Welcome to Future Engineers. Future Engineers provides educational innovation challenges which offer the opportunity for users to submit and view creative solutions in a public challenge gallery and the further possibility to compete to win prizes. The Future Engineers platform operates for the purpose of advancing science, technology, engineering, art, and design education. These Terms of Service (“Terms” or “Agreement”) are an agreement between you (“you” or “user”) and Future Engineers LLC (“Future Engineers” or “we” or “us”).
By using this website and other websites owned by Future Engineers (the "Sites"), any applications or mobile websites ("Apps"), and any of our service available through the Sites and Apps ("Services") (collectively, the Site, Apps, and Services shall be referred to as the "Platform"), you agree to read, comply with, and be legally bound by: (i) these Terms, (ii) Future Engineers' Privacy Policy: https://www.futureengineers.org/pdfs/privacypolicy.pdf, (iii) all applicable Challenge or promotion rules and restrictions ("Challenge Rules") and the general Official Rules: https://www.futureengineers.org/pdfs/officialrules.pdf ("Official Rules" or "General Rules"), and (iv) all applicable laws and regulations. If you do not read and agree to the Terms, you may not use the Platform.
If you are a teacher or other individual in a K-12 educational institution who has entered into this Agreement, you understand that you are doing so on behalf of your institution, and you represent that you have the authority to bind that institution to this Agreement. You further represent that you have the right to upload all data that you provide on behalf of yourself and, where applicable, your employees, your institution, students, and their parents or legal guardians.
1. ACCEPTANCE OF TERMS
Future Engineers is pleased to provide the Platform conditioned upon your acceptance, without modification, of the terms, conditions and notices comprising the Terms.
The Terms may be updated and modified by Future Engineers from time to time. By using the Platform after any modification of the Terms, you agree to be bound by such modification(s). If we make material changes to the Terms, we will provide you with 30 days prior notice of such changes using the email address listed in your account registration. If the material change to these Terms involves data that was collected from you prior to the notification, we will request your affirmative consent to the changes. If you do not consent to the changes, or if you are under the age of 18 and either your parent, guardian, or teacher fail to affirmatively consent to the material changes, you will not be allowed to use the Platform after the changes become effective, unless and until the requisite consent is affirmatively provided.
You can review the most current version of the Terms at any time by clicking on the terms and conditions link from any page on the Platform.
2. ELIGIBILITY
The Platform and any services we offer are only available to residents of the United States who are at least 18 years of age or who otherwise have express permission from a parent or guardian to use the Platform or are using the Platform in connection with a classroom activity directed by a teacher in a K-12 institution from which an authorized individual has agreed to these Terms.
BY USING THE PLATFORM AND/OR SERVICES, YOU ARE AGREE TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE AGREEMENT AND WARRANT AND REPRESENT THAT YOU ARE AT LEAST 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OTHERWISE HAVE EXPRESS CONSENT FROM A PARENT OR GUARDIAN TO USE THE PLATFORM OR ARE USING THE PLATFORM IN CONNECTION WITH A CLASSROOM ACTIVITY DIRECTED BY A TEACHER WHO HAS AGREED TO THESE TERMS. USE OF THE PLATFORM AND OUR SERVICES BY ANYONE WHO DOES NOT MEET THESE REQUIREMENTS IS A VIOLATION OF THESE TERMS.
3. SPECIAL REGISTRATION INFORMATION FOR TEACHERS
If you use our Platform in an educational setting, including but not limited to as a teacher, therapist, aide, or other personnel ("Authorized Personnel"), you expressly agree to the following:
- You represent, warrant, and covenant that you have the explicit authority and consent from your educational institution to enter into this Agreement on behalf of the educational institution;
- You agree that the use of Future Engineers is approved as part of the educational curriculum for students of your educational institution;
- You agree that you have the educational institution's consent to submit, use, and disclose personal information of your students;
- You agree to notify and inform parents of students under 18, or students over 18, as applicable, that you are using the Future Engineers Platform; and
- You agree that you will not allow students under the age of 18 to use the Platform or submit any information to the Platform unless authorized as part of your classroom use.
If you are a teacher or other Authorized Personnel and are using the Future Engineers Platform on behalf of your educational institution you may no longer use the Future Engineers Platform once you have ceased working for your educational institution.
Teachers may register their classes and individual students using the Platform. Teachers will be required to provide information about themselves and their students as stated in our Privacy Policy.
4. TERMS APPLICABLE ONLY TO JUDGES
If you have been selected as a Judge for a Future Engineers Challenge, your use of the Platform for purposes of judging that Challenge is subject to the Judge Guidelines. You may only participate as a Judge if you meet the qualifications for a particular Challenge and certify acceptance of and compliance with the Judge Guidelines.
5. PRIVACY
We are committed to protecting the privacy of our users. Our Privacy Policy explains our privacy practices and may be viewed here. [http://www.futureengineers.org/pdfs/privacypolicy.pdf ] All personal information we receive through the Platform is subject to the Privacy Policy, and acceptance of these Terms constitutes your consent to our collection and use of personal information as described in the Privacy Policy. We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time, in accordance with the procedure noted in the Privacy Policy.
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act ("FERPA")
If you are employed by a school or district subject to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”), you agree to appoint Future Engineers as a “school official” as that term is defined in FERPA and as interpreted by the Family Policy Compliance Office, and determine that Future Engineers has a “legitimate educational interest” for the purpose of delivering the Services in accordance with these Terms. Future Engineers agrees that it shall be bound by all relevant provisions of FERPA, including operating under the direct control of your school or district with respect to handling of “personally identifiable information” from “education records,” as those terms are defined in FERPA. Future Engineers further agrees that personally identifiable information from students will not be disclosed to third parties except as required to provide Services to you contemplated in this Agreement. Any third parties used will be bound to manage the personally identifiable information in compliance with the Future Engineers Privacy Policy, security policies and all applicable laws, and to use the personally identifiable information for the sole and limited purpose of providing the Services to the user, which may include the Future Engineers email newsletter for users who have opted in to receive it.
Future Engineers may use de-identified information for product development, research or other purposes permitted by applicable law (“de-identified data”), including:
- To demonstrate the effectiveness of the Future Engineers Platform, including in our marketing materials; and
- To develop and improve our educational products.
Future Engineers shall not to attempt to re-identify the de-identified data and shall not transfer the de-identified data to a third-party unless that party agrees not to attempt re-identification.
Children's Online Privacy Protection Act ("COPPA")
Future Engineers shall comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”). Children younger than 13 years old attempting to register with our Platform unrelated to a school account will be asked for their birthdate information. If they are under the age of 13, we will request parent’s contact information in order to obtain prior parental consent before collecting personal information from the child, as described in our Privacy Policy.
If you wish for your child’s information to be modified, edited or deleted please contact us at
support@futureengineers.org. If you wish to delete your child’s information, please understand that we may contact you to verify your parental credentials. If your child accessed the Platform via an account started with their school, please work directly with the school or district to review, modify, edit or request deletion of information in the education record that may be stored on the Platform. We will work with parents and schools together to facilitate these requests, which should be sent to us at
support@futureengineers.org.
6. ACCEPTABLE USE
Your use of the Platform is conditioned upon your compliance with the following rules (“Acceptable Use Restrictions”).
You shall not upload to, transmit through, or display via the Platform any content that:
- is unlawful, fraudulent, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene or otherwise objectionable, or infringes upon our or any third party's intellectual property or other rights;
- contains confidential, proprietary, or trade secret information of any third party;
- violates the rights of others, including without limitation any privacy rights or rights of publicity;
- impersonates any person or entity, falsely states or otherwise misrepresents your affiliation with any person or entity, or uses any fraudulent, misleading or inaccurate email address, or other contact information;
- violates any applicable laws or regulations;
- makes any statement, express or implied, that you are endorsed by Future Engineers;
- harms minors in any way, including, but not limited to, violating any law;
- contains any unsolicited promotions, political campaigning, advertising or solicitations;
- or in our sole judgment is inappropriate or objectionable or which restricts or inhibits any other person from using or enjoying the Platform or which may expose Future Engineers, any of its officers, directors, or employees, or other users to any harm or liability of any type.
