This Financial Policies document explains the distinct financial responsibilities guides, student families, and Prenda have throughout the school year.
Introduction
Welcome to the 2024-2025 school year!
This Financial Policies document explains the distinct financial responsibilities guides, student families, and Prenda have throughout the school year.
We encourage guides and student families to thoroughly review this document to clearly understand Prenda’s Direct Pay financial policies and processes. Please use the table of contents below to navigate to any policies that best fit your particular situation.
As always, please do not hesitate to reach out to Prenda at support@prenda.com.
Table of Contents
Guide Relationship with Prenda
Eligibility for Guide Payment Services
Monthly Student Fees: the Prenda fee and Guide fee
Delayed Start PolicyPrenda Financial Policy Disclaimers
Guide Relationship with Prenda
- Each guide is an independent business owner, who is solely responsible for operating their own microschool.
- Prenda is an educational platform that provides services to help each guide run their microschool business.
- For guides who are eligible, guides are paid by the student families in their microschool through a monthly subscription. Guides are not paid by Prenda.
- To make it convenient for student families to pay guides, Prenda uses a third-party payment processor to transmit all payments from families to guides.
- Prenda also collects a platform fee (the Prenda fee) through the third-party payment processor as part of those payments.
- A guide is not a Prenda employee, independent contractor, agent, or partner.
- Guides will not receive a 1099 or W2 from Prenda, and Prenda will not withhold or pay any taxes on a guide’s behalf.
- Guides are paid the guide fee for each student only after a student’s monthly subscription fees have been paid in full. Payment is not guaranteed if student families do not pay their monthly subscription fees.
- Prenda is not responsible for mediating any financial disputes between guides and student families.
Eligibility for Guide Payment Services
- A guide may charge a guide fee and be eligible for guide payment services if they have a multi-family microschool with Prenda meeting these requirements:
- Two or more students must be registered in the microschool
- At least one of those students is non-custodial
- Prenda considers a guide to be a custodian of a student if they are one of the following: a parent, step-parent, or legal guardian
- A microschool that does not meet these requirements is considered a single-family microschool, and the guide is not eligible for guide payment services.
Monthly Student Fees: the Prenda fee and Guide fee
- There is a flat rate cost per student per month to use Prenda.
- For students in multi-family microschools, the monthly student rate comprises both the Prenda fee and guide fee.
- For students in single-family microschools, the monthly student rate comprises the Prenda fee only because the guide is not eligible for guide payment services.
- Monthly fees are processed through an automatic subscription payment. The first payment is processed on the first day of the student’s enrollment. Subsequent payments are automatically charged on the 1st of each month, with the final charge occurring in the last month of the guide’s school calendar.
- By registering a student in a guide’s microschool, the student’s family agrees to pay the entirety of their student’s monthly fees for the length of the guide’s microschool calendar.
Prenda Fee
- The Prenda fee is a monthly fixed rate of $219.90 per student.
- Prenda retains this fee, which grants access to Prenda’s services, offering guides the structure, tools, and support necessary to run a successful microschool. Examples of services included are listed below.
- Student services:
- Student-centered K-8 education platform (Prenda World)
- Daily academic progress planning tools
- Mastery-based curriculum
- Learning tool licenses for 20+ tools
- Access to on-demand math tutoring
- Virtual field trips
- Quarterly Prenda-wide student challenges
- Guide services:
- Student monthly subscription management
- Guide payment services for multi-family microschools
- Microschool profile with a personalized website to invite families to the guide’s microschool
- On-demand support from Prenda’s dedicated support team of experienced educators
- Step-by-step training on how to implement the Prenda learning experience
- Access to a supportive, vibrant guide community, in-person and virtual events, and numerous professional development courses
- Access to experienced academic coaches for help with struggling students
- Admin tools–personalized school calendar, attendance taking, materials ordering, and tracking student data
- Student services:
- Each student signs up for an individual subscription in the guide’s microschool; however, all guides agree to ensure the Prenda fee is paid for each student in their microschool.
- If a student defaults on their monthly subscription payment, any outstanding Prenda fees will be invoiced to the guide directly. For additional information, please see Prenda’s Non-Payment Policy.
