Storage & Delivery Policy

1About This Policy

We know that trusting someone to safeguard a classroom’s memories for a decade or more is a big ask. This Policy is meant to show exactly how that works — what we do, what we ask of you, and what to expect at each milestone. Our goal is simple: when your students reach their senior year, their capsule is delivered intact and on time.

2The Capsule Journey at a Glance

1. You create and seal the capsule in your classroom using the included kit and lesson.
2. You return it to us with the prepaid shipping label.
3. We log and store it in our climate-controlled, secure facility, tracked by a unique Capsule ID.
4. We maintain your records for the full storage term and rely on you to keep contacts and the destination school current.
5. We reach out as senior year approaches and coordinate delivery with the destination high school.
6. The capsule is delivered for the senior-year opening, with an opening ceremony guide for the receiving school.

3Returning Your Capsule to Us

After your class completes the capsule, you seal it following the instructions in your kit and send it back to us. Each kit includes a prepaid return shipping label.

• Make sure every student’s pages and the class photo are inside, and that the lid label is filled out (class, school, year, and projected graduation year).
• Seal the capsule as instructed and attach the prepaid label.
• Drop it at any UPS location, or schedule a pickup.
• We recommend returning the capsule within ninety (90) days of receiving your kit.

Please keep a photo of your Capsule ID card for your own records before shipping. If a capsule is not returned within twelve (12) months of kit shipment and no other arrangement has been made, the reservation may be treated as fulfilled, as described in the Terms.

4When Your Capsule Arrives

When your sealed capsule reaches us, we:

1. Confirm receipt and inspect the exterior (we do not open sealed capsules);
2. Record it in our system under its unique Capsule ID;
3. Link the Capsule ID to your school, classroom, teacher, school year, approximate student count, projected graduation year, and destination school;
4. Place it into climate-controlled storage and note its storage location.

We can confirm intake to your designated contact on request. From this point forward, no action is required from your school until the delivery window approaches.

5How We Store Your Capsule

• Climate-controlled. Capsules are kept in a temperature- and humidity-managed environment intended to protect paper, photographs, drawings, and keepsakes over the long term. <
• Secure. The facility uses access controls and physical security measures appropriate for long-term storage.
• Tracked. Every capsule is identified by its unique Capsule ID and logged location, with records maintained throughout the storage term.
• Periodically reviewed. We perform reasonable, periodic integrity checks of our storage and records.

We may relocate, consolidate, or change storage facilities or providers over time, while maintaining a comparable standard of care. Storage for the full term is included in your one-time program fee — there are no recurring storage charges.

6Storage Term by Grade Level

The storage term depends on the grade level at which the capsule is created — it ends at the projected senior-year delivery. Approximate terms:

Projected graduation is generally the current school year plus the number of years until the class completes 12th grade. For example, a 2nd-grade class in the 2025–2026 school year would be projected to graduate around 2036.

7Recordkeeping & Keeping Your Details Current

We maintain your capsule’s records for the full storage term. The single most important thing you can do to ensure smooth delivery is to keep your information current with us. Over a decade, staff change, families move, and schools reorganize.

We recommend that you

• Designate a durable backup contact — ideally the school’s main office or the district office — in addition to an individual contact;
• Review and update your destination high school and contacts when students reach about 7th or 8th grade;
• Notify us promptly of any change in contact details, school assignment, or delivery information.

You can send updates anytime to info@theclassroomvault.com. We rely on the information on file and are not responsible for delivery delays or failures caused by outdated records where no update was provided.

8The Delivery Timeline

As your students’ senior year approaches, we begin the delivery process:

1. About 12–18 months before the projected senior year, we contact the designated contact on file and the destination high school to begin coordination.
2. We confirm the destination and verify the school can receive the capsule, redirecting to a successor institution if needed.
3. We schedule a delivery date with the school — ideally timed to a meaningful senior-year moment.
4. We ship the capsule securely to the destination school with tracking, along with the opening ceremony guide and materials.

Timing is an estimate based on the grade level at creation and typical K–12 progression, and may vary with school calendars and availability.

9Senior-Year Delivery & the Opening

Delivery is to the destination school, not to individual students. We deliver each capsule to the single high school designated for it. We do not deliver to, contact, or track individual students, and we cannot guarantee that any particular student will attend that school or be present at the opening. Notifying former students and facilitating the opening are the receiving school’s responsibility.

Along with the capsule, the receiving school gets an opening ceremony guide with several format options, a program explanation letter for staff, and parent-notification templates. How and when the school holds the opening is up to them; we provide the resources, not the event itself.

10School Changes, Closures & Moves

If a sending or destination school is renamed, relocated, merged, consolidated, or closed during the storage term, we use the records and contacts on file to identify and deliver to the appropriate successor institution. Delivery to a successor or merged school satisfies our delivery obligation. This is exactly why we recommend a durable backup contact such as a district office — it gives us a reliable way to reach someone years later.

11If We Cannot Reach You or Deliver

If, after reasonable efforts during and after the delivery window, we are unable to deliver a capsule — for example, because no school or successor will accept it, or because the contacts on file are no longer reachable — we will attempt to notify the last known contact. If a capsule remains undeliverable for twenty-four (24) months after the delivery window, we may, after reasonable notice and at our discretion, return it to the last known school or contact at the customer’s expense, or securely store, donate, or responsibly dispose of it, as described in the Terms. Keeping your contacts current is the best way to prevent this.

12Capsule Condition Over Time

We take reasonable care to protect capsules, but paper, ink, and photographs naturally age, and long-term storage carries inherent risks. We cannot guarantee that contents will be free of natural aging or deterioration after many years. To protect the contents:

• Follow the kit’s guidance on what to include — flat, stable, archival-friendly materials hold up best;
• Do not include perishables, liquids, food, batteries, or items of significant monetary or sentimental value;
• Consider the optional Digital Archive add-on if you would like a scanned backup of selected materials.

13Early Retrieval Requests

If you need a capsule back before its scheduled delivery, contact us. Early retrieval is handled case-by-case. We may require written authorization from an appropriate contact, may charge a reasonable retrieval and shipping fee, and will return the capsule to a verified address at your expense. Early retrieval ends our storage and delivery obligations for that capsule, and the program fee is not refunded.

14Damage, Loss & Claims

We use commercially reasonable care, but no storage is perfectly risk-free. Our responsibilities and the limits on our liability — including for damage, loss, force-majeure events, and the value of irreplaceable contents — are set out in our Terms & Conditions. If you believe there is an issue with your capsule or its delivery, contact us promptly and we will work with you in good faith.

15Questions & Contact

Questions about storage or delivery, or updates to your records, can be sent to:

The Classroom Vault
Midwest Educational Services, LLC
PO Box 242, Towanda Kansas 672042
Email:info@theclassroomvault.com