Is this the people-to-people program?
If you say it is, then it is. That's how the system in its present form works. It's essentially what I would call the honor system. You fill out a simple card on departure checking the box asserting that your trip meets one of the 12 categories of permitted travel, one of which is "people-to-people," and that's all you have to do. Okay, almost all--you're also supposed to maintain records of what you did, who you met, etc., and have a "full-time" itinerary of such people-to-people interaction. No "tourism" for you! But the catch is that there is no requirement that you show the records or any other documentation to any authority--the US government doesn't want to see your documentation. In other words, there is no enforcement of these rules. So it is basically the honor system. As far as I can determine, many of the Americans visiting Cuba today essentially just hope and/or pretend that their trip meets the requirements, since there are no consequences if the trip did not meet the requirements, and no one ever makes a determination whether your trip met the requirements. Just check the box asserting that your trip meets the requirements, and be on your way. The Fact Sheet that @Antillas Diving posted explains it reasonably well.
@Antillas Diving, thank you for being diplomatic about it.