Terms of Service

Welcome to the Ascend Academy Learning Hub at learn.ascendacademy.org (the “Platform”), operated by Ascend Speech & Debate (“Ascend,” “we,” “us”). By creating an account or using the Platform, you agree to these Terms. If you don’t agree, please don’t use the Platform.

1. Who Can Use the Platform

The Platform is intended for students preparing for competitive Congressional Debate, the parents and guardians who support them, and educators or coaches who work with them. Users under 13 must have verifiable parental consent before creating an account. By creating an account, you confirm that the information you provide is accurate, that you have authority to provide any parent/guardian contact information you submit, and that you will keep your account credentials confidential.

2. Your Account

• You’re responsible for activity that happens under your account.
• Don’t share your password. If you suspect unauthorized access, email info@ascendspeech.org immediately.
• One person, one account. Don’t impersonate another person or organization.
• You can request deletion of your account at any time by emailing us.

3. Acceptable Use

The Platform is for personal, educational use. You agree not to:

• Reverse-engineer, scrape, or attempt to extract the curriculum content for redistribution.
• Use automated tools to interact with the Platform in ways that interfere with normal operation.
• Upload or transmit malicious code, harassing content, or material that infringes someone else’s rights.
• Attempt to circumvent authentication, rate limits, or access controls.
• Use the Platform to harass, intimidate, or impersonate other users.

We may suspend or terminate accounts that violate these rules.

4. Curriculum and Content

All lessons, quizzes, videos, badges, graphics, and other materials on the Platform are owned by Ascend Speech & Debate or licensed to us. We grant you a limited, personal, non-transferable license to access this content for your own learning. You may not copy, redistribute, or use the content commercially without written permission. Quoting short passages for educational purposes (e.g., showing a friend a Block Format example) is fine; reposting whole modules is not.

Some lessons embed third-party videos (such as YouTube). Those videos are governed by the third party’s own terms.

5. Free Service, No Guarantee

The Platform is currently provided free of charge. We may add paid features in the future and will give you advance notice if we do. While we work hard to keep the Platform running smoothly, we don’t guarantee uninterrupted access. We may add, change, or remove features at any time.

6. Privacy

Our handling of your information is governed by our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference. Please read it.

7. Marketing Communications

If you opt in during signup or in your settings, we may send you news about Ascend programs (summer camps, Sandel Academy coaching, etc.). You can unsubscribe at any time from any marketing email or by contacting info@ascendspeech.org. Service emails (signup confirmation, password resets, important notices) are not marketing and continue regardless of preferences.

8. Disclaimers

The Platform is provided “as is.” To the fullest extent permitted by law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. Performance in real Congressional Debate rounds depends on many factors, including practice, judging variability, and individual coaching. We can’t guarantee any specific competitive outcome.

9. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Ascend Speech & Debate, its team, and its service providers are not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from or related to your use of the Platform. Our total liability for any claim related to the Platform will not exceed one hundred U.S. dollars ($100) or the amount you have paid us, whichever is greater.

10. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. If changes are material, we’ll update the “Last updated” date and, where appropriate, notify you by email or in-app notice. Continued use after changes means you accept the updated Terms.

11. Termination

You can stop using the Platform at any time and request account deletion. We may suspend or terminate accounts for violations of these Terms or for legal reasons, with notice where reasonable.

12. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to conflict-of-laws principles. Disputes will be resolved in the state or federal courts located in California, and you consent to the personal jurisdiction of those courts.

13. Contact

Questions about these Terms? Email info@ascendspeech.org.