The rules for adults working with students in Batch Zero. Every mentor agrees to these before being matched with a team. Version 1.0 · September 27, 2026.
Founders in Batch Zero are high-school students, most of them under 18. Mentors are interviewed and background-checked before matching. This page is public on purpose: students, parents and schools should be able to read exactly what we hold mentors to.
Mentoring happens on the Batch Zero platform or on recorded video calls we schedule. Don't move it to personal texts, DMs, Snapchat, Discord, or a private call. If a founder reaches out to you privately, answer once to point them back to the platform, and tell us.
You'll have their first name and their project. You won't be given a student's phone number or home address, and you shouldn't ask for either.
Only at an announced Batch Zero event, and only with another adult present. Never one-to-one. Don't drive a student anywhere, don't meet at your home or theirs, and don't invite a founder to your office unless their parent or guardian has agreed in writing first.
Mentor sessions are recorded and stored by Batch Zero. Only the Batch Zero team and the team you're matched with can see them. Don't make your own recordings, screenshots or clips, and don't post any part of a session anywhere.
Mentoring is volunteer work, and it isn't a route to a deal. While you're mentoring a team, don't offer or ask for investment, equity, advisory shares, consulting fees, a job, or unpaid work of any kind.
If you want to invest in a team after the cohort, it goes through us first, and the founder's parent or guardian is part of that conversation. Same for hiring or interning a founder. Batch Zero isn't a party to any deal, takes no fee, and won't pass on your interest unless the founder opts in.
Founders will share numbers, code, customers and ideas that aren't public. Don't repeat them, don't forward their materials, and don't use them in your own work or pass them to a company you're involved with. This holds after the cohort ends.
Be direct about the work and decent about the person. Honest, specific feedback is the whole point — that's different from being cutting. Keep it about what they're building.
Not acceptable, ever: comments on a student's appearance or personal life, romantic or sexual content of any kind, alcohol or drugs in a session, slurs or demeaning language, pushing your politics or religion, or private gifts and favours.
Don't post photos of students, tag them, or share their work publicly. Announcements about a cohort come from Batch Zero, with the founder's permission. You're welcome to say you mentor for Batch Zero.
Tell Rayan the same day at hello@batchzero.co — whether it's something you saw, something a founder told you, or something you did that you're second-guessing. Early and awkward beats late.
If you believe a student is in immediate danger, call 911 first, then tell us. Where a student's safety is at stake we will contact their parent or guardian, and the authorities if we need to. Nobody is penalised for raising a concern in good faith.
We remove mentors first and discuss afterwards. That's deliberate — the students come first.
Ticking the box on the mentor signup means you accept this code and the mentor terms of service. We'll tell you if either changes. Questions about any of it: hello@batchzero.co.
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