diff --git a/src/pystatsv1/trackd/adapters/core_gl.py b/src/pystatsv1/trackd/adapters/core_gl.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..96f379b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/pystatsv1/trackd/adapters/core_gl.py
@@ -0,0 +1,175 @@
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT
+"""Generic 'core_gl' adapter for Track D BYOD normalization.
+
+This adapter is the bridge from "perfect" template exports (already matching the
+contract) to "slightly messy" Sheets/Excel exports.
+
+Features (v1):
+- Header matching that tolerates case/spacing/punctuation (e.g., "Account ID")
+- Whitespace trimming across all cells
+- Money cleanup for debit/credit (commas, $, parentheses-as-negative)
+- Canonical output column order (required first, then passthrough extras)
+
+Inputs
+------
+Reads contract-named files from ``tables/``:
+- chart_of_accounts.csv
+- gl_journal.csv
+
+Outputs
+-------
+Writes contract-named files to ``normalized/`` with contract column names.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import csv
+from pathlib import Path
+from typing import Any
+
+from .._errors import TrackDDataError, TrackDSchemaError
+from ..contracts import schemas_for_profile
+from .base import NormalizeContext
+from .mapping import (
+    build_rename_map,
+    clean_cell,
+    detect_duplicate_destinations,
+    parse_money,
+)
+
+
+_COA_ALIASES: dict[str, tuple[str, ...]] = {
+    "account_id": ("acct_id", "acct", "account", "account number", "account_no"),
+    "account_name": ("acct_name", "name"),
+    "account_type": ("type",),
+    "normal_side": ("normal", "side"),
+}
+
+_GL_ALIASES: dict[str, tuple[str, ...]] = {
+    "txn_id": ("txnid", "transaction_id", "transaction id", "id"),
+    "doc_id": ("doc", "document", "document_id", "document id"),
+    "description": ("desc", "memo", "narrative"),
+    "account_id": ("acct_id", "acct", "account", "account number", "account_no"),
+    "debit": ("dr", "debits"),
+    "credit": ("cr", "credits"),
+}
+
+
+def _write_normalized_csv(
+    src: Path,
+    dst: Path,
+    *,
+    required_columns: tuple[str, ...],
+    aliases: dict[str, tuple[str, ...]] | None = None,
+    money_columns: tuple[str, ...] = (),
+) -> dict[str, Any]:
+    with src.open("r", newline="", encoding="utf-8-sig") as f_in:
+        reader = csv.DictReader(f_in)
+        if not reader.fieldnames:
+            raise TrackDDataError(f"CSV appears to have no header row: {src.name}")
+
+        fieldnames = [str(c) for c in reader.fieldnames if c is not None]
+        rename_map = build_rename_map(fieldnames, required_columns=required_columns, aliases=aliases)
+
+        dups = detect_duplicate_destinations(rename_map)
+        if dups:
+            pieces = [f"{dst}: {', '.join(srcs)}" for dst, srcs in sorted(dups.items())]
+            raise TrackDSchemaError(
+                "Ambiguous column mapping (multiple source columns map to the same required column).\n"
+                + "\n".join(pieces)
+            )
+
+        # Determine output fields: required columns first, then passthrough extras.
+        required_set = set(required_columns)
+        extras: list[str] = []
+        for c in fieldnames:
+            dest = rename_map.get(c, c)
+            if dest in required_set:
+                continue
+            # Preserve original extra column names (trimmed).
+            extras.append(c.strip())
+
+        out_fields = list(required_columns) + extras
+
+        dst.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+        with dst.open("w", newline="", encoding="utf-8") as f_out:
+            writer = csv.DictWriter(f_out, fieldnames=out_fields)
+            writer.writeheader()
+            n_rows = 0
+            for row in reader:
+                out_row: dict[str, str] = {k: "" for k in out_fields}
+
+                # Map + clean required columns
+                for src_col in fieldnames:
+                    raw_val = row.get(src_col)
+                    val = clean_cell(raw_val)
+                    dest = rename_map.get(src_col, src_col).strip()
+
+                    # Extra columns: keep under original header (trimmed).
+                    if dest not in required_set:
+                        dest = src_col.strip()
+
+                    if dest not in out_row:
+                        # If an extra column name collides with required, prefer required slot.
+                        continue
+
+                    if dest in money_columns:
+                        val = parse_money(val)
+
+                    out_row[dest] = val
+
+                writer.writerow(out_row)
+                n_rows += 1
+
+    return {
+        "src": str(src),
+        "dst": str(dst),
+        "written_rows": n_rows,
+        "written_columns": out_fields,
+    }
+
+
+class CoreGLAdapter:
+    name = "core_gl"
+
+    def normalize(self, ctx: NormalizeContext) -> dict[str, Any]:
+        schemas = schemas_for_profile(ctx.profile)
+
+        ctx.normalized_dir.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+
+        files: list[dict[str, Any]] = []
+        for schema in schemas:
+            src = ctx.tables_dir / schema.name
+            dst = ctx.normalized_dir / schema.name
+            if not src.exists():
+                raise TrackDDataError(f"Missing required input file for adapter '{self.name}': {src}")
+
+            if schema.name == "chart_of_accounts.csv":
+                aliases = _COA_ALIASES
+                money_cols: tuple[str, ...] = ()