You shall not use the Platform to engage in any of the following activities:
- accessing, using, or uploading content to, or attempting to access, use, or upload content to another user’s account without permission;
- or transmitting, uploading, or downloading, any software or other materials that contain any viruses, worms, trojan horses, defects, date bombs, time bombs, or other items of a destructive nature.
Additionally, you shall not:
- try to obtain unauthorized access to any account associated with the Platform;
- try to open an account if you are under the age of 18 without the express consent of a parent or guardian or do not have a code provided by your teacher (“Class Code”);
- provide false or misleading information at any time when opening or using an account;
- try to use the Platform in a commercial manner, rather than for personal, educational, and noncommercial purposes;
- use the Platform in a manner inconsistent with these Terms or applicable law;
- modify or interfere with the Platform or Future Engineers content – including location, access, and other security features – for any reason, or permit or help anyone else to do so; or
- interfere with or alter the Platform or Future Engineers content.
7. OWNERSHIP OF PLATFORM AND CONTENT
All right, title, and interest in the Platform including, but not limited to all of the software and code that comprise and operate the Platform and all of the text, photographs, images, illustrations, graphics, audio, video, and audio-video clips, URLs, advertising copy and other materials provided through the Platform (collectively, “Content”) are owned by us or by third parties (our “Partners”) who have licensed their Content to us. The Platform is protected under trademark, service mark, trade dress, copyright, patent, trade secret, and other intellectual property laws. In addition, the entire Content of the Platform is a collective work under U.S. and international copyright laws and treaties, and we and our Partners own the copyright in the selection, coordination, arrangement, and enhancement of the Content of this Platform.
We hereby grant you a limited, revocable license to download and print copies of any portion of the Content of the Platform to which you have properly gained access, but only for your own personal, non-commercial use, and only if you do not remove, modify or obscure any copyright, trademark, or other proprietary notices from the Content you download. The foregoing license is subject to these Terms and does not include the right to use any data mining, robots, or other automatic or manual device, software, program, code, algorithm or methodology, to access, copy or monitor any portion of any Platform or Content, or in any way reproduce or circumvent the navigational structure or presentation of any Platform or Content, or obtain or attempt to obtain any materials or information through any means not purposely made available by us through the Platform. We reserve the right to take measures to prevent any such activity. This license is revocable at any time without notice and with or without cause. You may not permit others to copy, distribute, perform or display publicly, prepare derivative works based on, broadcast, exploit or use any part of the Content on the Platform except as expressly provided in these Terms. Nothing in these Terms shall be construed as transferring any right, title, or interest in the Platform or its Content to you or anyone else, except the limited license to use the Platform and their Content on the terms expressly set forth herein.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, and specifically with regard to trademarks, Future Engineers names and logos (including, without limitation, those of its affiliates), all product and service names, all graphics, all button icons, and all trademarks, service marks, and logos appearing within the Platform unless otherwise noted, are trademarks (whether registered or not), service marks and/or trade dress of Future Engineers, and/or its affiliates (the “Future Engineers Marks”). All other trademarks, product names, company names, logos, service marks and/or trade dress mentioned, displayed, cited or otherwise indicated within the Platform are the property of their respective owners. You are not authorized to display or use Future Engineers Marks in any manner without our prior written permission. You are not authorized to display or use trademarks, product names, company names, logos, service marks and/or trade dress of other owners featured within the Platform without the prior written permission of such owners. The use or misuse of Future Engineers Marks or other trademarks, product names, company names, logos, service marks and/or trade dress or any other materials contained herein, except as permitted herein, is expressly prohibited.
8. YOUR SUBMISSIONS
By submitting content to the Platform (“User Content”), you are warranting that you are the exclusive author or owner of that User Content and you are responsible for ensuring that the materials you upload to the Platform do not infringe any third party intellectual, proprietary or other rights, including but not limited to trademark and copyrights. As the owner of such User Content, you agree to indemnify us for your use of any User Content submitted to the Platform. You grant Future Engineers and its affiliates a worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive, royalty-free license and right to copy, transmit, distribute, publicly perform and display (through all media now known or hereafter created), and make derivative works from your User Content for the purpose of providing the Platform. In addition, you waive any so-called “moral rights” in your User Content (including, without limitation, the right to be identified as the author).
For certain Challenges, if stated on the Challenge Rules as a condition of entry or as a condition of award, you agree that your User Content shall be sublicensed or assigned to any entity, including but not limited to those providing monetary, prizing, administrative, or other support for the Challenge or any element thereof (“Challenge Parties” and together with Sponsor, the “Releasees”), or placed in the public domain, as applicable.
By submitting User Content to the Platform, you understand and agree that the User Content may be made publicly available, provided, however, that we may remove, or request the removal of, personally identifiable information from the User Content prior to posting, as may be required by our Privacy Policy, General Rules, or the Challenge Rules. You agree that you will view User Content posted by others only for your personal and non-commercial purposes.
9. ACCOUNTS AND REGISTRATION
You may be required to register for an account with Future Engineers before accessing certain services. We may need different information depending on whether you are registering through your school or as an individual at home with parent consent if under 18. If you register through your school, you can retain the same school account by adding or linking to new Class Codes each school year. If you register as an individual you can retain your home account year after year. If a user has both methods of authorization for an account (e.g. school and parent), you will be considered to have both a school account and a home account. Termination of one account will not automatically terminate the other and Future Engineers will retain the related data, to the extent permitted under the remaining method of authorization, as if that method of authorization was the sole method ever provided.
You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your passwords. We have the right to assume that anyone accessing the Platform using a password assigned to you has the right to do so.
10. TERMINATION
Future Engineers reserves the sole and exclusive right to determine whether your use of our services violate the acceptable use restrictions and terminate the user’s access or account without prior notice and at its sole discretion If you wish to terminate your use of the Platform simply stop using the Platform. If you wish to close your account, please notify us at
support@futureengineers.org. Under no circumstances, including termination or cancellation of our Platform to you, will we be liable for any losses related to actions of other users. Your termination of the Platform will not affect any licensing rights previously granted to Future Engineers.
11. THIRD PARTY WEBSITES AND ADVERTISING
The Platform may contain links to third party websites that are not owned or controlled by Future Engineers. Future Engineers has no control over, and assumes no responsibility for, the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third-party website. In addition, Future Engineers will not and cannot censor or edit the content of any third-party site. By using the Platform you expressly relieve Future Engineers from any and all liability arising from your use of any third-party website. Those websites have terms and privacy policies of their own, and we encourage you to read them.
12. ONLINE PURCHASES
By placing an order through our site for the sale of goods or services you are offering to purchase a product, representing that you are of legal age to form a binding contract, and representing that all information you provide to us in connection with such order is accurate. You further represent that you are an authorized user of the payment method provided. We retain the right to refuse any order request made by you and the receipt by you of an order confirmation does not constitute our acceptance of an order.
13. AGREEMENT TO FOLLOW APPLICABLE LAWS
You certify that you will comply with all applicable laws (e.g., local, state, and federal laws) when using the Platform or Future Engineers Content as permitted and in accordance with this Agreement. You will be responsible for any cost, expense, fee, liability of any kind, and attorney’s fees that Future Engineers incurs if you break the law, misuse the services or information Future Engineers provides, or breach this Agreement. And if you break the law, misuse the services or information Future Engineers provides, or breach this Agreement, you acknowledge and agree that you will reimburse, indemnify, and hold harmless Future Engineers, its subsidiaries, its affiliated companies, and the employees, directors, officers, and agents of all aforementioned companies, from any money damages, costs, expenses, losses, liabilities, and attorney’s fees resulting from any claim, threat, demand, suit, or investigation brought by another person, entity, or government. Without waiving any of these rights, Future Engineers may at its sole discretion defend itself against any such claim, threat, demand, suit, or investigation without your consent. All of your obligations in this paragraph survive and continue after any termination of this Agreement.