Guide Fee
- The guide fee is a monthly fee set by the guide and will vary by guide or microschool.
- The guide fee covers microschool services provided by the guide.
- Guides set a monthly guide fee for their microschool each school year during onboarding.
- Student families are encouraged to find a microschool that fits into their budget.
- Once any students are registered in the microschool, the guide fee may not be increased without written consent from each family enrolled in the microschool. The guide fee may be lowered at any time without written consent.
- If the guide is also the custodian (parent, step-parent, or legal guardian) of the student, the student is unable to be billed for the guide fee and will be billed for the Prenda fee only.
Billing Process
- During onboarding, guides create a school calendar, specifying how many months their school year will last. This school calendar length determines the subscription length for students registering in their microschool.
- As part of the student registration process, families will set up a monthly subscription for each student they are registering.
- Student families agree that their payment method may be charged each month for the length of the microschool calendar.
Billing Schedule
- The first monthly subscription payment will be processed on the student’s first day in the microschool. Students are charged for the entire month regardless of the number of days the microschool meets that month.
- Subscription payments for subsequent months take effect on the 1st of the month.
- The last subscription payment is processed on the 1st day of the final month of the microschool’s calendar. Learning tool access will end on the last day of that month.
- Student families will receive an emailed receipt each time their payment method is charged.
- For students registered after the 1st of the month, students who transfer guides within a month, and students who withdraw early please see Prenda’s Delayed Start Policy, Withdrawal Policy, and Transfer Policy.
- Any student whose monthly payment has not been paid in full by the last day of the month will be subject to Prenda’s Non-Payment Policy.
Guide Payment Overview
- Prenda uses a third-party payment processor to assist eligible guides in collecting guide fees from students in their microschool.
- During onboarding, guides create a school calendar, specifying how many months their school year will last. This school calendar length determines the subscription length for students registering in their microschool.
- The subscription length will determine how many months each student is charged as well as how many months the guide fee will be paid from the student to the guide.
- Guides are paid the guide fee for each student only after a student’s monthly subscription fees have been paid in full. Payment is not guaranteed if student families do not pay their monthly subscription fees.
- After a student’s monthly subscription is successfully processed, the third-party payment processor transmits the Prenda fee to Prenda at the same time it transmits the guide fee to the guide’s account.
Third-Party Payment Processor
- Student fees are paid to guides via Stripe, a third-party payment platform.
- Guides will set up their Stripe account as part of the onboarding process.
- Stripe is free to use unless a guide chooses to enable Instant Payouts, which allows the guide to forgo the standard two-business-day processing time and have funds deposited on the same day for a fee.
Guide Payment Timeline
- Payments will become available in the guide’s Stripe account once a student’s monthly subscription is successfully processed. Student monthly subscriptions follow the schedule below:
- The first monthly subscription payment will be processed on the student’s first day in the microschool.
- Subscription payments for subsequent months will be processed on the 1st of the month.
- The last subscription payment is processed on the 1st day of the final month of the microschool’s calendar.
- Once funds are available in the guide’s Stripe account, they are able to receive payouts of those funds to a designated bank account or debit card.
- Guides choose their payout schedule and may set up automatic payouts in their Stripe account settings.
- Payouts generally take two business days to be deposited after they have been initiated.
Payment Example
- The guide starts a microschool in August with ten students. All ten students start on August 15th. The students receive their first monthly subscription charge on August 15th and their second monthly charge on September 1st. Automatic charges will continue on the 1st of each month until the microschool’s last month of the school year.
- Funds are available in the guide’s Stripe account each month after student payments have been processed. After the guide initiates a payout on those funds, they will be available in the guide’s bank account about two business days later.
Delayed Start Policy
Who this policy applies to: Any Prenda student who enrolls in a guide’s microschool on or after the 1st of the month.
Prenda Fee & Guide Fee
- Prenda does not prorate monthly subscriptions.
- Students are charged the full monthly Prenda fee of $219.90 and the full monthly guide fee if their student is enrolled at any point in a given month.
Withdrawal Policy
Who this policy applies to: Any student who withdraws entirely from Prenda in a given month.
