National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists

We are happy to...

respond to [redacted]'s complaint. To set the record straight, the Academy did not receive verification of [redacted]'s son's GPA before the Congress and families were instructed specifically not to bring paperwork to the Congress. After the Congress [redacted]'s son was sent several emails regarding the need for him to supply verification of his GPA and when [redacted] called on 11/10 she provided it to the Academy.  [redacted]'s son's name was then immediately submitted for printing of his Award of Excellence to be mailed in the end of November. We have confirmed that [redacted]'s son's Award was printed and mailed in the end of November.Since [redacted]'s son has still not received his Award through the US Postal Service, the Academy has had the Award reprinted and sent via [redacted] requiring signature upon delivery.  The [redacted] tracking number is [redacted]. We hope this matter will be settled presently.

[redacted]s daughter was nominated to attend...

the Congress of Future Medical Leaders that took place in February 2014. The Congress is a designed as a gathering of honors only high school students who want to become physicians or go into medical sciences. We are saddened that, to-date, [redacted]’ daughter has been unable to attend one of our events.
[redacted]s enrolled her daughter to the February 2014 Congress of Future Medical Leaders - this was processed on December 7, 2013, 8 days prior to the December 15 refund deadline. Materials included with the letter of nomination and the payment for tuition clearly note a "no questions asked" 100% money back cancellation policy until 60-days before the Congress, December 15, 2013. [redacted] signed and agreed to the Congress Terms and Conditions that clearly defined the cancellation policy. Additionally, Ms Young’s receipt for her online credit card payment clearly stated the Congress’ cancellation policy.
[redacted] did purchase [redacted] Insurance on top of her Tuition, but when her claim was rejected, we transferred her daughter’s Tuition to the November 2014 event due to extreme weather conditions. When they were unable to attend in November [redacted] contacted us September 28 2014 asking for a refund on her tuition payment; she was reminded that the original refund deadline stood, as per the Terms and Conditions she signed when she made her payment. An offer to once again transfer her daughter’s tuition was made. On October 6, 2014, [redacted] responded:
“All though I am disappointed about the refund, I would like to transfer to the Summer 2015 Congress. I think a summer program would be better anyway due to the weather in DC during the fall and winter months. Please sign her up for the Summer 2015 Congress.”
On January 26 2015 [redacted] emailed the Admissions Office in response to an email she received from us on December 13 2014:
“The attached is the last correspondence that I have received. Have there been others sent? Please make sure that I am on the email list for information regarding the June 2015 Congress. I would like to start making arrangements ASAP. “
Said email gave information on the dates and location of the upcoming event and, at the time, contained all the information we had for parents. [redacted] was informed that she was on our email list and that she had not yet ‘missed’ any communication from us.
Regrettably, it sounds like sebsequent emails did not make it to [redacted]’s inbox and it may be the case they were caught by her Spam filter. Had [redacted] contacted the Academy at any point between January 26 and May 4, we would of been happy to help work out any issues she was having. Moreover, [redacted] had constant access to our website and a login and password from her December 2013 payment that would of gained her access to all the information she needed in our ‘Delegate Update Center’ (an online portal for enrolled Delegates).
We would be delighted if [redacted]’s daughter was able to attend the Congress in June 2016, we would be happy to continue with the transfer of the tuition once more. [redacted]’s original agreement to to the Terms and Conditions of her payment made on December 7 2013 still stands, and thus a refund cannot be issued.

We did receive the certificate on 12/30[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
Regards,
[redacted]

We are happy to respond to [redacted]'s inquiry to Revdex.com.At this point this complaint has been successfully resolved.  The Academy has the necessary GPA verification paperwork from [redacted] to process her son's Award of Excellence and it is in the cue to be printed and sent.

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
 Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:
My daughter was not "nominated" by anyone at her school for this fake award.  I checked with the Principal.
Regards,
[redacted]

We are happy to respond to [redacted]'s inquiry to Revdex.com.
At this point this complaint has been successfully resolved.  The Academy has the necessary GPA verification paperwork from [redacted] to process her son's Award of Excellence and it is in the cue to be printed and...

sent.