14. CONTESTS, COMPETITIONS, AND PROMOTIONS
Future Engineers may offer Challenges which are subject to the General Rules at and specific Challenge Rules. To enter a Challenge, the entrant or (for an entrant under the age of 18) the parent/legal guardian of the entrant is required to agree to the General Rules. By consenting to the General Rules, the entrant or parent/legal guardian (for an entrant under the age of 18) also agrees to be bound by the specific Challenge Rules for the current and any future Challenge in which the entrant may participate. You may only enter a Challenge if you meet the requirements set out in the applicable Rules. There may be additional obligations that are outlined in the Challenge Rules. In the event that our General Rules conflict with this Agreement, the General Rules will govern. In the event there is a conflict between the Challenge Rules and this Agreement, the Challenge Rules will govern.
15. USER COMMENTS AND FEEDBACK
Future Engineers will terminate a user’s access to the Platform if, under appropriate circumstances, they are determined to be a repeat infringer or otherwise a nuisance to the Platform. Future Engineers reserves the sole and exclusive right to decide whether a comment or any other user submission is appropriate and complies with these Terms for violations other than copyright infringement, such as, but not limited to obscene, defamatory, or just plain obnoxious material. Future Engineers may remove such comments or other user submissions and/or terminate a user’s access for uploading such material in violation of these Terms at any time, without prior notice and at its sole discretion.
16. DIGITAL MILLENNIUM COPYRIGHT ACT
If you are a copyright owner or an agent thereof and believe that any user submission or other content infringes upon your copyrights, you may submit a notification pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) by providing Future Engineers with the following information in writing (see 17 U.S.C 512(c)(3) for further detail):
- A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed;
- Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site;
- Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material;
- Information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact you, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail address;
- A statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and
- A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that you are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
DMCA claims may be sent to the following address:
Future Engineers, LLC
177 E. Colorado Blvd Suite 200
Pasadena, CA 91105
Or sent by email to:
support@futureengineers.org
You acknowledge that if you fail to comply with all of the requirements of this Section, your DMCA notice may not be valid.
17. REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES
THE PLATFORM, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY FUTURE ENGINEERS CONTENT, IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS", "AS AVAILABLE" AND "WITH ALL FAULTS" BASIS. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY LAW, NEITHER FUTURE ENGINEERS, LLC, NOR ANY OF THEIR EMPLOYEES, MANAGERS, DIRECTORS, OFFICERS OR AGENTS MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OR ENDORSEMENTS OF ANY KIND WHATSOEVER, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO: (A) THE PLATFORM; (B) ANY USER CONTENT; (C) OUR CONTENT AND CONTENT FOUND ON OUR PLATFORM; OR (D) SECURITY ASSOCIATED WITH THE TRANSMISSION OF INFORMATION TO FUTURE ENGINEERS OR VIA THE PLATFORM. IN ADDITION, WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, TITLE, CUSTOM, TRADE, QUIET ENJOYMENT, SYSTEM INTEGRATION AND FREEDOM FROM COMPUTER VIRUS.
FUTURE ENGINEERS DOES NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE PLATFORM WILL BE ERROR-FREE OR UNINTERRUPTED; THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED; OR THAT THE PLATFORM OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES THE PLATFORM AVAILABLE IS FREE FROM ANY HARMFUL COMPONENTS, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, VIRUSES. FUTURE ENGINEERS DOES NOT MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES THAT THE INFORMATION (INCLUDING ANY INSTRUCTIONS) ON THE PLATFORM ARE ACCURATE, COMPLETE, OR USEFUL. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOUR USE OF THE PLATFORM IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. FUTURE ENGINEERS DOES NOT WARRANT THAT YOUR USE OF THE PLATFORM IS LAWFUL IN ANY PARTICULAR JURISDICTION, AND FUTURE ENGINEERS SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMS ANY SUCH WARRANTIES. FUTURE ENGINEERS DOES NOT ENDORSE ANY CONTENT AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMS ANY RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY TO ANY PERSON OR ENTITY FOR ANY LOSS, DAMAGE (WHETHER ACTUAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR OTHERWISE), INJURY, CLAIM, LIABILITY OR OTHER CAUSE OF ANY KIND OR CHARACTER BASED UPON OR RESULTING FROM ANY CONTENT FOUND ON OR THROUGH FUTURE ENGINEERS.
18. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY
TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, AND WITHOUT LIMITING ANYTHING ELSE IN THESE TERMS, THE ENTIRE LIABILITY OF FUTURE ENGINEERS AND ANY SPONSORS, PRIZE PROVIDER, OR ANY ENTITY PROVIDING SUPPORT FOR ANY CHALLENGE (“RELEASED PARTIES”) AND YOUR EXCLUSIVE REMEDY WITH RESPECT TO THE USE OF THE PLATFORM OR PARTICIPATION IN ANY CHALLENGE WILL BE: THE AMOUNT OF $200.
IN NO EVENT WILL THE RELEASED PARTIES BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE PLATFORM OR FOR ANY OTHER CLAIM RELATED IN ANY WAY TO YOUR USE OF THE PLATFORM. BECAUSE SOME STATES OR JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, IN SUCH STATES OR JURISDICTIONS THE LIABILITY OF THE RELEASED PARTIES WILL BE LIMITED TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW.
THE FOREGOING LIMITATIONS WILL APPLY WHETHER SUCH DAMAGES ARISE OUT OF BREACH OF CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE) OR OTHERWISE AND REGARDLESS OF WHETHER SUCH DAMAGES WERE FORESEEABLE, OR WE WERE ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW CERTAIN LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY SO SOME OR ALL OF THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
19. SPECIAL NOTICE TO NEW JERSEY AND CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS
IF YOU ARE A CALIFORNIA RESIDENT, YOU HEREBY WAIVE CALIFORNIA CIVIL CODE SECTION 1542 IN CONNECTION WITH THE FOREGOING, WHICH STATES: “A GENERAL RELEASE DOES NOT EXTEND TO CLAIMS WHICH THE CREDITOR OR RELEASING PARTY DOES NOT KNOW OR SUSPECT TO EXIST IN HIS OR HER FAVOR AT THE TIME OF EXECUTING THE RELEASE, WHICH IF KNOWN BY HIM OR HER MUST HAVE MATERIALLY AFFECTED HIS OR HER SETTLEMENT WITH THE DEBTOR OR RELEASED PARTY.”
IF YOU ARE ACCESSING THE PLATFORM FROM NEW JERSEY, YOU (A) ASSUME ALL RISKS OF LOSSES OR DAMAGES RESULTING FROM YOUR USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE PLATFORM; (B) IRREVOCABLY WAIVE ALL LOSSES OR INDIRECT, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THOSE RESULTING FROM LOST PROFITS, LOST DATA OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) THAT MAY OCCUR AS A RESULT OF YOUR USE OF THE PLATFORM; AND (C) EXPRESSLY AGREE TO RELEASE AND DISCHARGE FUTURE ENGINEERS AND ITS AFFILIATES, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, REPRESENTATIVES, SUCCESSORS, OR ASSIGNS FROM ANY AND ALL CLAIMS OR CAUSES OF ACTION RESULTING, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, FROM YOUR USE OF THE PLATFORM; AND (D) YOU VOLUNTARILY GIVE UP OR WAIVE ANY RIGHT THAT YOU MAY OTHERWISE HAVE TO BRING A LEGAL ACTION AGAINST FUTURE ENGINEERS FOR LOSSES OR DAMAGES, WHETHER BASED ON WARRANTY, CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHER LEGAL THEORY, INCLUDING ANY CLAIM BASED ON ALLEGED NEGLIGENCE ON THE PART OF THE RELEASED PARTIES AND THEIR AGENTS AND EMPLOYEES. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE CAREFULLY READ THIS “WAIVER AND RELEASE” AND FULLY UNDERSTAND THAT IT IS A RELEASE OF LIABILITY.
