Terms of Service

Last updated October 30, 2026

Who these terms are between

These terms are an agreement between Taft Ranch, LLC ("we", "us"), which operates Gradus K12, and the school or district that uses it (the "School"). The person who signs the School up, or who accepts these terms for it, confirms that they are allowed to agree on the School's behalf. Teachers, staff and students use Gradus K12 through the School's account, under these terms.

If the School has signed a separate written agreement with us, such as a student data privacy agreement (for example, the California Student Data Privacy Agreement), that agreement wins wherever it differs from these terms.

The service

Gradus K12 is classroom management software for schools: hall passes and classroom kiosks, a time clock and attendance tools, a classroom economy, behavior (PBIS), reports, the Training Center, and connections to Google Classroom and Aeries. The School chooses which of these it uses. We may improve, change or retire features over time. If we remove something the School relies on, we'll tell the School ahead of time.

Free during the beta

Gradus K12 is in beta and free to use. We won't charge the School anything unless the School agrees in writing to a price first. If we start charging, we'll give the School at least 30 days' notice, and the School can stop using Gradus K12 instead, with its data handled as described under "Ending the service" below.

Because it's a beta, some features are still being built and things may occasionally not work as expected. Please tell us when something's wrong, using Report a problem in the app or by email.

Accounts

• The School decides who gets an account (staff, students and classroom kiosks) and what each staff title can see and do.
• The School keeps its rosters accurate and removes accounts for people who leave.
• Everyone keeps their own sign-in private. Staff sign in with two-step verification. A student's PIN is for that student only.
• The School tells us right away if it suspects someone has used an account without permission.

Using it the right way

The School, its staff and its students agree not to:

• use Gradus K12 to break the law or anyone's rights, or to harass, embarrass or single out a student;
• try to see records they aren't allowed to see, use someone else's account, or get around a sign-in or security setting;
• test, probe or attack Gradus K12's security (if you find a problem, please report it to privacy@gradusk12.com with "Security" in the subject, and we'll thank you);
• copy, resell or reverse engineer Gradus K12, or overload it on purpose; or
• put information into Gradus K12 that the School isn't allowed to share with us.

We may pause an account that's being misused, and we'll tell the School why.

Student data belongs to the School

The School owns all student records and other information it or its users put into Gradus K12. Our privacy policy is part of these terms and explains in detail what we collect and how we protect it. In short:

• We work for the School. Under FERPA we act as a "school official" with a legitimate educational interest, under the School's direct control, and we use student information only to provide Gradus K12 to the School.
• No selling, no ads, no profiles. We never sell or rent student information, never use it for advertising of any kind, and never build a profile of a student except for the School's own purposes (California's SOPIPA and Education Code 49073.1).
• No AI training. We don't send student information to AI services or use it to train AI.
• Families can review and correct. Parents, guardians and students 18 or older can review records and ask for corrections through the School, and we help the School respond.
• Students keep their own work. Students don't create original work (essays, uploads) in Gradus K12. Where a student's records are theirs to keep, the School can export them and give them to the student or family.
• Security. Data is stored in the United States, encrypted in transit and at rest, and kept separate for each school. Access is limited by sign-in and role, and staff access to student records is logged.
• If something goes wrong. If student information is accessed or disclosed without authorization, we'll notify the School within 72 hours of discovering it and help the School notify families as the law requires.
• Service providers. We use a small number of providers (such as Google Cloud) under contracts that protect data at least as well as our privacy policy, and we'll tell the School before adding one that handles student information.
• Legal requests. If a court or agency asks us for student information, we'll refer it to the School and tell the School first, unless the law forbids it.

What the School is responsible for

• Having the right to share its student and staff information with us, including any notices to families and, for students under 13, consent on parents' behalf as COPPA allows.
• Supervising students. Gradus K12 helps staff keep track of hall passes, attendance and behavior, but it doesn't replace staff supervision or the School's own safety procedures, and it is not an emergency alert system. In an emergency, call 911 and follow the School's procedures.
• Its official records. The School's student information system (such as Aeries) stays the official record of attendance and grades. Gradus K12's records help staff, but the School decides what goes into its official records.

Training Center content

The Training Center's scenarios, practice sets and exams (including its emergency medical content) are for classroom learning. They are not medical advice, they don't certify anyone, and they don't replace a course approved by the agency that certifies EMTs or other professionals. Always follow your instructor, your local protocols and your certifying agency.

Google Classroom, Aeries and other services

When the School or a teacher connects another service, such as Google Classroom or Aeries, that service's own terms also apply to its use. We use those connections only as our privacy policy describes, and the School or teacher can disconnect them at any time.

Our software

We own Gradus K12, including its software, design and our own content (such as the Training Center's scenarios). While these terms are in effect, the School and its users may use Gradus K12 for the School's educational purposes. If the School sends us ideas or suggestions, we may use them to improve Gradus K12 without owing anything for them.

Keeping it running

We work to keep Gradus K12 available during the school day, and we watch for problems around the clock. We may occasionally need to take it down for maintenance, which we'll schedule outside school hours when we can. During the beta we can't promise any particular uptime.

Ending the service

The School can stop using Gradus K12 at any time by writing to us. We can end the service for a School with 30 days' written notice, or sooner if the School seriously breaks these terms and doesn't fix it after we tell it.

Before the service ends, the School can export its records. Once it ends, or whenever the School asks, we delete the School's data, including backup copies, within 90 days, unless the law requires us to keep it longer. We'll confirm the deletion in writing on request.

No warranties

Gradus K12 is a beta, provided "as is" and "as available". To the extent the law allows, we make no promises beyond those written in these terms and our privacy policy, including any implied promise that Gradus K12 is fit for a particular purpose or free of errors.

Limits on liability

To the extent the law allows, neither the School nor we are liable to the other for indirect or consequential damages, such as lost profits or lost data that could have been exported, and each side's total liability under these terms is limited to the greater of $100 or the amount the School paid us in the 12 months before the claim. These limits don't apply where the law doesn't allow them to.

Changes to these terms

We'll update the date above when these terms change, and we'll tell the School at least 30 days before a significant change takes effect. We won't change how we use student information in a significant way without the School's agreement. Earlier versions are available on request.

Other things

• Which law applies. These terms are governed by the laws of California, and any dispute will be heard in the courts of Butte County, California. For a public school or district outside California, the laws of its own state apply instead, along with its own courts.
• Public records. We understand that a public school may have to release these terms under public records laws.
• Passing these terms on. Neither side may transfer these terms to someone else without the other's written permission, except that we may transfer them to a company that takes over Gradus K12 and keeps following these terms and our privacy policy. We'll tell the School first, and it can have its data deleted.
• The whole agreement. These terms, our privacy policy and any separate written agreement with the School are the whole agreement about Gradus K12. If part of these terms can't be enforced, the rest still applies.

Contact

Gradus K12 is operated by Taft Ranch, LLC, California. Notices about these terms: jtaft@gradusk12.com. Privacy questions: privacy@gradusk12.com. We send notices to the School at the email address of its Gradus K12 admin.