Withdrawal Process
- The family or guide must notify Prenda of any student withdrawal in writing either via an email to support@prenda.com or by filling out the Student Information Change Request Form.
- Prenda must be notified of a withdrawal no more than 5 business days after the student’s last day in the microschool.
- Once a withdrawal is processed, both the student’s family and guide will receive written notification via email and the monthly subscription will be canceled for all future monthly payments.
Prenda Fee & Guide Fee
- Students will be charged both the monthly Prenda fee of $219.90 and the monthly guide fee if the student was enrolled at any point in a given month.
- No refunds will be processed for partial month enrollment. The only time a refund will be considered is if Prenda made a mistake on enrollment or withdrawal dates.
- The only way to not be charged the monthly fee is if the student is not enrolled for any days in that given month.
Transfer Policy
Who this policy applies to: Any student who is transferring from one guide’s Prenda microschool to another guide’s Prenda microschool on or after the 1st of the month.
Transfer Timing Recommendations
- Prenda strongly recommends that students transfer at the end of a month to prevent multiple monthly payments being processed for a student.
Transfer Process and Invoice Handling
- The family, 1st guide, or 2nd guide must notify Prenda of any student transfer request in writing either via an email to support@prenda.com or by filling out the Student Information Change Request Form.
- Prenda must be notified of a student transfer request no more than 5 business days after the student’s last day in the microschool with the 1st guide.
- Once a transfer request is received, Prenda will do the following:
- If there is no outstanding balance with the 1st guide on the student’s account, Prenda will process the transfer request, and the student’s family and both guides will receive written notification via email once the transfer is complete.
- If an outstanding amount with the 1st guide is due on the student’s account, Prenda will not process the transfer request until the outstanding amount has been paid in full. Where applicable, Prenda will send a bill to the student’s family within 5 business days of receiving the transfer request.
- Once the outstanding balance has been paid in full, Prenda will cancel the first subscription, process the transfer request, and the student’s family and both guides will receive written notification via email once the transfer is complete.
- Once the transfer has been processed, the student’s family will set up a new monthly subscription with the 2nd guide.
Prenda Fee & Guide Fee
- Prenda does not prorate monthly subscriptions.
- In the month of a transfer, the student will have two subscription payments. The first payment will be automatically charged on the 1st of the month for the 1st guide’s full monthly guide fee. The second payment will be charged on the student’s first day in the 2nd guide’s microschool for that guide’s full monthly guide fee.
- The student’s subscription will then continue automatically each subsequent month at the 2nd guide’s rate for the remainder of their enrollment.
- Once the student’s subscription with the 2nd guide has been set up, the Prenda fee on the 2nd subscription for that month will be refunded.
- The student will not be responsible for more than a total Prenda fee of $219.90 across both subscriptions for mid-month transfers.
Non-Payment Policy
Who this policy applies to: Any enrolled student whose monthly payment has not been processed and paid in full by the end of a given month.
Please note: Payments to guides come directly from payments made by the families of students enrolled in that guide’s microschool. Non-payment on the part of a student’s family prevents their guide from receiving any payment for guiding that student.
Non-Payment Procedure
- Prenda will email a notice of a pending enrollment block due to non-payment to the guide and family. This email will serve as a final notice and will include payment remittance instructions.
- If the subscription remains unpaid, Prenda will do the following:
- The student’s subscription will be canceled.
- The student’s access to the Prenda platform will be deactivated.
- An enrollment block will be placed on the student’s account.
- This means the student cannot enroll in any Prenda microschools, including in future school years until their previously unpaid balance is paid in full.
- The outstanding Prenda fee balance from the student’s invoice will be invoiced to the guide.
Prenda Financial Policy Disclaimers
- If a guide or student family believes that there was an error in the Prenda fee or guide fee calculations, they have 30 days to reach out to Prenda or the right to dispute the fees will be waived. Any correction will be addressed promptly after resolution.
- Guides, at their discretion, may remove a student from their microschool at any time for non-payment.
- Guides, at their discretion, may create their own policies regarding their guide fee and microschool operations, but may not modify or override the Prenda Financial Policies.