20. INDEMNIFICATION
You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Released Parties, its and their affiliates, licensors and service providers, and their respective officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, licensors, suppliers, successors, and assigns from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, judgments, awards, losses, costs, expenses, or fees (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or relating to your violation of these Terms or your use of the Platform or participation in any Challenge including your contributions, any use of Future Engineers Content, services and products other than as expressly authorized in these Terms or your use of any information obtained from the Platform.
21. CHOICE OF LAW
This Agreement shall be governed by the laws in force in the State of California and the United States of America. The offer and acceptance of this contract are deemed to have occurred in California.
22. ARBITRATION
You and Future Engineers agree that any dispute, claim or controversy arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the breach, termination, enforcement, interpretation or validity thereof, or to the use of the service (collectively, “Disputes”) will be settled by binding arbitration, except that each party retains the right to seek injunctive or other equitable relief in a court of competent jurisdiction to prevent the actual or threatened infringement, misappropriation or violation of a party’s copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, patents, or other intellectual property rights. You acknowledge and agree that you and Future Engineers are each waiving the right to a trial by jury or to participate as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class action or representative proceeding. Further, unless both you and Future Engineers otherwise agree in writing, the arbitrator may not consolidate more than one person's claims, and may not otherwise preside over any form of any class or representative proceeding. If this specific paragraph is held unenforceable, then the entirety of this “Dispute Resolution” section will be deemed void. Except as provided in the preceding sentence, this “Dispute Resolution” section will survive any termination of this Agreement. You agree that any such Dispute(s) will be heard in Los Angeles County, CA, USA.
The arbitration will be administered by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) in accordance with the Commercial Arbitration Rules and the Supplementary Procedures for Consumer Related Disputes (the “AAA Rules”) then in effect, except as modified by this “Dispute Resolution” section. The Federal Arbitration Act will govern the interpretation and enforcement of this section.
A party who desires to initiate arbitration must provide the other party with a written Demand for Arbitration as specified in the AAA Rules.
If your claim does not exceed $10,000, then the arbitration will be conducted solely on the basis of documents you and Future Engineers submit to the arbitrator, unless you request a hearing or the arbitrator determines that a hearing is necessary. If your claim exceeds $10,000, your right to a hearing will be determined by the AAA Rules. Subject to the AAA Rules, the arbitrator will have the discretion to direct a reasonable exchange of information by the parties, consistent with the expedited nature of the arbitration.
The arbitrator will render an award within the time frame specified in the AAA Rules. The arbitrator’s decision will include the essential findings and conclusions upon which the arbitrator based the award. Judgment on the arbitration award may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof. The arbitrator’s award damages must be consistent with the terms of the “Representations and Warranties and Limitation of Liability” section above as to the types and the amounts of damages for which a party may be held liable. The arbitrator may award declaratory or injunctive relief only in favor of the claimant and only to the extent necessary to provide relief warranted by the claimant’s individual claim.
Your responsibility to pay any AAA filing, administrative, legal and arbitrator fees will be solely as set forth in the AAA Rules.
23. OTHER TERMS
Future Engineers’ failure to enforce any provision of these Terms shall not be deemed a waiver of such provision nor of the right to enforce such provision. If any part of these Terms are determined to be invalid or unenforceable pursuant to applicable law, including, but not limited to, the warranty disclaimers and liability limitations set forth above, then the invalid or unenforceable provision will be deemed superseded by a valid, enforceable provision that most closely matches the intent of the original provision and the remainder of these Terms shall continue in effect. A printed version of these Terms and of any notice given in electronic form shall be admissible in judicial or administrative proceedings based upon or relating to these Terms to the same extent and subject to the same conditions as other business documents and records originally generated and maintained in printed form.
Updated and Effective: August 29, 2025
FUTURE ENGINEERS PLATFORM PRIVACY POLICY
Updated and effective: August 29, 2025
Future Engineers LLC (“Future Engineers”) owns and operates the web and mobile-based Future Engineers platform (the “Platform”, “us” or “we”). We host innovation challenges (“Challenge,” “Challenges”) for students. We are committed to protecting the privacy of your personal information.
As a Platform primary designed to allow students to participate in innovation challenges, we take our responsibility to protect the privacy of students very seriously. Our Platform and the Challenges are designed to comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”). This policy explains the types of information we collect, and the ways in which we will use, disclose and protect it when you use our Platform or participate in a Challenge. By accessing or using the Future Engineers Platform, you agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy.
INFORMATION WE COLLECT
Information Provided to Us. We collect the content and information you and other users provide to us when signing up for and using the Platform. If you sign up for or use the Platform with the Google service, we may collect information about users from that service. Depending on how you use the Platform and what information you and other users choose to provide about you, we may collect the following personal information.
- Educators. We collect information that educators provide about themselves when they sign up for and use the Platform, including the educator’s first and last name, email address, phone number, school name and address, and name and class grade for each class they register with the Platform. Educators must also either provide a username and password or log in using Google credentials. If you make a purchase through our site, we may also collect payment information.
- Parents/Guardians. We collect information that educators and/or students provide about the parents/guardians of students, which enables us to contact the parent/guardian to provide certain notices, obtain parent/guardian consent, and collect or verify information about students. During the consent process, we may request additional information from the parent/guardian. Parent/guardian information may include first and last name, zip code, telephone number, and email address. If you make a purchase through our site, we may also collect your address and payment information.
- Students. We collect information provided by educators, parents/guardians, and students about students. The type of information collected and source from which the information is collected is determined by a student’s age and whether they are using the Platform with a school account or home account. Student information may include first and last name, birthdate, username and password associated with the Platform account, email address, telephone number, zip code, grade, and/or gender. We also collect content that students provide in their Challenge submissions, which may include photos of the student, video recordings of the student, or an audio file that includes the student’s voice. We may also request additional documentation required to verify a student’s eligibility and award prizes.
- Judges. We collect information that judges provide about themselves when they sign up for and use the Platform, including username, password, email address, phone number, first and last name, address, company/organization/school, job title, industry served, and judging preferences. Optionally, judges may provide race and gender.
We may ask all individuals that interact with our Platform or participate in a Challenge, for feedback on your experience.
Virtual Events. We may offer virtual events on our Platform. To participate in a virtual event, each participant must create or have an account for our Platform. If you create an account with us for the purpose of participating in a virtual event and you are younger than 18, we will collect the information specified for “students” above. When students (younger than 18) participate in virtual events, the camera/microphone features will be deactivated and no additional personal information will be collected from the student. The student may use the chat feature to submit questions to the moderator. The moderator may post the question in the public chat, but will remove information that identifies the student (if any) prior to posting. If you create an account with us for the purpose of participating in a virtual event and you are 18 or older, we will collect the information you provide about yourself, including first name, last name, username, password, email address, phone number, zip code and/or school affiliation (if any). During the event, participants that are 18 or older may choose to share their image and voice. They may also choose to participate in chat groups. If you activate any of these features, we will collect the information you share.
Information We Collect Automatically. When you use the Future Engineers Platform, our servers automatically record information sent from your browser. This may include information such as your computer’s Internet Protocol (“IP”) address, pages of the Platform that you visit, the time spent on those pages, browser, operating system, access times and dates. We use this information to monitor, analyze use of and administer our Platforms, including to make improvements and better tailor it to your needs.
To collect this information, we use certain technologies including:
Cookies. A cookie is a small data file sent from a website or application and stored on your computer or device. Cookies allow us to recognize your browser when you return to our website, and to remember your login information. Cookies also allow us to authenticate you as a user, serve certain features, to better understand how you interact with the Platform, to improve your, for session control and to monitor and analyze aggregated usage. Most browsers allow visitors to a website to control cookies, including to detect some cookies, to stop accepting cookies or to prompt you before accepting a cookie. Please note that if you choose to erase or block your cookies, certain parts of the Platform may not function correctly. To learn more about browser cookies, including how to manage or delete them, look in the Tools, Help or similar section of your web browser, or visit
allaboutcookies.org.
