At Help Me Sprout, Inc., we are committed to administering all scholarships, grants, and charitable programs with integrity, fairness, transparency, and impartiality.

To protect the trust of our applicants, donors, volunteers, and community partners, all funding decisions are made in accordance with our Conflict of Interest Policy.

A conflict of interest exists whenever an individual involved in evaluating or approving an application has a personal, financial, or professional relationship that could influence—or appear to influence—their judgment.

Examples of potential conflicts of interest include, but are not limited to:

• An application submitted by a current or former Board member, officer, employee, volunteer, or Scholarship Review Committee member.

• An application submitted by an immediate family member or relative of an individual involved in the review or approval process.

• An application submitted by a close personal friend of an individual involved in the review or approval process.

• An application involving a current or former business partner, employer, employee, or contractor of an individual involved in the decision-making process.

• Any situation in which an evaluator could receive a direct or indirect financial or personal benefit from the outcome of the decision.

• Any circumstance that could reasonably create the appearance of favoritism or bias.

Any individual with an actual, potential, or perceived conflict of interest must immediately disclose the conflict and recuse themselves from reviewing, discussing, recommending, or voting on the affected application.

Help Me Sprout, Inc. will not award scholarships or other charitable funds based on personal relationships, favoritism, or influence. Scholarship decisions are made by an independent Scholarship Review Committee using fair, objective, and consistently applied selection criteria.

Our commitment to ethical stewardship ensures that every applicant receives equal consideration and that every charitable dollar is awarded in a manner consistent with our mission, our values, and the public trust.