Transparency
Fee philosophy, fiscal sponsor path, impact reporting, data sources, and how we protect trust for DMV Community Heroes.
0% Mandatory Platform Fee — Optional Tip Only
100% of every gift goes to the classroom or exact items chosen. At every checkout we show a clear, itemized breakdown before you confirm:
The optional tip (suggested ~5% or custom; default editable to $0 or any amount) helps fund operations, product, and reaching more classrooms. It is never required. No dark patterns. This is a deliberate trust-building and differentiation choice aligned with our warm, hopeful, radically transparent voice.
Fiscal Sponsor Path
ClassroomSponsors, LLC is a for-profit Virginia entity. We are not a 501(c)(3). We are launching via a reputable fiscal sponsor to provide immediate tax-deductible donation capability, handle multi-state charitable solicitation registration/compliance, and give credibility while we focus on the product and DMV community.
Donor receipts will clearly name the fiscal sponsor as the charitable recipient. Prominent notices appear at checkout and in confirmations. We integrate sponsor requirements into verification, reporting, fund handling, and communications once an agreement is executed. Material changes communicated promptly. We make no tax advice. Consult your own advisor.
Prioritized Sponsors (from Phase 0 Research)
Education/youth focus, nationwide registration — top DMV priority.
6,500+ projects, tech-forward, debit cards, real-time transparency. Outstanding for our visualization-heavy model.
Strong local DMV credibility for pilot.
Edtech and teacher support alignment.
Full list + outreach templates in legal/FISCAL_SPONSOR_RESEARCH.md and FISCAL_SPONSOR_PITCH.md. Recommended first batch: Hack Club Bank, Players Philanthropy Fund, Greater Washington Community Foundation. Always reconfirm current fees/terms directly.
Key Risks & Mitigations
Fiscal sponsor with nationwide registration is primary bridge. Clear “processed through sponsor” disclosures everywhere. Counsel opinion letter required pre-launch.
Stripe Connect infrastructure + mandatory W-9 before payouts. Clear ToS responsibilities. Sponsor/processor ownership confirmed with counsel + CPA.
NCES public data only. No student PII by design. Tiered verification with redaction + limited retention target + immutable audit. Easy delete/export/opt-out tools from day one. DPA with sponsor.
Conspicuous disclaimers repeated in ToS, checkout, onboarding, receipts: verification = eligibility only; teacher sole responsibility post-disbursement; no guarantees. Strong verification + insurance (GL + E&O).
See full Risk Register (10 prioritized risks + monitoring + $1,500–4,000 Phase 0 budget) in legal/RISK_REGISTER.md and the Legal hub.
Impact Reporting & Data Sources
How Impact Is Shown
Opt-in Community Heroes leaderboards, personal My Impact dashboards, d3-powered timelines/ripples/heatmaps, streaks, badges, and classroom stories — all driven by real donations + voluntary teacher updates. Privacy-first: strong defaults and granular controls (Anonymous / Proud Parent / hidden). “X other heroes chose privately.” Changes are retroactive where technically possible. Purely social/impact framing — no financial promises or investment language.
Data Sources & Provenance (Radical Transparency)
- School data (discovery, profiles, filters): Public NCES CCD (public schools) and PSS (private schools) datasets. Exactly 3,528 real K-12 schools in the DMV pilot region (VA + DC + MD). Every classroom record cross-referenced to real NCES ncessch. Enriched only for fuzzy search, grade/subject/district/Title I proxies, charter status. Public domain data — we attribute sources and do not imply endorsement.
- Demo / preview / validation data: Generated reproducibly via scripts/generate_dmv_sample_data.py and data/sample-dmv/ outputs (55 realistic classrooms, ~985 donations totaling ~$52k in demo batches, Markdown profiles with needs + impact stories). Synthetic for Phase 0 founder testing, design handoff, and closed demos only. Not real donor money.
- Live production data (post-launch): Only what users voluntarily provide + consented opt-ins (donations, visibility choices, teacher updates). Verification artifacts (redacted) handled per Privacy Policy with human review + target limited retention. Full immutable audit for compliance.
Classroom pages, leaderboards, and My Impact load live data from Supabase (see supabase/seed/003_classrooms_prod.sql and data/sample-dmv/CANONICAL_BATCH.md). NCES school search uses lib/nces.ts.
Teacher Data Control
Verified teachers control their public profile, needs, voluntary stories/photos, and visibility of impact. They receive full payout control after disbursement (subject to school policies they must follow). Easy rights tools apply (export, update, delete account with retention explanation). Verification status and audit decisions are logged immutably for trust and sponsor requirements but raw sensitive docs are minimized and targeted for deletion.
Last updated: May 2026 (Initial public version)
Synthesized faithfully from legal/FISCAL_SPONSOR_RESEARCH.md, RISK_REGISTER.md, ToS.md §4/§6, Privacy.md, LEGAL_DRAFTS_README.md, app/lib data utilities, and docs/phase0/ execution records (NCES ETL, sample generator provenance). All 0% fee language, pre-sponsor fiscal accuracy, verification disclaimers, NCES-only scoping, and opt-in Community Heroes commitments preserved exactly as drafted.
Final production transparency page will include live fiscal sponsor name/logo (once signed), actual fee schedule exhibit, audited impact methodology notes, and updated data processing records. Contact: hello@classroomsponsors.com. See full Legal & Trust (tabbed), Terms, and Privacy Policy.
DMV Pilot • 3,528 real NCES schools • 0% mandatory fees • 100% transparent • Community Heroes