Pixel Tags. A pixel tag (also known as a “clear GIF” or “web beacon”) is a tiny image – typically just one-pixel – that can be placed on a Web page or in an email to you, to tell us when you have displayed that page or opened that email.
Google Analytics. We use Google Analytics to assist us in collecting and understanding the information we collect automatically. We do not allow Google Analytics to use our analytics data for its own purposes. For more information on Google Analytics, see the Google Analytics Terms of Use and the Google Privacy Policy. To opt out, visit
https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.
HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION
We collect and use personal information for the following purposes:
- To create accounts and set up classes on the Platform;
- To provide and deliver the Platform, including to personalize certain aspects of the Platform that are relevant to you;
- To review entries in accordance with the Official Rules for each Challenge, including categorizing entries and assigning judges.
- To contact prospective winners, including a parent if the winner is under the age of 18 and a teacher if the winner is participating in the Challenge using a school account, to collect required documentation, verify eligibility, and award prizes;
- To send and personalize confirmations and administrative messages related to your use of the Platform, including technical notices, updates, security alerts, and support messages;
- To customize digital certificates and digital portfolios made available on a user’s dashboard.
- To send you information about new Challenges, Challenge deadlines, and winner announcements;
- To evaluate your responses to surveys and your feedback on the Platform and Challenges.
- To provide virtual events;
- To process purchases and payments;
- To send you information about new products and features, including our newsletter, when you have opted in to receive such information;
- To manage our relationship with you, including to respond to your comments and questions, resolve problems and provide similar support; and
- To investigate a suspected violation of the Terms of Service, suspected fraud or other unlawful or unfair activity.
Consistent with our obligations under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) as outlined in our Terms of Use, we will use “personally identifiable information” from “education records,” as those terms are defined in FERPA, as directed by the school or district for their educational purposes.
We may also use and retain aggregated, de-identified information to develop and improve our educational products, to demonstrate the efficacy of our products, including in the marketing of our products, and for customized and adaptive learning.
HOW WE SHARE YOUR INFORMATION
We do not sell or rent information, and we do not share user information for advertising or marketing purposes.
If you participate in a Challenge, your Challenge submission may be posted in a publicly available gallery. If a submission includes information that could identify you (“personally identifiable information”), we obtain consent from you (if over the age of 18), or from your parent/guardian (if under the age of 18) before posting the submission publicly. We do not post entries that include personally identifiable information of an individual that is under 13 years of age.
We may disclose your personal information to the following recipients or categories of recipients:
- For accounts associated with a classroom, we may display personal information included in your challenge submission to the educator associated with the account, and/or to other students associated with the same classroom.
- Our service providers who help to facilitate our delivery of the Platform and who provide certain features on our behalf, such as customer service, database management, email management, maintenance services, analytics and improvement of the Platform.
- Selected judges or Challenge administration consultants who may assist with an internally conducted entry review process.
- During virtual events, if you are 18 years or older, your username and other information that you choose to share, such as video, audio or chat conversations, may be shared with other participants.
- Any authorized law enforcement body, regulatory, government agency, court or other third party where we believe disclosure is necessary (i) as a matter of applicable law or regulation, (ii) to exercise, establish or defend our legal rights, or (iii) to protect your safety or the safety of others on the Platform.
- In the event of a reorganization, merger, sale, bankruptcy, or other business change of Future Engineers or this Platform, your information will remain subject to the terms of this Privacy Policy.
CHILDREN'S PRIVACY
Future Engineers complies with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”), the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”), and relevant state laws concerning the privacy of students.
We do not collect, use or disclose personal information from a child until we have obtained the required consent. Two types of accounts may be created on our Platform: (1) a personal or home account, and (2) a school account. Children under the age of 13 may only create a home account on the Platform after the parent/guardian has provided consent. School systems that use our Platform as an educational tool may create a school account for a student and provide the requisite consent for us to collect personal information of the child
We collect only as much information as is necessary to provide the service. The child’s parent/guardian may access, delete or withdraw consent for the continued processing of the child's information at any time, as described in “HOW YOU CAN ACCESS AND MODIFY YOUR INFORMATION.” Please contact us at
support@futureengineers.org if you believe we have inadvertently collected information from a child under 13 without parent/guardian consent and we will delete that information as soon as possible.
THIRD-PARTY LINKS
The Platform contains links to websites belonging to third parties that may offer additional resources, activities or information that may be useful when participating in Challenges. If you click on a third party link, you will be directed to that third party's website. The fact that we link to a website is not an endorsement, authorization or representation of our affiliation with that third party, nor is it an endorsement of their privacy or information security policies or practices. We do not exercise control over third party websites. These other websites may place their own cookies or other files on your computer, collect data or solicit personal information from you. Those sites have their own privacy policies, and we encourage you to read them.
SECURITY
Future Engineers uses commercially reasonable information security safeguards to protect its databases and servers against risks of loss, unauthorized access, destruction, misuse, modification, or inadvertent or improper disclosure of data. We store data in cloud-based environments that use firewalls and other industry-standard protections in an effort to prevent access from outside intruders. We also encrypt the data in transit, require unique account credentials and limit data access. Not all security risks are reasonably foreseeable, however, and Future Engineers is not responsible for the consequences of security incidents that are not reasonably foreseeable and not reasonably within its control.
HOW YOU CAN ACCESS AND MODIFY YOUR INFORMATION
If you would like to review, correct, update or request that we delete personally identifiable information you or your students have provided to us, you may do so by emailing us at
support@futureengineers.org.
We require parental/guardian consent to establish a home account on the Platform for a child under the age of 13. If you are a parent/guardian of a child under the age of 13 who is using the Platform through a home account, you may request to review your child's personal information, ask us to delete any personal information your child has provided, ask that we no longer collect personal information from your child and/or revoke any consent you have provided for our collection of your child's personal information. To do so, please email us at
support@futureengineers.org. Before responding to your request, we may require certain information in order to verify your identity and your relationship to the child. If your child under the age of 13 is accessing the Platform through a school account, we will work with you and your school to facilitate your request.
If you are a parent/guardian of a student under the age of 18 using the Platform through a school account, you may also have rights to access, amend or correct information in the education record that may be stored on the Platform. Please contact your school with any such requests. We will work with them to provide them with the information they need to respond to your request.
OPT OUT
Educators, Parents/Guardians, Students, and Judges, and other virtual event participants whom have email addresses associated with their account will receive periodic emails from us. You may update your email preferences or opt out of receiving emails from us by clicking on the “unsubscribe” link found at the bottom of each email, or you may contact us at the address listed in the CONTACT US section below. If you have opted out of receiving emails from us, we may still send essential communications, such as legal notices or password change information to you as needed.
DATA RETENTION
We retain your information as long as you retain an active account with Future Engineers. After a certain period of inactivity, we will deactivate your account and delete your personal information in accordance with our data retention policy. In addition, you may request deactivation and deletion as follows:
School Accounts:
- We will honor a school’s request to delete a student’s school account, provided however, that a student may retain a copy of their account information in a personal home account with the prior permission of the student or their parent or legal guardian in the event that the student is under the age of 18.
Home Accounts: We will respond to deletion requests as follows.
- We will honor a parent’s/guardian’s or individual user’s aged 18 or older requests to delete their home account.
In the event an individual has been accessing the Platform from both home and school accounts, deleting one account will only delete that account. The other account will remain active, including the applicable information associated with that account.
We may retain de-identified data, including de-identified entries displayed on the Challenge galleries for the purposes described above.
FOR CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS
We do not disclose any personal information to third parties for their own marketing purposes. For additional information about our privacy practices, or to review and request to have deleted any personal information you have shared with us, please send a request to
support@futureengineers.org.
