13th Year™ Student Pathway Scholarships

No purchase, payment, donation, partner inquiry, or promotional consent is necessary to apply or receive an award. None will improve an applicant’s opportunity for selection.

These Official Rules govern the recurring 13th Year™ Student Pathway Scholarship Program (the “Program”), sponsored by 13TH YEAR LLC (“13th Year™” or “Sponsor”). The Program supports students exploring education, training, and other pathways after high school. Recipients are selected randomly from eligible applications; awards are not based on academic merit, financial need, or a student’s chosen pathway.

1. Program Periods and Applicable Rules

The Program offers two award periods per academic year, corresponding to the first and second school semesters. Each award period is administered separately. An application does not automatically carry forward to another award period.

These standing Official Rules apply to award periods opened after these rules are published. An award period already open remains governed by the rules and notices provided when that period opened, subject to applicable law and Section 16.

Before applications open, Sponsor will publish an award-period notice through the scholarship application page or kiosk and make it available through the participating school. The notice forms part of these Official Rules and must identify:

• The award period and applicable school semester or semesters.
• The opening date and the application deadline, including the exact closing time and named time zone.
• The geographic eligibility of the award period and how a student can confirm whether the student’s school participates and qualifies for a school award.
• The approved application methods, including a free method that does not depend on a working kiosk.
• The drawing date or dates and, where legally required, the number of drawings, together with the recipient response deadline and payment schedule.
• Any additional disclosures or requirements mandated by applicable law.

Students must be able to review these Official Rules and the applicable notice before submitting an application. A notice may supply the period-specific information described above but may not silently reduce an advertised award or change an open period’s eligibility or selection rules.

2. Scholarship Awards

All amounts are in U.S. dollars.

School awards. A partnering high school qualifies for a school award when its 13th Year™ kiosk has been installed, operational, available to students, and in regular student use throughout the entire applicable school semester, from the school’s first instructional day through its last instructional day. Weekends, school holidays, and scheduled noninstructional days do not interrupt semester participation. Eligibility is determined using the school’s calendar and Sponsor’s installation, operational, and activity records. A kiosk installed after the semester begins does not qualify that school for a school award for that semester.

Each qualifying high school is eligible for one school award per semester, regardless of the number of kiosks at that school. Sponsor will disclose the school’s school-award status to its applicants, including when confirmation depends on completing the semester. Students may ask Sponsor or their school to confirm that status without obtaining information about other schools.

Network awards. Students at a participating school may enter the network drawing once that school’s kiosk is installed, activated, and available for student use, provided they apply before the published deadline. The kiosk does not have to have been live for the entire semester. A school that goes live after the deadline first becomes eligible for the next open award period. A temporary kiosk or connectivity interruption after an otherwise valid network application does not, by itself, disqualify the applicant from the network drawing.

Sponsor will award each advertised scholarship when an eligible recipient can be verified and accepts it. A school award is not made if the school does not meet the disclosed full-semester requirements or if no eligible recipient from that school can be verified and accepts after the alternate-selection process. The same applicant and alternate requirements apply to the network award. Sponsor will not reduce an advertised award because of insufficient funding or additional participating schools. Unawarded school funds do not increase or reduce another school’s advertised scholarship.

3. Student Eligibility

To apply, a student must:

• Be at least 13 years old when submitting the application.
• Be enrolled in grade 9, 10, 11, or 12 at a participating high school in the geographic area identified in the applicable notice, including participating schools in Puerto Rico when included in that notice.
• Meet the applicable school participation requirements in Section 2 and submit a complete application during the published application period.
• Provide accurate information sufficient to confirm eligibility and communicate about the application or award.
• Obtain parent or legal guardian authorization when required by applicable law.

Enrollment and grade eligibility are measured when the student applies. Ordinary graduation, promotion, or a subsequent school transfer does not invalidate an otherwise eligible application. A student may have only one active entry in an award period and may not enter through multiple schools for that period. A school correction or transfer must be reported before the deadline; Sponsor will verify the appropriate school pool without creating an additional entry.

Employees, officers, directors, owners, and persons directly involved in administering or selecting recipients for the Program are ineligible, as are their spouses, parents, children, siblings, and household members. A school’s participation alone does not exclude children of school employees who have no role in administering or selecting recipients.

