Transparency & Trust
This page explains what NSRI is, what it is not, how publication pathways are defined, and how students, donors, collaborators, and readers should understand NSRI programs.
What NSRI Is
NSRI is a student-led research project fiscally sponsored by The Hack Foundation, d.b.a. Hack Club, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The Hack Foundation retains sole discretion and control over all funds received for NSRI.
What NSRI Is Not
NSRI does not guarantee publication, awards, admission advantages, external institutional endorsement, or research outcomes. NSRI provides infrastructure, editorial support, research pathways, and access-focused programming for student researchers.
Fiscal Sponsorship
NSRI is a student-led research project fiscally sponsored by The Hack Foundation, d.b.a. Hack Club, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The Hack Foundation retains sole discretion and control over all funds received for NSRI.
Leadership and Advisor Roles
NSRI is student-led. Advisors, mentors, collaborators, editors, and partner organizations may support specific activities, but their presence does not imply endorsement by any institution unless explicitly stated.
Publication Pathway Definitions
Journal Publication means a manuscript has been selected for formal publication in the NSRI Student Research Journal after editorial evaluation.
Research Archive is broader and may include student manuscripts submitted through NSRI or research completed through another venue. An NSRI archived submission is a student manuscript submitted through NSRI that meets baseline quality and integrity standards but is not selected for formal journal publication.
Research completed through another venue, repository, journal, conference, preprint server, school platform, or publication pathway may be archived by NSRI as a public research record.
Archive hosting does not necessarily indicate formal publication in the NSRI Student Research Journal. It may mean NSRI is preserving, indexing, or displaying a record of student research.
Submissions with major concerns in originality, ethics, authorship, rigor, safety, or integrity are rejected or returned for revision.
Student Payment and Fee Transparency
NSRI should clearly describe any fees, waivers, donations, competition payments, or optional costs before students or families pay. Payment should not be described as a guarantee of publication, awards, acceptance, or outcomes.
Donor Privacy
Donors may request that their names, donation amounts, or identifying information not be publicly displayed. NSRI should not publicly expose donor information without clear consent.
Complaints and Reporting
Students, parents, authors, readers, and collaborators may contact NSRI about ethics, authorship, safety, privacy, accessibility, or publication concerns through the contact page.
Affiliation Disclaimer
References to collaborators, advisors, mentors, schools, journals, repositories, or partner organizations do not imply institutional endorsement unless explicitly stated.