With respect to “do not track signals,” we currently do not respond to do-not-track signals. Third parties may collect information about an individual consumer's online activities over time and across different Internet websites or online services when the consumer uses our Services. If an industry standard is established and accepted, we may reassess how to respond to do-not-track signals at that time.
UPDATES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY
We may change this Privacy Policy in the future. When we do, we will post a notice on the Platform and provide other notifications as required by law. By continuing to use the Platform after an updated Privacy Policy is posted, you are deemed to have consented to the updated policy. If we make material changes to this Privacy Policy, we will provide 30 days prior notice to the account holder or, in the case of children under 13 accessing the Platform through a home account, the parent/guardian, via the email address we have in our records. If the material changes impact information we have previously collected from you, we will request your consent to such changes. The “last updated” date at the top of this policy indicates when the Policy was last revised.
CONTACT INFORMATION
For additional information regarding this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us at: 177 E. Colorado Blvd Suite 200, Pasadena, CA 91105,
support@futureengineers.org
Future Engineers ("
Sponsor") leverages a nationwide network of resources to provide students and classrooms all over the country with unique science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics challenges. We refer to each of these as a "Challenge." Each Challenge will have its own unique requirements and will be governed by two different sets of rules - these official rules (the "
General Rules"), which will generally apply to every Challenge, and any Challenge specific rules ("
Challenge Rules") which will supplement and be in addition to these General Rules.
Participation in a Challenge is subject to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Sponsor may, but without obligation, partner with one or more STEM-focused organizations or entities in conducting any particular Challenge, who shall usually be referred to as a
Challenge Party (defined in more detail in 8.3 below); participation in such a Challenge may also be subject to such Challenge Parties' Privacy Policy or other requirements, as stated in the Challenge Rules.
Usually the General Rules and the Challenge Rules work together, but occasionally, we may need to adjust some of these General Rules for a particular Challenge, or we may have the Challenge Rules stand-alone for a particular Challenge. If we do, we’ll tell you about those changes at the top of the Challenge Rules.
2.1
Each person participating in a Challenge is referred to as an "Entrant." Only teachers at an educational institution located within the United States or its territories or possessions (referred to as an "Eligible School") may register a class for a Challenge and create a "Class Code" for students in that class to register.
Generally, students of a classroom that have registered to participate in the Challenge using an account associated with a Class Code are eligible to participate in any Challenge that has been selected by their teacher. Additionally, students linked via Google Classroom are considered to be registered with an account associated with the equivalent of a Class Code.
Students may also participate in any Challenge without a Class Code ("Independent Entry") using an individual or home account, provided that if the student is under the age of 18, he or she will be required to provide parental consent within the time required. Regardless of whether a student enters using a Class Code or submits an Independent Entry, all students under the age of 18 are required to provide parental consent when required to be eligible to receive a prize.
Failure to provide parental consent when required will result in the student forfeiting any prize to which he or she may otherwise have been entitled.
Because of the educational nature of the Challenges, certain Challenges may only be open to specific peer groups (for example, students of the same grade level, or students of the same school district). Some Challenges may be open-ended skills challenges which do not offer prizes. Challenges with "Additional Eligibility Requirements" will be identified in the applicable Challenge Rules.
3.1
Challenges will have specific deadlines by when Submissions (defined below), related material, required documentation, or requirements must be met. Each Challenge will begin and end on specific dates as set forth in the applicable Challenge Rules. All Entrants will be required to submit their entries and any other required documentation by the dates and times set forth in the Challenge Rules or may be disqualified.
4.1
Generally, Challenges will require the preparation of a STEM based project ("Submission"). Submissions includes all content and designs authored in connection with the Challenge but expressly exclude all personal information and educational records of the entrants. Details, deadlines, and specifics relating to any particular Challenge will be as stated in the applicable Challenge Rules. Unless otherwise stated in the Challenge Rules, all Submissions must be uploaded to the platform by 11:59:59 p.m. PT on the close date for the Challenge or Midnight on the applicable Challenge Window, depending upon the Challenge Rules. All Submissions must meet the Submission Criteria described in the applicable Challenge Rules. Submissions may be uploaded by the student or by the applicable teacher if the Submission is connected to a Class Code.
4.2
Unless otherwise stated in the Challenge Rules, there is a limit of one (1) Submission per person or group (or team) (depending on the Challenge Rules). If it is suspected or discovered that any person has attempted to: (a) submit more than one (1) Entry per person or group (depending on the Challenge Rules) and/or (b) use (or attempt to use) multiple or fraudulent names, identities and/or more than one (1) email address to enter the Challenge; then he/she/they may be disqualified from the Challenge. Each team member of a winning group will be required to provide parental consent within the time specified in order for a prize to be awarded to such team member. the Sponsor reserves the right not to award a prize to an Entrant or to an entire team, if their Submission or such Entrant or any team member(s) is/are found to be ineligible or noncompliant in any respect. In whole or in part unsuccessful, exploitational, fraudulent, misleading, harmful, non-functioning, invalid, non-compliant, or incomplete Entries in whole or in part, or those deemed not to be submitted in the spirit of the promotion or in good faith, may be disqualified.
4.3
All Submissions are subject to verification. Proof of receipt does not constitute proof of eligibility for the Challenge. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to require proof of identity and/or eligibility, or insurance (in a form acceptable to the Sponsor – including, without limitation, government issued photo identification) to participate in this Challenge and/or be awarded a prize. Failure to provide such proof to the satisfaction of the Sponsor in a timely manner may result in disqualification.
4.4
Each Entry (and each individual component thereof) must conform to the Guidelines and Restrictions below and the Sponsor, in its sole discretion, may remove any Entry and disqualify any Entrant from a Challenge if it believes, in its sole discretion that the Entry fails to conform to the Guidelines and Restrictions and/or any other provision of these General Rules and/or specific Challenge Rules.
4.5
Normal internet access and device usage charges imposed by a mobile plan and/or on-line service may apply to participation in any Challenge via a mobile device. Messaging and data rates apply to text or internet access via mobile devices; other charges may apply. Consent is not a condition of any purchase.
5.
GUIDELINES AND RESTRICTIONS:
5.1
The Submission must conform to the following guidelines and restrictions (all as determined by the Sponsor in its sole and absolute discretion):
- The Submission must be in English;
- The Submission cannot have been submitted previously in a promotion of any kind or displayed publicly through any means. The Submission must not include any identifiable information of a third party such as name, address, phone number or email address;
- The Submission must not contain material that violates or infringes another's rights, including, but not limited to, privacy, publicity or intellectual property rights, or that constitutes copyright infringement or trade-mark infringement;
- The Submission must be truthfule, not defame the Sponsor, any Challenge Party, a judge, or any other person or party;
- The Submission must not contain highly sensitive messages, religious or political messages, advertising or solicitations;
- The Submission must not contain text, images or artwork not created by Entrant, or text, images, or artwork over which Entrant does not have specific rights to submit in a Challenge;
- The Submission must not have been created with the assistance of artificial intelligence, such as ChatGPT or GoogleBard or contain AI-generated content.
- The Submission must not contain material that Sponsor deems to be inappropriate, indecent, obscene, hateful, tortuous, defamatory, slanderous, or libelous;
- The Submission must not contain swear words or other coarse language;
- The Submission must not contain material that Sponsor deems to promote cruelty, bigotry, racism, hatred or harm against any animal, group or individual or contain or promote discrimination based on race, gender, religion, nationality, disability, gender, marital status, sex, sexual identity or sexual orientation, or age or any other form of illegal discrimination;
- The Submission may not include any personal information, name, or likeness, of any person under the age of 13 unless that person’s parent or legal guardian has executed a written consent (prior to prize award if applicable);
- The Submission must not contain material that is unlawful, in violation of, or contrary to the laws or regulations in any jurisdiction where Submission is created.