The Program is not open to children under 13. Sponsor will stop processing an application it learns was submitted by an ineligible child under 13 and delete the child’s personal information as required by applicable law.

Participation is void where prohibited. Any geographic restriction or additional legal eligibility requirement must be disclosed before the applicable award period opens; this general provision is not a substitute for required legal review, registration, or disclosures.

4. How to Apply

An eligible student must submit the scholarship application, or affirmatively submit or update the scholarship-entry portion of a 13th Year™ Pathway Profile, during the applicable award period. Creating a general profile alone does not enter a student into every future drawing.

Applications may be submitted through the kiosk, scholarship application page, approved QR code, school link, or another method identified in the notice. If the kiosk is unavailable or a student needs an accessible application method, the student may contact Sponsor or the school for the published free alternative. The same entry limit, deadline, and selection treatment apply to all approved methods.

Required entry information is limited to what is reasonably needed to administer the scholarship, such as name, school, grade, age-eligibility confirmation, a reliable contact method, and required permissions. Government identification numbers, tax forms, banking information, and detailed verification documents are not required in the initial application. Sponsor may request appropriate documentation securely from a potential recipient later.

Pathway interests, college or career preferences, requests for information, promotional communications, and publicity permissions are optional and separate from scholarship entry. Students do not have to watch promotional content, select a partner, request information, enroll in a partner’s services, or consent to advertising or partner data sharing to enter or receive an award.

Limit one entry per student per award period. A student may correct or update the same entry before the deadline without gaining an additional entry. Sponsor will consolidate inadvertent duplicate entries where reasonably possible rather than automatically disqualifying a student for a correctable mistake.

5. Deadlines and Receipt of Applications

Applications must be received by the deadline and in the time zone stated in the award-period notice. Sponsor’s submission records determine receipt, subject to correction of a documented system error. An incomplete application may be corrected before the deadline.

Sponsor will provide a reasonable way to report submission problems. Any remedy for a documented system failure must comply with Section 16, applicable law, and any required regulatory approval. A deadline will not be shortened after applications open.

6. Random Selection and Opportunities for Selection

Sponsor will conduct and document random drawings from eligible entries on the schedule stated in the award-period notice. Each eligible entry has an equal opportunity within its applicable drawing pool. There are no undisclosed judging criteria, preferred pathways, or bonus entries.

For each qualifying school’s award, the drawing pool consists only of eligible entries assigned to that school. An applicant’s opportunity for selection depends on the number of eligible entries in that school’s pool. The number of other schools in the network does not affect that school’s drawing.

The network drawing includes eligible entries from all participating schools that meet the network requirements in Section 2, including entries from schools that do not qualify for a school award. An applicant’s opportunity for selection depends on the number of eligible entries in the network pool.

A student may receive both a school award and the network award in the same award period. Winning a school award does not remove the student’s entry from the network pool or provide an additional entry. Receiving an award in an earlier period does not prevent an otherwise eligible student from entering a later period.

All selections are provisional until verification and acceptance. If a potential recipient is ineligible, declines, cannot be reached after reasonable attempts, or fails to complete required verification by the disclosed response deadline, Sponsor will randomly select an alternate from the remaining eligible entries in the same pool. Sponsor will repeat that process until an eligible recipient accepts or the eligible pool is exhausted, subject to any legally required disposition of unclaimed awards.

7. Verification and School Involvement

Sponsor may verify identity, age, grade, enrollment at the time of application, school assignment, and any other objective requirement stated in these Official Rules. Sponsor remains responsible for eligibility and selection decisions. A school does not select recipients or have an undisclosed veto based on whether it considers a student appropriate to receive an award.

Sponsor may ask an authorized school representative to confirm only the information necessary for eligibility. Even a simple enrollment confirmation may involve protected education records. A student’s agreement to these rules does not replace any separate consent or lawful basis the school needs before disclosing information.

Where written authorization is required, Sponsor will obtain or coordinate a separate signed and dated authorization from the person legally entitled to provide it. The authorization must identify the records or information to be disclosed, the purpose, and the recipient. FERPA consent rights generally belong to the parent until they transfer to the eligible student under applicable law; the age for contracting or accepting an award can be different.

Sponsor will not seek grades, discipline records, disability information, or unrelated school records to administer this Program. If a school cannot confirm eligibility, Sponsor will offer a reasonable alternative, such as a limited enrollment document supplied by the student or authorized parent or guardian. A school’s refusal to disclose protected information is not itself grounds for disqualification.