+            elif schema.name == "gl_journal.csv":
+                aliases = _GL_ALIASES
+                money_cols = ("debit", "credit")
+            else:
+                aliases = None
+                money_cols = ()
+
+            files.append(
+                _write_normalized_csv(
+                    src,
+                    dst,
+                    required_columns=schema.required_columns,
+                    aliases=aliases,
+                    money_columns=money_cols,
+                )
+            )
+
+        return {
+            "ok": True,
+            "adapter": self.name,
+            "profile": ctx.profile,
+            "project": str(ctx.project_root),
+            "tables_dir": str(ctx.tables_dir),
+            "normalized_dir": str(ctx.normalized_dir),
+            "files": files,
+        }
diff --git a/src/pystatsv1/trackd/adapters/mapping.py b/src/pystatsv1/trackd/adapters/mapping.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..aada8c9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/pystatsv1/trackd/adapters/mapping.py
@@ -0,0 +1,142 @@
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT
+"""Small mapping/cleaning utilities for Track D BYOD adapters.
+
+Design goals (Phase 3.1):
+- Keep utilities tiny and dependency-light (csv-first).
+- Support *boring* transformations that come up in Sheets/Excel exports:
+  - column-name normalization / rename matching
+  - whitespace trimming
+  - simple money parsing (commas, $, parentheses-as-negative)
+
+These helpers are intentionally not a full ETL framework. They exist to keep
+individual adapters readable and consistent.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import re
+from typing import Iterable
+
+
+_RE_NON_ALNUM = re.compile(r"[^a-z0-9_]+")
+_RE_UNDERSCORES = re.compile(r"_+")
+_RE_MONEY = re.compile(r"^\(?\s*(?P<body>.*)\s*\)?$")
+
+
+def normalize_col_name(name: str) -> str:
+    """Normalize a column header for matching purposes.
+
+    Examples
+    --------
+    "Account ID" -> "account_id"
+    " normal-side " -> "normal_side"
+    "DOC-ID" -> "doc_id"
+    """
+
+    s = (name or "").strip().lower()
+    s = s.replace("-", "_").replace(" ", "_")
+    s = _RE_NON_ALNUM.sub("_", s)
+    s = _RE_UNDERSCORES.sub("_", s).strip("_")
+    return s
+
+
+def build_rename_map(
+    fieldnames: Iterable[str],
+    *,
+    required_columns: tuple[str, ...],
+    aliases: dict[str, tuple[str, ...]] | None = None,
+) -> dict[str, str]:
+    """Build a mapping from source fieldnames to required/normalized names.
+
+    Strategy:
+    1) direct normalized match (case/spacing/punct insensitivity)
+    2) optional aliases (also normalized), used only as a *fallback*
+
+    Why fallback-only?
+    - Many exports include both a canonical column (e.g., "Description") and a
+      near-synonym (e.g., "Memo"). We don't want aliases to create ambiguous
+      mappings when a direct match already exists.
+
+    Returns a dict that maps *source column name* -> *destination column name*.
+    """
+
+    src = list(fieldnames)
+    required_norm = {normalize_col_name(c): c for c in required_columns}
+
+    alias_norm: dict[str, str] = {}
+    if aliases:
+        for dest, alts in aliases.items():
+            for a in alts:
+                alias_norm[normalize_col_name(a)] = dest
+
+    out: dict[str, str] = {}
+    claimed: set[str] = set()
+
+    # Pass 1: exact required matches
+    for col in src:
+        n = normalize_col_name(col)
+        if n in required_norm:
+            dest = required_norm[n]
+            out[col] = dest
+            claimed.add(dest)
+
+    # Pass 2: alias fallback (only if dest not already claimed)
+    for col in src:
+        if col in out:
+            continue
+        n = normalize_col_name(col)
+        dest = alias_norm.get(n)
+        if dest and dest not in claimed:
+            out[col] = dest
+            claimed.add(dest)
+
+    return out
+
+
+def detect_duplicate_destinations(rename_map: dict[str, str]) -> dict[str, list[str]]:
+    """Return destinations that are mapped from multiple sources."""
+
+    rev: dict[str, list[str]] = {}
+    for src, dst in rename_map.items():
+        rev.setdefault(dst, []).append(src)
+    return {dst: srcs for dst, srcs in rev.items() if len(srcs) > 1}
+
+
+def clean_cell(value: object) -> str:
+    """Trim whitespace and coerce missing values to empty string."""
+    if value is None:
+        return ""
+    s = str(value)
+    return s.strip()
+
+
+def parse_money(value: str) -> str:
+    """Parse common spreadsheet money formats into a simple numeric string.
+
+    Supported patterns:
+    - "$1,234.00" -> "1234.00"
+    - "(1,234.00)" or "($1,234.00)" -> "-1234.00"
+    - "-1,234" -> "-1234"
+
+    If the string is blank, returns blank.
+    """
+
+    s = (value or "").strip()
+    if not s:
+        return ""
+
+    neg = False
+    if s.startswith("(") and s.endswith(")"):
+        neg = True
+        s = s[1:-1].strip()
+
+    # Strip currency and grouping separators.
+    s = s.replace("$", "").replace(",", "").strip()
+    if not s:
+        return ""
+
+    # If it already has a leading minus, keep it.
+    if s.startswith("-"):
+        return s
+
+    return f"-{s}" if neg else s
diff --git a/src/pystatsv1/trackd/byod.py b/src/pystatsv1/trackd/byod.py
index f8cdbf2..cfc4509 100644
--- a/src/pystatsv1/trackd/byod.py
+++ b/src/pystatsv1/trackd/byod.py
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@
 from pathlib import Path
 from typing import Any
 
