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Reference Example: ALIGN.md

This is a fictional ALIGN.md for a person who operates across multiple organizations. It demonstrates the union principle: synthesizing multiple org-level alignments into one coherent personal file.

Notice what makes this effective: specific dealbreakers (not platitudes), concrete capabilities (not aspirational ones), a clear hierarchy of commitments, and the "NOT currently focused on" line that prevents wasted outreach. This is not a resume. It is a compatibility document.

The File​

<!-- last_updated: 2026-04-01 -->

# Identity

Maya Torres. Founder of Rootstock Education (open source STEM curriculum for
community colleges), co-founder of Verdant Labs with James Okafor (local-first
software tools for small businesses), and elder at Grace Fellowship Church in
Denver, CO.

These are the same mission from different angles: making sure working people
own their tools, their skills, and their futures. The economy is splitting and
most people don't have a guide.

# Mission

Make STEM education accessible and sovereign through Rootstock. Build software
that small businesses own outright through Verdant. Serve the local church and
community as an elder and mentor through Grace Fellowship.

The North Star across all of these: number of people who move from dependent
on systems they don't understand to fluent operators of the tools shaping
their lives. Depth over scale. One transformed community over a thousand
newsletter subscribers.

# Values

- Ownership over subscription. I will not build tools that require ongoing
  payment to access your own data. If you stop paying us, your data and
  workflows stay with you. This is non-negotiable for Verdant products.

- Teach to fish, not to depend. Rootstock curriculum is designed so that
  after completing a course, the student doesn't need us anymore. We measure
  success by graduation, not retention.

- Open source by default. Rootstock curriculum, lesson plans, and assessment
  rubrics are public. Anyone can fork, translate, and adapt. No permission
  needed.

- Quality over quantity. I say no to most partnerships, speaking requests,
  and grant applications. If it doesn't compound, it's a distraction.

- Faith shapes everything. I am a Christian. Every major decision runs
  through prayer and discernment before strategy. Partners don't need to
  share this, but they should know it influences timelines and priorities.

# Spiritual Values

I am a follower of Christ and an elder at Grace Fellowship Church in Denver.

Practically, this means:
- Sunday is Sabbath. I don't take meetings, reply to emails, or ship code
  on Sundays.
- I tithe 10% of all revenue (personal and organizational) before expenses.
- If a partnership conflicts with my convictions, I walk away regardless of
  the financial implications.
- "I don't have peace about this yet" is a real answer and I will use it.

# Capabilities

What I can deliver today:

Rootstock Education:
- 12-module open source STEM curriculum designed for community colleges
- Instructor training program (47 certified instructors across 8 states)
- Assessment framework with competency-based credentialing
- Partnerships with 3 community college systems (Colorado, New Mexico, Oregon)

Verdant Labs (with James Okafor):
- Local-first business tools (invoicing, inventory, scheduling) that run
  on the owner's hardware
- Data migration services from cloud platforms to self-hosted
- Small business tech literacy workshops (monthly, Denver metro)

Personal:
- Curriculum design for technical education
- Community organizing in faith and education spaces
- Network of educators, small business owners, and church leaders in the
  Mountain West

In development: Rootstock certification recognized by state workforce boards.
Verdant mobile app for offline-first inventory management.

# Looking For

Rootstock partnerships:
- Community colleges that want to pilot or adopt the STEM curriculum
- State workforce development boards interested in competency-based credentials
- Other open source education projects for cross-pollination (not competition)
- Donors who fund without strings (no curriculum control, no branding requirements)

Verdant collaborations:
- Small business associations that want to offer tech sovereignty workshops
- Open source developers interested in local-first architecture
- Hardware partners for affordable self-hosted business servers

Personal:
- People who build for communities, not for exits
- Mentors and peers in the faith + technology intersection
- Patient capital, not venture capital

# Dealbreakers

These are non-negotiable. If any apply, we are not a fit.

- Vendor lock-in by design. If your business model depends on making it hard
  for customers to leave, we disagree about what software is for.

- Curriculum control. If you fund Rootstock, you do not get editorial control
  over what we teach. Full stop. We've walked away from six-figure grants
  over this.

- Extraction disguised as partnership. If the structure means we do the work
  in communities and you get the case study, that's not partnership. Both
  sides contribute, both sides benefit.

- Growth-at-all-costs mentality. If your first question is "how does this
  scale?" instead of "does this actually work?", we're operating from
  different assumptions.

- Disrespect for faith. You don't need to share my beliefs. But if you're
  uncomfortable that I pray before board meetings or that my Sabbath practice
  is non-negotiable, we won't work well together.

# Network

- James Okafor (Verdant Labs co-founder, local-first software architect)
- Colorado Community College System (3 pilot campuses)
- Mountain West Open Source Education Consortium
- Grace Fellowship Church leadership and community

# Current Priorities (Q2 2026)

- Rootstock v2.0 curriculum release (adding AI literacy modules)
- First state workforce board credential recognition (Colorado)
- Verdant mobile app beta for offline inventory
- Hiring a part-time community manager for instructor support

NOT currently focused on: K-12 education, international expansion, venture
fundraising, consumer apps, social media growth.

# How to Engage

Email maya@rootstocked.org or DM on LinkedIn.

If you publish an ALIGN.md, send it along. Bilateral evaluation is the fastest
path to a real conversation.

For Verdant-specific collaborations: reach out to both Maya and James.

# References

- Rootstock curriculum: https://rootstocked.org/curriculum
- Verdant Labs: https://verdantlabs.co
- ALIGN.md standard: https://docs.appliedaisociety.org/docs/standards/align-md

---

*This file follows the [ALIGN.md standard](https://docs.appliedaisociety.org/docs/standards/align-md),
an open format for agent-readable alignment evaluation. Publish your own ALIGN.md
so we can do bilateral evaluation: https://docs.appliedaisociety.org/docs/standards/align-md*

What Makes This Example Effective​

The Spiritual Disclosure​

The Spiritual Values section states plainly: "I am a follower of Christ." It doesn't apologize. It doesn't minimize. It doesn't over-explain. It states the fact and then explains the practical implications (Sabbath practice, tithing, prayer before board meetings, willingness to walk away).

A partner who reads this knows exactly what they're working with. They can decide whether that's compatible before anyone takes a call. No surprises at month three.

The Dealbreakers​

Five specific, testable dealbreakers. Not "we prefer aligned partners" but "we have walked away from six-figure grants over curriculum control." An agent can check whether a potential partner triggers any of these.

The last dealbreaker ("disrespect for faith") is relational rather than structural. That's fine. Not everything can be mechanically evaluated. Including it tells the agent: even if all objective criteria pass, there's a cultural compatibility requirement. This is honest and useful.

The Union Principle in Action​

The file synthesizes three organizations (Rootstock, Verdant, Grace Fellowship) into one coherent identity. The Identity section shows how they connect ("the same mission from different angles"). The Capabilities section separates them clearly. The Dealbreakers apply across all of them.

A potential community college partner reads this and knows: Maya's education work is shaped by her faith and connected to a software sovereignty project. That's the full picture. No surprises.

The "NOT Currently Focused On" Line​

The Current Priorities section includes what's out of scope. This prevents wasted outreach. If you're a K-12 edtech company or a VC, the ALIGN.md tells you upfront: not right now. This saves everyone time.

Concrete Over Aspirational​

The Capabilities section says "47 certified instructors across 8 states" instead of "growing network of educators." It says "3 community college systems" instead of "partnerships with higher education institutions." Specificity lets an agent assess fit. Vagueness wastes tokens.