8. Notification and Communications

Sponsor will contact potential recipients using the scholarship contact information they provide, or through an authorized parent, guardian, or school contact. The applicable notice will state how long a potential recipient has to respond. Sponsor will use reasonable follow-up efforts before selecting an alternate.

Providing a mobile number does not, by itself, authorize promotional texts. If Sponsor offers scholarship-administration texts, students or authorized parents or guardians may choose them through a separate opt-in with the required disclosures and opt-out instructions. Text messaging is optional; an alternative contact method must remain available. Message and data rates may apply. Withdrawing text or promotional consent does not affect scholarship eligibility.

Sponsor may send communications needed to administer an application or award through the selected contact method. Promotional messages and partner follow-up require their own permissions where required by law and do not affect selection.

9. Acceptance and Parent or Guardian Authorization

A potential recipient must provide the eligibility, acceptance, tax, and payment information reasonably necessary to finalize the award. Requests must explain the required documents, the response deadline, and how to submit them securely. Optional publicity releases and promotional consents are not required acceptance documents.

If a potential recipient is below the age of legal majority in the recipient’s place of residence, Sponsor will obtain parent or legal guardian authorization before finalizing the award, unless applicable law permits the recipient to act independently. Sponsor will not assume that age 18 is the age of majority in every jurisdiction. Any required permission for entering or processing personal information must be obtained at the appropriate earlier stage and is not deferred until award acceptance.

10. Payment and Use of Funds

Sponsor will pay awards according to the schedule and payment method disclosed in the applicable notice. Payment will be made within 30 days after verification and acceptance are complete, or sooner if applicable law requires. A delay beyond that period requires a lawful basis and prompt notice to the recipient.

Payment may be made to the recipient, an authorized parent or guardian for a minor, or an education or training provider for the recipient’s benefit, as disclosed before entry and permitted by law. No application fee, processing fee, purchase, donation, or payment to Sponsor is required to release an award.

Awards are intended to support education, training, and preparation for a student’s pathway after high school. Any mandatory spending restriction, payment deferral, or documentation requirement beyond those stated here must be disclosed in the applicable notice before applications open. Awards are not conditioned on attending a particular institution, choosing a particular pathway, or using a partner’s services.

An award may not be assigned or transferred except for an authorized payment arrangement for the recipient’s benefit. Sponsor will not substitute an award of lesser value.

11. Taxes and Financial Aid

The name “scholarship” does not guarantee that an award is tax-free. Tax treatment depends on applicable law, the nature and restrictions of the award, and the recipient’s circumstances. Recipients and their parents or guardians are responsible for taxes legally owed by them and should consult their own advisers about taxes and any effect on financial aid or benefits.

Sponsor will collect tax information securely and perform any reporting or withholding required by federal, state, territorial, or local law. Tax documents will be requested only when reasonably needed for a potential recipient or recipient. Sponsor does not provide individual tax, financial-aid, or legal advice.

12. Privacy and Student Information

Before collecting personal information, Sponsor will make an applicable privacy notice available that explains the information collected, its purposes, recipients, retention, and available privacy rights. These Official Rules do not replace that notice, a required school data agreement, or a separate legally required consent.

Scholarship application information may be used to administer entries and drawings, verify eligibility, communicate about the Program, process awards, maintain necessary records, and meet legal obligations. Sponsor may use service providers for those purposes under appropriate confidentiality, security, and data-use restrictions. Sponsor will not sell scholarship application information or use it for behavioral advertising.

Information will be shared with a college, employer, training provider, military representative, or other pathway partner only through a separate, affirmative request that identifies the recipient and the information to be shared, with any required parent or guardian permission. A request may be declined or withdrawn without affecting scholarship eligibility. Such a request does not authorize a use or disclosure prohibited by student privacy law or a binding school agreement.

Sponsor will use reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards, restrict access to those who need the information, and retain identifiable information only as long as reasonably necessary for the disclosed purpose or a specific legal obligation. Sponsor may use aggregate or de-identified reports only when they reasonably protect students against identification and reidentification, including identification through very small groups. Sponsor will not attempt to reidentify de-identified scholarship data.

