, the parties will document permitted uses of Institutional Marks, placement, approvals, term, and withdrawal rights in that separate agreement.

3. Pre-Verification Institution Profiles; HSCred-Managed Institution Role. Prior to an institution becoming a Verified Institution, HSCred may create or display an institution page/profile, affiliation tag, or institution role designation on the Platform (an “Institution Profile”) for identification and discovery purposes. Institution Profiles are administered by HSCred and do not represent that the institution has approved, endorsed, sponsored, or formally participates in the Platform. Individuals (including professors) may self-register and request association with an Institution Profile as a Channel Editor. HSCred controls whether to approve, deny, or revoke such association in its discretion and may require reasonable proof of affiliation (e.g., verification of an institutional email domain, profile validation, or other documentation). Unless and until the institution enters into a separate written agreement with HSCred as a Verified Institution, (i) the institution does not control the Institution Profile or any Channels created by individuals associated with it, and (ii) such individuals act solely in their individual capacities.

4. Affiliation references. HSCred may display an individual user’s academic or employment affiliation (e.g., “Professor, [Institution Name]”) as part of the user’s profile or reviewer attribution. Such affiliation references are for identification only and do not imply institutional endorsement.

5. Brand integrity. Where HSCred is authorized to use any Institutional Marks under a separate written agreement, HSCred will use such Institutional Marks in accordance with the Partner’s reasonable brand guidelines, will not materially modify them without approval, and will not use them in any misleading, disparaging, or unlawful manner.

6. Representations. If the Partner provides any branding assets or authorizes any use of Institutional Marks under a separate written agreement, it represents that it owns or controls the rights necessary to grant such permission.

7. Withdrawal, removal requests. Any withdrawal or removal of Institutional Marks will be handled as set forth in the applicable Verified Institution agreement. Removal obligations apply prospectively and do not require HSCred to recall or delete materials already lawfully distributed or accessed by third parties, except where required by law.

6. Disclosures to Universities and Other Recipients

1. Student-directed disclosures. Disclosures of non-public Student information to universities and other recipients are Student-directed. A Student may authorize disclosure through the Platform’s sharing tools and consents, including selecting the recipient(s) and the categories of information to be shared. The Partner will not have access to or control over Student-directed disclosures except to the extent the Partner manages the Channel and is expressly enabled to receive channel-level analytics or outputs by HSCred and the Student’s settings.

2. Tools & logging. HSCred will provide tools to: (a) select record categories (e.g., Published Work page link, audio/video, and rubric scores); (b) deliver disclosures via secure views/exports; and (c) maintain an audit log that records the recipient, timestamp, and categories disclosed.

3. Minimum necessary. HSCred will support the application of a minimum-necessary principle to disclosures. Unless expressly authorized by the Student (or required by law), HSCred will not include Social Security numbers, government identifiers, or similar high-risk identifiers in disclosures.

4. Recipient use. Access to Published Works (including any associated Published Work page links, audio/video content, and related rubric scores or Publication Decisions) that is facilitated through HSCred is provided solely for the recipient’s admissions/enrollment review (or other specified institutional review purpose) and may not be used for marketing, advertising, or resale. HSCred may apply watermarks, recipient identifiers, access controls, and secure-link controls to Published Works and any associated disclosures to deter unauthorized redistribution and to maintain an audit trail.

7. Security; Admin Controls

1. Security program. HSCred maintains an information security program appropriate to the nature and sensitivity of the data processed, including: (a) administrative, technical, and physical safeguards; (b) encryption in transit and at rest; (c) access controls and multi-factor authentication for privileged access; (d) logging and monitoring; (e) vulnerability management; and (f) incident response procedures with defined roles and timelines.

2. Identity & access management. The Partner will use provided admin tools to (a) enforce least-privilege role assignments; (b) provision and deprovision users promptly (including removing access for personnel who no longer require access); and (c) review access logs and admin actions periodically. If single sign-on or other identity integrations are enabled for the Partner in the future, the Partner is responsible for configuration and access controls for such integrations.

3. Data lifecycle. HSCred will offer mechanisms, subject to the Agreement and Platform functionality, for export, return, and deletion of Partner-managed information. For clarity, certain Platform content and records (including Published Works and related audit logs) may be retained and remain accessible as described in the Agreement even if an account is terminated or certain information is deleted. HSCred may retain limited system logs, backups, and security records for security, audit, and legal compliance for a reasonable period.

4. Interoperability. Where enabled, HSCred may interoperate with Partner systems or third-party services (e.g., identity providers, learning platforms, or storage systems). The Partner is responsible for the security and accuracy of data exchanged via such integrations and any access granted thereby.

8. Downloads; Export Controls

Downloading, exporting, or otherwise extracting any Published Work (including any “minted” publication files, publication packets, or channel-level exports) is permitted only for a Verified Institution (acting through its authorized Channel Editors) and only via Platform functionality enabled by HSCred. Individual Channel Editors acting in their personal capacity may administer Channels and review submissions within the Platform, but may not download, export, or otherwise extract Published Works for offline use, except where HSCred expressly enables such functionality in writing for a defined program or feature. No other users (including Students, Guides, Experts, or third parties) may download, export, scrape, record, or otherwise extract Published Works. Any attempted circumvention of Platform export controls is prohibited. Nothing in this Section limits a Student’s right to download or export the Student’s own Student Submissions and Published Works; exported copies may carry watermarks and attribution.