- Without limiting the foregoing, a Submission and Entrant will be disqualified if Sponsor believes the Submission, or any part thereof, is not in the spirit of these General Rules, the Challenge Rules, the Challenge itself or any part thereof, or will have a detrimental impact on the Challenge, the Sponsor, any Challenge Party, judge or promotion partner, or any of Sponsor’s or promotion partner’s reputation, brands, products or services. Furthermore, if a Submission for any reason whatsoever, is or contains content that is unpleasant, distasteful, nasty, misleading, inaccurate, derogatory, or otherwise inappropriate (in Sponsor’s absolute sole discretion), Sponsor reserves the absolute and unrestricted right to disqualify such Submission and disqualify the Entrant, as applicable.
5.2
THE DECISION REGARDING THE APPROPRIATENESS OF THE CONTENT OF ALL SUBMISSIONS SHALL BE AT THE SOLE DISCRETION OF THE SPONSOR.
5.3
BY SUBMITTING A SUBMISSION, YOU AGREE THAT THE SUBMISSION (AND EACH INDIVIDUAL COMPONENT THEREOF) COMPLIES WITH ALL CONDITIONS STATED IN THESE GENERAL RULES AND THE CHALLENGE RULES.
5.4
THE RELEASEES (AS DEFINED BELOW) WILL BEAR NO LEGAL LIABILITY REGARDING THE USE OF YOUR SUBMISSION(S) (OR ANY COMPONENT THEREOF) BY, OR ON BEHALF OF, THE SPONSOR. THE RELEASEES (DEFINED BELOW) SHALL BE HELD HARMLESS BY YOU IN THE EVENT IT IS SUBSEQUENTLY DISCOVERED THAT YOU HAVE DEPARTED FROM OR NOT FULLY COMPLIED WITH ANY OF THESE RULES.
5.5
The Sponsor and/or its designated moderator (the "Reviewer") reserves the right to remove personally identifiable information from a Submission, and reserves the right but without obligation, in their sole discretion, to edit or modify any Entrant’s Submission (or a component thereof), or to request an Entrant to modify, edit and/or re-submit his or her Submission (or a component thereof), in order to ensure that the Submission complies with the Privacy Policy, these Rules or Challenge Rules, or for any other reason. For greater certainty, the Reviewer reserves the right but without obligation, in its sole discretion and at any time during the Challenge, to modify, edit or remove any Submission (or a component thereof), or to request an Entrant to modify or edit his or her Submission, or to edit if a complaint is received with respect to the Submission, or for any other reason.
5.6
By participating in the Challenge, each Entrant warrants and represents that: (i) his/her Submission(s) (and each component thereof) is original to him/her; and (ii) Entrant has all other rights, licenses, permissions and consents necessary to the Submission and its entry into the Challenge, to grant all of the rights granted to the Sponsor (and any other Challenge Party as defined below) and/or the use by them of the rights granted by Entrant, in whole or in part, does not and will not give rise to any alleged or actual claims, disputes, actions or liabilities, including but not limited to those for disputes or payment of any kind, approval rights, or any rights of participation, attribution, or any other fees, costs, or expenses, arising out of the Submission, use, exhibition and/or any other use or exploitation of the Submission, in whole and in part, the use thereof by the Sponsor and any Challenge Party, as applicable.
5.7
By entering the Challenge and submitting a Submission, each Entrant to the fullest extent permitted under applicable laws: (i) grants to the Sponsor and Challenge Parties, in perpetuity, a non-exclusive license to publish, display, reproduce, modify, edit, use in composite form, or otherwise use his/her Submission (excluding personal information), in whole or in part, for advertising or promoting the Challenge or for any other reason or purposes; (ii) waives all moral rights in and to his/her Submission in favor of the Sponsor to the fullest extent permitted by law; and (iii) agrees to release and hold harmless the Releasees (defined below) from and against any and all actions, claims and liabilities based on publicity rights, defamation, invasion of privacy, copyright infringement, trade-mark infringement or any other intellectual property related cause of action that relate in any way to the Submission.
6.1
Sponsor reserves the right to accept and to judge all eligible Submissions; however, Entrants under the age of 18 will be required to provide parental consent in order to receive a prize. Parental consent must be obtained for entrants under 18 that are not using a Class Code to enter prior to participating in any Challenge.
6.2
Parental consent will be collected when required by each Eligible School for Entrants under the age of 18 using a Class Code or directly by Future Engineers from the parent or guardian of any Entrant entering a Challenge without a Class Code.
6.3
Failure to provide a consent form when required may result in disqualification.
7.
FINALIST/WINNER SELECTION PROCESS:
7.1
A panel of judges (the "Challenge Judges") appointed by the Sponsor will judge eligible Submissions (although different Challenge Judges may judge different stages of a Challenge) on the basis of weighted criteria described in the applicable Challenge Rules.
7.2
Unless otherwise stated in the Challenge Rules, in the event of a tie between two or more Submissions, each eligible tied Submission will be given a score (the "Score") by the Challenge Judges in their sole and absolute discretion and the Submission with the highest score will be deemed to be the eligible Finalist or winner, as applicable.
7.3
Submissions may appear the same or similar to other Submissions in a Challenge, or the methods, materials and ideas contained in one Submission may be similar or identical in whole or in part to another Submission; Challenge Judges have the absolute right to judge and score one higher than the other, subject to the judging criteria set forth in the Challenge Rules.
7.4
The decisions of the Sponsor and Challenge Judges are final and binding.
8.
PRIZES AND APPROXIMATE RETAIL VALUES (ARV):
8.1
Prizes and approximate retail value will be described in the Challenge Rules. Prizes may not be substituted, assigned and/or transferred, except the Sponsor reserves the right to substitute any prize (or a component thereof) with a prize of equal or greater value for any reason. As stated in the applicable Challenge Rules, trip prizes may include roundtrip air transportation within the continental U.S. if the winner resides more than 200 miles from prize location. Ground transportation may in Sponsor's discretion be provided in lieu of air transportation if winner resides less than 200 miles from prize location. Prizes won by minors may be awarded to and in the name of their parent or adult legal guardian, who will be responsible to sign release documents on behalf of themselves and their minor child. With the exception of all valid manufacturer’s warranties with respect to a prize, prizes are provided "AS IS" without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including but not limited to, the implied warranties or conditions of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. Certain special restrictions or requirements may apply to individual prizes ("Prize Conditions"), which will be as stated in the Challenge Rules. Taxes and any other expenses not listed above are responsibility of winners (or if a minor, their parent or legal guardian) and not the teacher or Eligible School. Winners (or if a minor, their parent or legal guardian) will be required to complete and submit an IRS Form W-9 or the equivalent for receipt of any prize valued at $600 or more. Allow 4-6 weeks after prize notification for receipt of the applicable prize. Prize awards are subject to verification of eligibility and compliance with these General Rules, Challenge Rules, and decisions of the Sponsor. Potential winners will receive official notification from the Sponsor and may be required to respond with additional documentation within the time required, or may be disqualified and forfeit the prize.
8.2
As detailed above, each winner (or if a minor, their parent or adult legal guardian) must complete, execute and return an affidavit (or declaration, as determined by the Sponsor) of eligibility, liability and publicity release, except where prohibited. Guests of winners will be required to execute Guest releases when required by Sponsor.
8.3
All Submission materials remain the property of the Entrants (unless otherwise stated in connection with a specific Challenge) but as a condition of receiving the prize, the Entrant grants to the Sponsor (and Challenge Parties if specified in the Challenge Rules) a perpetual, irrevocable, unlimited, worldwide, royalty-fee, assignable, and sublicensable right and license to use, distribute, display, exploit, commercialize, create derivative works of and use the Submission for any and all purposes without any further compensation (excluding personal information). By entering a Submission, Entrants grant to the Sponsor an unlimited right and license to publish, use, adapt, edit and/or modify the Submission (or any component thereof) in any way, in any and all media worldwide, in connection with the Challenge and advertising, promoting or conducting future Challenges without limitation. The Sponsor may assign or sublicense all of the foregoing rights to any entity, including but not limited to those providing monetary, prizing, administrative or other support for the Challenge or any element thereof ("Challenge Parties" and together with the Sponsor, the "Releasees"). Entrants also agree that the Releasees are free to use any of the ideas, concepts, know-how, or techniques submitted as part of or in connection with a Challenge and/or Submission for any purpose, and in furtherance of any rights granted to it in any required documentation. From time to time, a Challenge Party may require assignment of all rights in a Submission to the Challenge Party or placing of the Submission in the public domain as a Prize Condition or a condition of entry.