[redacted]s daughter was nominated to attend the Congress of Future Medical Leaders that took place in February 2014. The Congress is a designed as a gathering of honors only high school students who want to become physicians or go into medical sciences. We are saddened that, to-date, [redacted]’...

daughter has been unable to attend one of our events. [redacted]s enrolled her daughter to the February 2014 Congress of Future Medical Leaders - this was processed on December 7, 2013, 8 days prior to the December 15 refund deadline. Materials included with the letter of nomination and the payment for tuition clearly note a "no questions asked" 100% money back cancellation policy until 60-days before the Congress, December 15, 2013. [redacted] signed and agreed to the Congress Terms and Conditions that clearly defined the cancellation policy. Additionally, Ms Young’s receipt for her online credit card payment clearly stated the Congress’ cancellation policy.[redacted] did purchase [redacted] Insurance on top of her Tuition, but when her claim was rejected, we transferred her daughter’s Tuition to the November 2014 event due to extreme weather conditions. When they were unable to attend in November [redacted] contacted us September 28 2014 asking for a refund on her tuition payment; she was reminded that the original refund deadline stood, as per the Terms and Conditions she signed when she made her payment. An offer to once again transfer her daughter’s tuition was made. On October 6, 2014, [redacted] responded: “All though I am disappointed about the refund, I would like to transfer to the Summer 2015 Congress. I think a summer program would be better anyway due to the weather in DC during the fall and winter months. Please sign her up for the Summer 2015 Congress.”On January 26 2015 [redacted] emailed the Admissions Office in response to an email she received from us on December 13 2014:“The attached is the last correspondence that I have received. Have there been others sent? Please make sure that I am on the email list for information regarding the June 2015 Congress. I would like to start making arrangements ASAP. “Said email gave information on the dates and location of the upcoming event and, at the time, contained all the information we had for parents. [redacted] was informed that she was on our email list and that she had not yet ‘missed’ any communication from us.Regrettably, it sounds like sebsequent emails did not make it to [redacted]’s inbox and it may be the case they were caught by her Spam filter. Had [redacted] contacted the Academy at any point between January 26 and May 4, we would of been happy to help work out any issues she was having. Moreover, [redacted] had constant access to our website and a login and password from her December 2013 payment that would of gained her access to all the information she needed in our ‘Delegate Update Center’ (an online portal for enrolled Delegates).We would be delighted if [redacted]’s daughter was able to attend the Congress in June 2016, we would be happy to continue with the transfer of the tuition once more. [redacted]’s original agreement to to the Terms and Conditions of her payment made on December 7 2013 still stands, and thus a refund cannot be issued.

The Academy has tried to work with [redacted] to see that her
honor-student daughter is able to attend the Congress of Future Medical
Leaders.  The snowstorm in February did affect
the travel of some attendees and, knowing that the storm was an usual occurrence
the Academy Admissions team worked with those parents to transfer enrollment to
the next Congress in November of 2014. 
It is unfortunate that [redacted]’s daughter could not attend in
November 2-14 or June 2015.  Would will gladly transfer her daughter for the summer of 2016 Congress.
Information about the Congress and access to the Delegate
Update Center is emailed to students and parents. [redacted] acknowledges that
she did receive this information.  We do
not understand why she did not receive subsequent emails as the first was successfully
delivered.  We also do not understand why
when the Congress approached she did not reach out to us sooner.
We are unable to refund [redacted] for tuition the Congress of
February of 2014.

**. [redacted]’s daughter was nominated to attend the Congress of
Future Medical Leaders, an honors-only program for high school students who
want to become physicians or go into...

