Youth safety

Under 16: we contact the sponsor, not you

When someone under 16registers interest, the submission is marked “needs sponsor confirmation.” A person at CENTS contacts the young person only through the sponsor’s email address, never directly, and no email is sent automatically. If the sponsor has not confirmed within 30days, the submission and the sponsor’s email address are deleted.

The researcher portal

The portal is an invite-only pilot for ages 13 and up. An invite for anyone under 16 can only be created with a recorded sponsor confirmation. The portal has no messaging of any kind, no comments and no uploads, and no adult at CENTS contacts a young person through it. Accounts use a username, never a real name, and collect no email, birth date, photo, phone number or address. See what it collects and how long it is kept, and report a concern at any time.

Outreach to officials

Approved researchers can ask the portal to record emails to adults who hold public jobs, such as legislators, district officials and school staff. The portal only records outreach and never sends it. Only a public work address, published by the person for their job, is accepted. The portal rejects personal email addresses, phone numbers and anything that looks like a student’s contact.

• Every email must copy a CENTS outreach address, and a send is recorded only with proof that it was copied.
• Researchers under 16 do not send these emails and cannot record them. A CENTS adult sends on their behalf, from a CENTS account, and records it. The adult writes only to the official, never to the young person through the portal.
• The email wording is fixed and makes no claim that anyone supports or works with CENTS.

No one-on-one messages

Adults who hold CENTS roles do not send private, one-on-one messages to anyone under 18. Communication with delegates happens in group channels where more than one adult, or a sponsor, can see it.

What sponsors do

A sponsor is a parent or teacher who knows a young person is taking part. A sponsor:

• agrees to the code of conduct and this policy;
• is available to review the young person’s records request before it is filed;
• can see, or take part in, the group channels the young person is in; and
• can ask for the young person’s data to be deleted at any time.

What we do not collect

We do not collect full names, birth dates, ages, photos, home addresses or phone numbers. The join form records age only as a yes-or-no answer to “I am 13 or older,” and cannot be sent without it. It asks for a nickname, email, state, an optional district, the way you want to take part and an optional note. If you say you are under 16with a sponsor, it also asks for your sponsor’s email and whether the sponsor has agreed to the code of conduct. Please do not put anyone’s personal information in a note or message. See data and privacy.

How to report a concern

Email contact@centscampaign.orgwith what happened and where. Mark it “Youth safety.”

If a child is in immediate danger, call your local emergency number. To report suspected abuse or neglect, contact your local child protective services or law enforcement; the U.S. government’s Child Welfare Information Gateway explains how.