9.1
The Releasees are not responsible for and shall not be liable for: (a) electronic, hardware or software program, network, Internet or computer malfunctions, failures, or difficulties of any kind, including without limitation, Internet Service Provider (ISP) or other connection availability, server malfunction, failed computer, network, telephone, satellite or cable hardware or software or lines, or technical failure, or jumbled, scrambled, delayed or misdirected transmissions, computer hardware or software malfunctions or any human, mechanical or technical or electronic error which may occur in the collection and processing of Submissions and/or any other information, nor for the failure to collect the aforementioned information; (b) failed, incomplete, garbled or delayed computer transmissions; (c) lost, late, returned, misdirected (including into spam/junk folders) or incomplete Submissions, or information or mail of any kind, nor for the failure to capture or store such information; or (d) any force majeure, or other condition beyond Sponsor's reasonable control that may cause any Challenge or any part thereof to be disrupted or corrupted, regardless of the reason. Sponsor is not responsible for injury or damage to any person or property related to or resulting from participating in this Challenge.
9.2
The Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to cancel, amend or suspend the Challenge, or any specific Challenge or any portion thereof (including, without limitation, amending these Rules or Challenge Rules), for example if artifice, fraud, viruses, bugs, technical difficulties, suspected or actual electronic or other tampering, force majeure or other causes could corrupt the administration, security, integrity or proper execution of the Challenge, a specific Challenge or any element thereof, in whole or in part. In the event of cancellation or suspension, notification thereof will be posted on the Website and, only if deemed fair by Sponsor in its sole and absolute discretion will prizes be awarded based all eligible Submissions legitimately received immediately prior to the event(s) causing the termination or suspension. Persons who tamper with or abuse any aspect of the Challenge, or those suspected of doing so or who may benefit indirectly or directly from such activities, or who act in violation of the General Rules or Challenge Rules, or act in any manner to threaten or abuse or harass any person, or violate Website's terms of service, as solely determined by the Sponsor, will be disqualified. The Sponsor is not responsible for any incorrect or inaccurate information whether caused by website users, tampering, hacking, or by any of the programming or equipment associated with or used in this Challenge. Any (suspected or actual) use of cheating, robotic, macro, automatic, programmed, artificial intelligence or like Submission methods will void all such entries, and may subject that Entrant to disqualification.
9.3
Sponsor’s decisions are final and binding in all matters and disputes relating to the Challenge and all elements thereof, including, but not limited to, interpretation and application of General Rules and Challenge Rules. For greater certainty, such matters and disputes are to be resolved in Sponsor’s sole discretion. By participating, Entrants waive all rights to jury trial in any action or proceeding instituted in connection with the Challenge and the Rules. For any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to these Official Rules and/or the Challenge or any element thereof, Entrants and Sponsor irrevocably submit and consent to binding arbitration conducted by a one-person neutral arbitrator selected by mutual agreement of the parties. Such arbitration shall be held in or closest to the County of Los Angeles, California. The arbitrator is not authorized to award indirect, incidental, consequential, punitive or other damages not measured by the prevailing party’s actual out-of-pocket expenses; participants waive any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased. Each of the parties shall bear their own costs, expenses, and attorneys’ fees. Judgment on the award rendered by the arbitrator may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof. THESE OFFICIAL RULES AND THE INTERPRETATION OF ITS TERMS SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA WITHOUT REGARD TO CONFLICT OF LAWS.
9.4
The Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole and absolute discretion, and without prior notice, to adjust any of the dates and/or timeframes stipulated in these Rules or Challenge Rules, to the extent necessary, due to exigencies of the circumstances, or for purposes of verifying compliance by any Entrant or Submission(s) with these Rules or a Challenge, or as a result of technical problems, or in light of any other circumstances including those which, in the opinion of the Sponsor, in its sole and absolute discretion, affect the proper administration of the Challenge or any element thereof as contemplated in these General Rules. All material changes to these General Rules will be posted on the Sponsor's Website.
9.5
In the event of any omission, discrepancy or inconsistency between the terms and conditions of these Rules and those contained in or made in connection with any Challenge and/or related materials, it is generally intended that these Rules shall prevail, govern and control the general terms and shall provide terms for any omissions, and the Challenge Rules shall control the specifics relating to that particular Challenge. These General Rules shall also control and serve to clarify any confusion, error or mistake communicated (at any time before, during, or after a Challenge or any part thereof) by any person or entity in any and all media.
9.6
To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Entrants and winners (or if minors, their parent or legal guardian) agree to release, indemnify, defend and hold harmless Releasees from and against any and all threatened or actual claims, debts, demands, actions, causes of action, suits, proceedings, judgments, settlements (whether or not litigation is commenced), obligations, damages (including without limitation wrongful death, bodily or personal injury and disability), losses, accounts, reckonings, executions, liabilities, costs and expenses (including reasonable attorney’s fees), property damages and any other losses, penalties or fines whatsoever of any kind or nature, whether at law or in equity, known or unknown, asserted or un-asserted, that Entrant ever had, now have, or that may arise in the future ("Dispute") asserted in, arising out of or based upon participation in the Challenge or any component thereof, the Entry (in whole or in part), any Challenge-related activity and/or Prize-related activity or inability to participate in/or parts thereof, the delivery, acceptance, use, mis-use of a Prize or any failure with respect thereto, personal injuries, death, loss, damage to or destruction of property, violation of intellectual property rights, rights of publicity or privacy, defamation or portrayal in a false light (whether intentional or unintentional), whether under a theory of contract, tort (including negligence), warranty or other theory, any act, default, omission, non-compliance, and/or a violation or breach of any agreement, representation, warranty or covenant made herein, or any other agreements by/with Entrant, any individuals or entities responsible for the execution or administration of Challenge, and/or any other party, individual or entity. Further, to the maximum extent permitted by law, and without limiting the foregoing, Entrants and winners covenant not to sue any Releasee or cause them to be sued regarding any Dispute released herein, and further covenant not to disaffirm, limit or rescind these releases.
9.7
A waiver by the Sponsor or one or more of the Releasees of any term in these Rules or any Challenge Rules does not constitute a waiver of any other provision. Any provision determined to be invalid shall be stricken to the extent of its invalidity and the remainder of these Rules shall remain in full force and effect.
9.8
The Sponsor shall not be liable to Entrants, winners or any other person or entity for failure to execute the Challenge, or any element thereof, or supply a prize, or any part thereof, by reason of any act of God, any action(s), regulation(s) order(s) or request(s) by any governmental or quasi-governmental entity (whether or not the action(s), regulation(s), order(s) or request(s) prove(s) to be invalid), equipment failure, terrorist act, cyber-attack, earthquake, war, fire, flood, explosion, unusually severe weather, hurricane, embargo, labor dispute or strike (whether legal or illegal), labor or material shortage, transportation interruption of any kind, work slow-down, civil disturbance, insurrection, riot, event or experience cancellation or delay, epidemic or pandemic, or any similar or dissimilar event beyond its control.
9.9
By entering, each Entrant expressly consents to the Sponsor (and its authorized representatives) storing, sharing and using the information submitted with a Submission for the purpose of administering a Challenge, prize award and fulfillment, and in accordance with the Sponsor's
Privacy Policy and
Terms of Use.
10.1
For names and towns of Winners of prizes over $25, visit
www.futureengineers.org after a Challenge period for a period of [thirty (30) days] after winners have been selected.
11.1
Future Engineers, LLC, 177 E. Colorado Blvd Suite 200, Pasadena, CA 91105
Last Updated: August 29, 2025