medical research fields. The purpose of
this event is to honor, inspire, motivate and direct the top students in our
country who aspire to be physicians or medical scientists, to stay true to
their dream and, after the event, to provide a path, plan and resources to help
them reach their goal.
The first Congress of Future Medical Leaders was held in February
of 2014 in Washington, DC.  Some 3,500
students from all over the country were in attendance and, in addition, approximately
3,000 of their parents and family members observed as well.  The Academy has received resounding praise
for the quality and content of the Congress. 
We suggest **. [redacted] read some of the testimonials and watch some of the
videos from students and parents who attended the Congress.  She should also review the impressive line-up
of speakers that will mirror the November Congress to which her daughter was
nominated. http://www.futuredocs.com/
Students
are either nominated by their teachers, counselors or principals or invited by
the Academy based on a voluntary classroom survey they complete at school that
is administered by the non-profit My College Options or through an online
survey of the College Board. Both of these surveys are primarily used by
colleges and other educational programs to identify qualified candidates. In
the surveys, students indicate a desire to have a career in medicine or the
sciences and that they have a GPA of 3.5 or greater. To be certain every
student at the Congress indeed has a 3.5+ GPA, all GPAs are verified before students
may attend.
Based
on these nominating criteria, students identified for the Congress of Future
Medical Leaders are, in fact, the best and brightest students in the country. We
feel strongly that being nominated for the Congress is worthy of recognition, regardless
of attendance.  We include an award of nomination
in their invitation package and have created a press release for students to
share this news with their communities.  http://nominate.futuredocs.com/StudentPressRelease
The nomination letter for the Congress that **. [redacted]’s
daughter received recognized her academic achievement and her passion for
medicine or the bio-medical sciences. 
The Congress of Future Medical Leaders is hosted by the National
Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists.  The Academy offers free services to students,
regardless of attendance at the Congress, who want to be physicians or go into
medical science.  http://www.futuredocs.com/programs-and-services/
Some of the services and programs the Academy plans to launch in 2014 and 2015
are online social networks through which future doctors and medical scientists
can communicate; opportunities for students to be guided and mentored by
physicians and medical students; and communications for parents and students on
college acceptance and finances, skills acquisition, internships, career
guidance and much more.
The Academy is proud to be part of the quickly growing trend
of “socially responsible tax-paying organizations,” having incorporated social
responsibility into our founding and activities. In fact, in the “Information
for Nominees and Their Parents” insert in the nomination package, we clearly
describe the tax-paying status of the Academy. We believe that if we are efficient,
if we demand responsible practices at every level and, above all, if we hold
ourselves to the highest ethical conduct, we can achieve tremendous, long-term
successes for students who wish to serve humanity as physicians, medical
scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians.
It is the tuition-based programs, like the Congress, that
fund the free programs and services the Academy offers. We don’t think the
American taxpayer should have to underwrite the Academy’s efforts with tax
dollars.
**. [redacted] describes the Academy as charging “thousands of
dollars” which is just not true.  Tuition
for the Congress is $985, and family members may attend along with Congress
scholars for free. Families are responsible for their own travel expenses, so
depending on distance travelled and a family’s expectation of luxury in travel that
cost can vary greatly.
Knowing that financing an experience like this can be
challenging, the Academy has engaged some traditional and some unique ways to
make the Congress affordable. First, families who demonstrate financial need
can receive a 50 percent scholarship of tuition costs.  Second, the Academy’s Office of Admissions staff
has developed a Guide to Fundraising that is quite helpful http://www.futuredocs.com/fundraising/
and they are available for assistance and coaching. Third, families can spread
payments out to make it easier to afford. Fourth, nominated students can become
a Scout for the Congress.  As a Congress Scout they can nominate other
qualified students to the Congress.  And if their Scout nominees sign up
for the Congress of Future Medical Leaders, they receive $100 for each. Students
can nominate as many qualified students as they like, from anywhere in the country,
and nominees can be current freshmen through seniors. www.FutureDocs.com/scout  And
we offer a 100 percent refund policy until 60 days before the Congress, just in
case the fundraising isn't enough.
While we only have anecdotal evidence, we believe the majority
of students at the February 2014 Congress of Future Medical Leaders did some
level of fundraising. We feel that when students contribute to the cost, they
value the experience even more. As such, we encourage all students to fundraise
a portion of their expenses.
Regarding **. [redacted]’s objection to sending the nomination
directly to her daughter, this practice is an industry standard for educational
organizations. Universities and enrichment programs alike reach out to students
directly, including long-standing organizations like People-to-People,
Ambassadors International, Congressional Youth Leadership Council and the
National Youth Leadership Forum. Changing our outreach methodology as **. [redacted]
suggests is not something the Academy should be expected to do while other
organizations continue to contact students directly.
We are happy to block any future communications from the
Academy to **. [redacted]’s daughter.