Students and authorized parents or guardians may contact Sponsor to request access, correction, deletion, or withdrawal of optional permissions, subject to applicable law. If deletion of information necessary to maintain an entry or verify an award would prevent participation, Sponsor will explain that consequence. Withdrawing an unrelated partner or promotional permission will not withdraw the scholarship entry.

Sponsor and participating schools must comply with the student privacy laws and agreements applicable to their respective roles. Sponsor will not treat the fact that information was submitted directly by a student as eliminating other applicable student privacy obligations.

13. Optional Photos and Publicity

Photos, check presentations, interviews, student stories, school announcements, and other promotional activities are optional. Declining does not affect an award, its amount, or payment timing.

Sponsor will obtain separate written permission before using a student’s identifiable name, image, voice, school association, or story for publicity, together with parent or guardian permission and school approval when required. Any legally required recipient disclosure is handled under Section 17 and is not a blanket publicity license.

14. Student Content

Students retain any intellectual property rights they hold in original content they submit. Sponsor may process application content only for the purposes authorized by these rules, the applicable privacy notice, and any separate valid permission. Entry does not grant a general advertising license or permission to use a student’s likeness.

15. Accuracy and Disqualification

Sponsor may disqualify an entry for a documented failure to meet a published eligibility requirement, intentional material misrepresentation, automated or fraudulent entry, or tampering that affects the integrity of the Program. Sponsor will apply the same standards consistently and permit correction of an ordinary, nonfraudulent mistake when reasonably possible without unfairly affecting other applicants.

A shared household email address, an inadvertent duplicate, an unrelated optional preference, or refusal to participate in publicity is not by itself grounds for disqualification. Any identity dispute will be resolved using reasonable verification rather than assuming the adult account holder is the student applicant.

16. Errors and Changes to the Program

Sponsor may correct a technical or administrative error or take a necessary step in response to fraud, a serious disruption beyond its reasonable control, or a legal requirement. Any change affecting an open award period must be permitted by applicable law, receive any required regulatory approval before implementation, and be communicated promptly through the same channels used to announce the period.

Sponsor will preserve valid entries and the advertised awards to the greatest extent legally and practically possible. Sponsor may not use ordinary funding shortfalls, growth in the number of participating schools, or administrative convenience to reduce advertised award amounts or add new eligibility restrictions after applications open. Suspension or cancellation is permitted only when lawful and necessary, with any required notice, approval, and treatment of outstanding awards.

Amendments for future periods will be published before those periods open. Sponsor will retain the rules, notices, drawing records, and award records for each period as required by law. A general right to amend these rules does not authorize a change otherwise prohibited by law or a filed promotion’s requirements.

17. Required Disclosures and Recipient Information

Where required by law, Sponsor will provide the complete rules and notice in each language used to promote the award period. Abbreviated promotional statements must accurately reflect the complete rules and direct students to them.

Sponsor will provide prize, recipient, regulatory, and other information required by applicable law. Where legally required, a supplemental notice or filing may disclose award numbers, aggregate prize values, or recipient information. These Official Rules do not authorize withholding required information on grounds of business confidentiality.

Outside legally required disclosures, Sponsor will limit disclosure of identifiable recipient information to what is authorized by appropriate consent. Requests for a legally required recipient list may be sent to the contact below; Sponsor will provide the information within the applicable legal requirements while using any permitted protections for minors and personal information.

18. Responsibility and Disputes

Sponsor will administer the Program fairly and comply with its obligations under applicable law. Ordinary device or transmission problems may affect access, but they do not excuse Sponsor from paying an award that is legally owed.

Nothing in these Official Rules waives a participant’s nonwaivable rights, a regulator’s authority, or liability that may not lawfully be limited. Participation does not impose a blanket liability release, mandatory arbitration, or a class-action waiver. Any dispute may be brought in a court or other forum with lawful jurisdiction. Sponsor’s eligibility and administrative decisions remain subject to applicable law and lawful review.

The Program is subject to applicable federal, state, territorial, and local law. A legally invalid provision does not invalidate the remaining provisions to the extent they can lawfully operate. Headings are for convenience and do not change the rules.

19. Sponsor and Contact Information

13TH YEAR LLC
5105 Oakview Lane North, Suite 100
Plymouth, MN 55442, USA

Email: contact@13th-year.com
Website: 13th-Year.com

Contact Sponsor for the current award-period notice, your school’s scholarship eligibility, an accessible application method, privacy requests, or questions about these Official Rules.