-from ._errors import TrackDDataError
+from ._errors import TrackDDataError, TrackDSchemaError
 from ._types import PathLike
 from .adapters.base import NormalizeContext, TrackDAdapter
 from .contracts import ALLOWED_PROFILES, schemas_for_profile
@@ -244,11 +244,16 @@ def _get_adapter(name: str | None) -> TrackDAdapter:
     n = (name or "").strip().lower() or "passthrough"
     if n == "passthrough":
         return _PassthroughAdapter()
+    if n == "core_gl":
+        from .adapters.core_gl import CoreGLAdapter
+
+        return CoreGLAdapter()
     raise TrackDDataError(
-        f"Unknown adapter: {name}.\n" "Use one of: passthrough"
+        f"Unknown adapter: {name}.\n" "Use one of: passthrough, core_gl"
     )
 
 
+
 def normalize_byod_project(project: PathLike, *, profile: str | None = None) -> dict[str, Any]:
     """Normalize BYOD project tables into ``normalized/`` outputs.
 
@@ -293,8 +298,20 @@ def normalize_byod_project(project: PathLike, *, profile: str | None = None) ->
 
     adapter = _get_adapter(cfg.get("adapter"))
 
-    # Validate required schema issues first, so adapters can assume headers exist.
-    validate_dataset(tables_dir, profile=p)
+    # Validation strategy:
+    # - passthrough expects contract-shaped inputs under tables/
+    # - other adapters may accept non-canonical headers, so we validate after normalize
+    if getattr(adapter, "name", "") == "passthrough":
+        # Validate required schema issues first, so passthrough can assume headers exist.
+        validate_dataset(tables_dir, profile=p)
+    else:
+        # Light check: required files must exist; detailed schema validation runs on normalized outputs.
+        schemas = schemas_for_profile(p)
+        missing = [s.name for s in schemas if not (tables_dir / s.name).exists()]
+        if missing:
+            raise TrackDSchemaError(
+                "Missing required files in tables/: " + ", ".join(missing)
+            )
 