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
 Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: This is simply not true. I have the emails from December that I can forward on to you , also I had called them from my work, in December. They also never requested any emails or proof that I had called them in December. 
We had sent back the form for our Daughter to go in the beginning of December, 2 days prior to my husband losing his job. They just did not process our 1st payment until January. But not knowing when exactly they were going to process it, as soon as my husband was laid off, we contacted them. My 1st email is dated December 6th. Also we have never received a receipt from them as they claim! I am still requesting a refund from them!
Regards,
[redacted]

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
 Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:
I do not agree with your response. I did understand the 60 day cancellation policy, however, I did not cancel my daughter's visit to the Congress. We were unable to attend because we had no way of getting to DC. All flights were cancelled and because we live in Mississippi, driving was not an option the day before the Congress started. Weather is not predictable 60 days in advance!!As for the access to the portal, I did visit your website, but no one informed me that the login information would be the same from over a year ago. When my daughter's registration was transferred, I understood that as a new registration and was not informed otherwise. For all of the previous Congresses, I received emails practically every day leading up the event. I emailed you guys and informed you that I was not receiving emails and was told that I was on the email list and had missed no emails. What was I supposed to do after that? Was I supposed to keep emailing you as if you lied on the previous one?I am VERY disappointed in the response from a program of professional individuals that are simply making excuses for not handling this situation appropriately. I understand that you have policies to abide by, however things happen. Weather happens.  Situations happen that do not fall within the normal guidelines of your policies. But, assuming that your emails went to my spam folder and blaming me for not constantly harassing you with emails is not an acceptable response. I am a single parent who is trying to provide opportunities for my daughter that were not available to me at her age. We have tried three times to attend this Congress and now I just want my money back.
Regards,
[redacted]

We are happy to respond to [redacted]'s complaint. To set the record straight, the Academy did not receive verification of [redacted]'s son's GPA before the Congress and families were instructed specifically not to bring paperwork to the Congress. After the Congress [redacted]'s son was sent several emails regarding the need for him to supply verification of his GPA and when [redacted] called on 11/10 she provided it to the Academy.  [redacted]'s son's name was then immediately submitted for printing of his Award of Excellence to be mailed in the end of November. We have confirmed that [redacted]'s son's Award was printed and mailed in the end of November.
Since [redacted]'s son has still not received his Award through the US Postal Service, the Academy has had the Award reprinted and sent via [redacted] requiring signature upon delivery.  The [redacted] tracking number is [redacted]. We hope this matter will be settled presently.

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
 Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:
Due to the fact that my daughter will have graduated high school and will be getting ready to leave for college it would be impossible for us to attend the summer 2015 conference.  Since the first conference was our choice and it was impossible for us to attend through no fault of our own I feel it is important that a refund be given, so that there is no money lost on either side.  Mind you I may not know exactly how much money was made by the conference but I do know it was quite a sum even after expenses.   After all, even though this business says they are in this for the students seeing the way they have handled this issue I believe we can all see what their real goal is, can't we?  I have had many parents contact me privately to voice the same concerns.  I have heard many parents say they will not attend any conferences in the future and I have also heard many say they will encourage others not to do so as well.  I have heard many stories from parents in the same situation or similar situation and I am greatly saddened by their decision not to offer a refund.  I would have loved to have posted to those parents along with all the others what great company this is, but with this result I am at a loss for anything positive to say.  
And actually I was told verbally that if I cancelled in enough time I could have a refund of half my money.  The conference is being held in mid November and I cancelled the end of September.  Seems to me 6 weeks is plenty of time.  
Regards,
[redacted]

Review: I am so disappointed in this organization. My daughter and I planned a trip last spring to Washington, Dc to attend this conference. The trip had to be cancelled due to weather condition (snow storm). When I called they moved our funds and reservation to the November conference. We can not attend this conference due to family obligations. When I called even though the person was pleasant I was told they would not refund any of my money. I did not use any of their services such as the concierge offered, hotel booking, etc. My reservation costs them nothing. However, I am the one loosing because of the weather occurrence on that weekend. I am so saddened and dismayed that an organization that promises to help our children succeed can be so cold and unfeeling. I am a parent who is a teacher. I don’t make the kind of money that I can just throw the funds away like this. We were told in the original paperwork that if we needed to cancel we could get a refund if we cancelled in enough time.Desired Settlement: Full refund

Business

Response:

While planning the Congress of Future Medical Leaders for February of

2014, the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientist took

great care to protect parent’s investment in Congress tuition.We fully insured the Congress in the event weather or any other national emergency caused us to cancel

the Congress so that all families would receive a full refund of tuition. Thankfully we did not have to cancel and had

more than 3,100 of the enrolled 3,500 students were in their seats when the Congress

opened on February 14th.