     ctx = NormalizeContext(
         project_root=root,
@@ -303,4 +320,10 @@ def normalize_byod_project(project: PathLike, *, profile: str | None = None) ->
         raw_dir=(root / "raw"),
         normalized_dir=(root / "normalized"),
     )
-    return adapter.normalize(ctx)
+    report = adapter.normalize(ctx)
+
+    if getattr(adapter, "name", "") != "passthrough":
+        # Ensure adapter output conforms to the Track D contract.
+        validate_dataset(ctx.normalized_dir, profile=p)
+
+    return report
diff --git a/tests/test_trackd_byod_adapter_selection_cli.py b/tests/test_trackd_byod_adapter_selection_cli.py
index fcfb64a..7f6f50b 100644
--- a/tests/test_trackd_byod_adapter_selection_cli.py
+++ b/tests/test_trackd_byod_adapter_selection_cli.py
@@ -21,3 +21,4 @@ def test_trackd_byod_normalize_uses_adapter_from_config(tmp_path: Path, capsys)
     assert rc == 1
     assert "unknown adapter" in out
     assert "passthrough" in out
+    assert "core_gl" in out
diff --git a/tests/test_trackd_byod_normalize_cli.py b/tests/test_trackd_byod_normalize_cli.py
index d6528e3..b4f5529 100644
--- a/tests/test_trackd_byod_normalize_cli.py
+++ b/tests/test_trackd_byod_normalize_cli.py
@@ -47,3 +47,55 @@ def test_trackd_byod_normalize_requires_config_or_profile(tmp_path: Path, capsys
 
     assert rc == 1
     assert "missing profile" in out.lower()
+
+
+def test_trackd_byod_normalize_core_gl_adapter_allows_noncanonical_headers_and_cleans_money(
+    tmp_path: Path,
+    capsys,
+) -> None:
+    proj = tmp_path / "byod"
+
+    rc_init = main(["trackd", "byod", "init", "--dest", str(proj), "--profile", "core_gl"])
+    assert rc_init == 0
+
+    # Switch adapter to core_gl (it tolerates header variations and cleans values).
+    cfg_path = proj / "config.toml"
+    cfg = cfg_path.read_text(encoding="utf-8")
+    cfg_path.write_text(cfg.replace('adapter = "passthrough"', 'adapter = "core_gl"'), encoding="utf-8")
+
+    # Note: headers intentionally use spaces/case, and money uses commas/$/parentheses.
+    (proj / "tables" / "chart_of_accounts.csv").write_text(
+        "Account ID,Account Name,Account Type,Normal Side,Note\n"
+        "1000, Cash ,Asset,Debit, ok \n",
+        encoding="utf-8",
+    )
+    (proj / "tables" / "gl_journal.csv").write_text(
+        "Txn ID,Date,Doc ID,Description,Account ID,Debit,Credit,Memo\n"
+        't1,2024-01-01,inv-1, Sale ,1000,"$1,234.00",, hi \n'
+        "t2,2024-01-02,inv-2, Refund ,1000,(200.00),,\n"
+        't3,2024-01-03,inv-3, Payment ,1000,,"$2,000.00",\n',
+        encoding="utf-8",
+    )
+
+    rc = main(["trackd", "byod", "normalize", "--project", str(proj)])
+    out = capsys.readouterr().out.lower()
+
+    assert rc == 0
+    assert "adapter: core_gl" in out
+
+    coa_hdr = (proj / "normalized" / "chart_of_accounts.csv").read_text(encoding="utf-8").splitlines()[0]
+    gl_lines = (proj / "normalized" / "gl_journal.csv").read_text(encoding="utf-8").splitlines()
+
+    assert coa_hdr.startswith("account_id,account_name,account_type,normal_side")
+    assert gl_lines[0].startswith("txn_id,date,doc_id,description,account_id,debit,credit")
+
+    # Money cleanup + whitespace trimming assertions
+    import csv
+    import io
+
+    reader = csv.DictReader(io.StringIO("\n".join(gl_lines)))
+    rows = list(reader)
+    assert rows[0]["debit"] == "1234.00"
+    assert rows[1]["debit"] == "-200.00"
+    assert rows[2]["credit"] == "2000.00"
+    assert rows[0]["Memo"] == "hi"