In the weeks and months before the Congress, we encouraged families to take travel insurance to cover not only tuition

paid, but un-refundable travel expenses as well. We made multiple reminders multiple times to families

through emails, videos, [redacted] postings reminding parents to consider travel

insurance and of the deadline for its purchase.

The Academy offered families an affordable travel insurance plan through

[redacted] Insurance, but also encouraged them to seek different plans that may

have different coverage or pricing.

The refund policy for tuition for the Congress is clearly stated on our

website, throughout the online payment process, on parent payment receipts and

in all our written materials. We allow a

100%, no questions asked refund of all tuition paid until 60 days before the

Congress. At that point we close

enrollment and that seat cannot be filled by another eager and deserving student.

Nonetheless, knowing the hardship caused for families because of the

magnitude and unpredictable nature of this storm, we decided to make an

exception to our refund policy and allow students to transfer their enrollment

to another Congress of Future Medical Leaders to be held in November 2014. In a further attempt to help families who could not make the Congress in February because of weather and now cannot have a student attend in November, we are offering yet another extension to summer of 2015. [redacted] denied this option

and insisted on a refund instead.

We repeat our offer and are still happy to transfer [redacted]’s daughter’s

enrollment to a summer of 2015 Congress is she so desires. We would gladly welcome her daughter at the tuition level she paid for the February 2014 Congress with no addition if there is a tuition increase, as we have offered the others.

Consumer

Response:

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because:

Due to the fact that my daughter will have graduated high school and will be getting ready to leave for college it would be impossible for us to attend the summer 2015 conference. Since the first conference was our choice and it was impossible for us to attend through no fault of our own I feel it is important that a refund be given, so that there is no money lost on either side. Mind you I may not know exactly how much money was made by the conference but I do know it was quite a sum even after expenses. After all, even though this business says they are in this for the students seeing the way they have handled this issue I believe we can all see what their real goal is, can't we? I have had many parents contact me privately to voice the same concerns. I have heard many parents say they will not attend any conferences in the future and I have also heard many say they will encourage others not to do so as well. I have heard many stories from parents in the same situation or similar situation and I am greatly saddened by their decision not to offer a refund. I would have loved to have posted to those parents along with all the others what great company this is, but with this result I am at a loss for anything positive to say.

Review: My Daughter had received a letter in November saying she was nominated and accepted to go to the "National Academy of Future Physicians" on February 14,2014 , the cost was $1084.00 if split over 2 payments. We are not wealthy people, but wanted her to go, so we sent in the consent for** and our master card information for the approval of the payment plans of $542.00 each. Then on December 3rd my Husband was laid off. We knew We would not be able to afford the airfare, hotel, and still the tuition, so I called to cancel her acceptance on December 6th 2013. I was told to leave a message for a Lisa [redacted] who did not call me back. I tried her back 6 more times the next week. Finally I started emailing, and I received an email back that someone would call me back within the next business day. The next day a [redacted] called me back and told me she was taking care of it,I should here something in 7-10 days.Holidays past.We were into January,I then received an email from [redacted] that 60 days were required to cancel before the conference(Feb.13)to receive a full refund. Now I had been trying to reach them and I believe they purposefully were not addressing me until the time frame had expired! I have my Email still from January 10th pleading with [redacted] to please cancel and not charge out due to our circu**tances and when the 1st time in December I had contacted her was and on January 14th they deducted $542.00 from our account. We want it refunded! we gave the 60 days! and Services are not and will not be rendered!Desired Settlement: $542.00 and do not bill out the 2nd payment! We cancelled this. My daughter [redacted] Will NOT be attending!

Business

Response:

To Whom it May Concern:

Review: To Mr. Richard R[redacted],

When I initially signed up my son for this exciting event, I thought your organization really knew how to hold such an event. Until I dropped my son off at DC Armory tonight.

After dropping off my son, I parked the car and proceeded to the parents’ entrance. The attendant informed me and 50 other parents that there was no more space for the parents. You, in your video said that there are “thousands of seats available”. And to bring only one parent per child. I noticed that there were families/relatives already inside the DC Armory. Also, when I spoke to the CSC Event staff, no one enforced the one child one parent attendee limit. Hence, some parents were left out in the cold (literally).

All the parents who were left out are very upset with you and your company. I doubt that I will be endorsing your event EVER. I will tell everyone that I know that the Congress of Future Medical Leaders is a scam. You have promised what you cannot deliver.

For those parents who showed up but was turned away due to your deception, there is no comfort in knowing that our child is experiencing something wonderful that we (the parents) cannot witness. It’s like unable to attend your child’s graduation ceremony because we followed your directions. You should have enforced the one parent one child rule, instead you let multiple family members enter until you ran out of space.

Your directors and event managers were not helpful at all. After 45 minutes of argument, police was called in and all the parents were forced out of the DC Armory building. Yeah, that’s a real good way to manager your customers.

Why do I call this a SCAM? Because there is no way to get a full refund. The credit card was charged 6 months in advance, and there is no way to get a refund via credit card since the payment was posted more than 60 days ago.

Many of the parents were yelling for a full refund. This is no way to run a convention, unless your intention is just to screw people for money. Which in my opinion you have.

Mr. R[redacted], I hope this E-mail reaches you, and not just discarded by your underlings.Desired Settlement: Either enforce the 1 parent 1 child policy OR provide enough space to accommodate all the parents who showed up for the convention.

Consumer

Response:

Please retract my complaint ID [redacted].

Inbox

x

Revdex.com of Metro Washington DC

Nov 17 (4 days ago)

to me

---------- Forwarded message ----------

From: [redacted] <[redacted]>

Date: Fri, Nov 14, 2014 at 9:24 PM

Subject: Please retract my complaint ID [redacted].

To: [email protected]

I wish to retract my current complaint (ID [redacted])

Thank you,

Business

Response:

To Whom it May Concern, It seems [redacted] retracted his complaint some 22 minutes after making it so a response does not seem required. We would, however, like to assure [redacted] that we are addressing the issue of parents who did not abide by the rules for parent seating. Parents are welcome to view the Congress on a space-available, first-come-first-served basis. On opening night of the Congress, we asked that only one parent attend -- and even still, these opening night seats would be on a space-available, first-come-first-served basis. Regardless of a one parent limit for the opening session, there would not be seats available for every parent who wanted to attend. That said, on Friday evening we seated parents on the honor system and fully expected parents to respectful of the seating limitations. We agree that we need to address parent seating and assess if it is feasible for the future. We apologize that [redacted] was not able to view the Congress in-person on Friday night and hope he was able to view it on the live-feed online available to parents and family. There were many available seats for the remainder of the Congress on Saturday and Sunday. All parents and family can be (and were) accommodated with seats for the closing session and awards convocation. Lisa R[redacted]

Review: My 13 year old daughter received a solicitation from this organization to attend the "Congress of Future Medical Leaders". The letter is couched as an academic recognition based on her academic achievement. It sounds like she won an award. In reality, this is a for-profit organization charging parents thousands of dollars. It is emotionally hurtful to a child to find out that her parents cannot afford this "Congress" and that it is a scam.Desired Settlement: Do not send these solicitations directly to minors. They should be sent to the parents.

Business

Response:

**. [redacted]’s daughter was nominated to attend the Congress of

Future Medical Leaders, an honors-only program for high school students who

want to become physicians or go into medical research fields. The purpose of

this event is to honor, inspire, motivate and direct the top students in our

country who aspire to be physicians or medical scientists, to stay true to

their dream and, after the event, to provide a path, plan and resources to help

them reach their goal. The first Congress of Future Medical Leaders was held in February

of 2014 in Washington, DC. Some 3,500

students from all over the country were in attendance and, in addition, approximately

3,000 of their parents and family members observed as well. The Academy has received resounding praise

for the quality and content of the Congress.

We suggest **. [redacted] read some of the testimonials and watch some of the

videos from students and parents who attended the Congress. She should also review the impressive line-up

of speakers that will mirror the November Congress to which her daughter was

nominated. http://www.futuredocs.com/Students

are either nominated by their teachers, counselors or principals or invited by

the Academy based on a voluntary classroom survey they complete at school that

is administered by the non-profit My College Options or through an online

survey of the College Board. Both of these surveys are primarily used by

colleges and other educational programs to identify qualified candidates. In

the surveys, students indicate a desire to have a career in medicine or the

sciences and that they have a GPA of 3.5 or greater. To be certain every

student at the Congress indeed has a 3.5+ GPA, all GPAs are verified before students

may attend. Based

on these nominating criteria, students identified for the Congress of Future

Medical Leaders are, in fact, the best and brightest students in the country. We

feel strongly that being nominated for the Congress is worthy of recognition, regardless

of attendance. We include an award of nomination

in their invitation package and have created a press release for students to

share this news with their communities. http://nominate.futuredocs.com/StudentPressReleaseThe nomination letter for the Congress that **. [redacted]’s

daughter received recognized her academic achievement and her passion for

medicine or the bio-medical sciences. The Congress of Future Medical Leaders is hosted by the National

Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists. The Academy offers free services to students,

regardless of attendance at the Congress, who want to be physicians or go into

medical science. http://www.futuredocs.com/programs-and-services/

Some of the services and programs the Academy plans to launch in 2014 and 2015

are online social networks through which future doctors and medical scientists

can communicate; opportunities for students to be guided and mentored by

physicians and medical students; and communications for parents and students on

college acceptance and finances, skills acquisition, internships, career

guidance and much more.The Academy is proud to be part of the quickly growing trend

of “socially responsible tax-paying organizations,” having incorporated social

responsibility into our founding and activities. In fact, in the “Information

for Nominees and Their Parents” insert in the nomination package, we clearly

describe the tax-paying status of the Academy. We believe that if we are efficient,

if we demand responsible practices at every level and, above all, if we hold

ourselves to the highest ethical conduct, we can achieve tremendous, long-term

successes for students who wish to serve humanity as physicians, medical

scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians. It is the tuition-based programs, like the Congress, that

fund the free programs and services the Academy offers. We don’t think the

American taxpayer should have to underwrite the Academy’s efforts with tax

dollars. **. [redacted] describes the Academy as charging “thousands of

dollars” which is just not true. Tuition

for the Congress is $985, and family members may attend along with Congress

scholars for free. Families are responsible for their own travel expenses, so

depending on distance travelled and a family’s expectation of luxury in travel that

cost can vary greatly. Knowing that financing an experience like this can be

challenging, the Academy has engaged some traditional and some unique ways to

make the Congress affordable. First, families who demonstrate financial need

can receive a 50 percent scholarship of tuition costs. Second, the Academy’s Office of Admissions staff

has developed a Guide to Fundraising that is quite helpful http://www.futuredocs.com/fundraising/

and they are available for assistance and coaching. Third, families can spread

payments out to make it easier to afford. Fourth, nominated students can become

a Scout for the Congress. As a Congress Scout they can nominate other

qualified students to the Congress. And if their Scout nominees sign up

for the Congress of Future Medical Leaders, they receive $100 for each. Students

can nominate as many qualified students as they like, from anywhere in the country,

and nominees can be current freshmen through seniors. www.FutureDocs.com/scout And

we offer a 100 percent refund policy until 60 days before the Congress, just in

case the fundraising isn't enough.While we only have anecdotal evidence, we believe the majority

of students at the February 2014 Congress of Future Medical Leaders did some

level of fundraising. We feel that when students contribute to the cost, they

value the experience even more. As such, we encourage all students to fundraise

a portion of their expenses.Regarding **. [redacted]’s objection to sending the nomination

directly to her daughter, this practice is an industry standard for educational

organizations. Universities and enrichment programs alike reach out to students

directly, including long-standing organizations like People-to-People,

Ambassadors International, Congressional Youth Leadership Council and the

National Youth Leadership Forum. Changing our outreach methodology as **. [redacted]

suggests is not something the Academy should be expected to do while other

organizations continue to contact students directly.We are happy to block any future communications from the

Academy to **. [redacted]’s daughter.