The objective of the Climb the Mountain Speech and Debate program is to provide a safe environment for learning. To that end, we expect participants to agree to the following standards of personal behavior. Participants who violate any of the following standards of conduct may have their parents contacted, participation in the institute terminated, or lesser penalties imposed as deemed appropriate by the Director of the program. In the below, "I" refers to the participant who will participate in the program.
LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
1. I will respect the learning environment by refraining from interrupting lectures, speaking loudly in the library or computer lab rooms, being distractive during lab time, etc. I will respect others learning in classrooms, studying in the library, and working in outdoor areas.
2. I will respect the school’s staff, materials, and building. I will abide by the library rules of circulation and conduct. I will not write in school materials unless given explicit permission to do so.
3. I will treat computers with respect. I will not move, physically alter, or damage computers or any of their parts. I will not use computers nor the network to do damage to others including spam, spyware, hogging bandwidth, engaging in copyright violations, and harassing or threatening others.
4. I will research and speak and debate in an honest and ethical manner. I will not fabricate evidence, plagiarize the work of others, nor purposefully mislabel evidence in a way that dishonestly represents the argument that the author presents.
5. I will respect and support other students, staff, and coaches in the program. I will not demean the efforts of others nor interfere with the effective learning of other students or coaches nor the teaching by the staff.
6. I will be cooperative with staff. I shall abide by staff requests to follow appropriate behavior necessary to the safety and learning of the program.
7. I will attend each session unless I or my parents/guardian/family emails Jim Hanson that I am unable to attend. I will seek to be prepared for each session.
8. I will refrain from harassing other students and staff including unwanted touching, sexualized comments, picking on people with demeaning comments, and derogatory references to a student based on their race, religion, gender, etc.
HEALTH ISSUES
9. I will maintain my health through good diet and rest, and I will notify the staff if I think I have a health problem that could affect others.
10. I will conduct myself in a safe and cautious manner in order to avoid accidents to others and myself.
11. I will refrain from possessing, using, purchasing, or otherwise being involved in any way with alcohol or illegal drugs or the misuse of chemical substances.
12. Smoking under the age of 18 is illegal in the state of Washington. I understand that I can be fined hundreds of dollars for room air cleaning services if I smoke in or near a building. Further, I will not encourage the use of nor share any tobacco with other participants.
LIVING ISSUES
13. I will remain on campus at all times except if I have an emergency, an institute staff member may take me to the emergency clinic or hospital. I understand that when I leave the host campus under any circumstance, Climb the Mountain and the host facility’s liability is removed and I do so at my own risk.
14. I will be at lectures and labs on time. I understand that staff are required to take attendance and that if I am not there, they are required to spend time searching for me and if they cannot find me that they are required to call security who are then forced to spend time searching for me.
15. If I will leave the program to visit family or friends or for an event, I will give the director 24 hours notice and I will tell the director at the time I depart.
16. I will respect fire codes for the school and will not set off false alarms.
17. I will respect the privacy and property of others and not engage in theft or vandalism. I understand that I will be responsible for the cost of any items that I damage.
18. I will not possess or discharge firearms, weapons, ammunition, fireworks, explosives, and highly flammable materials at any time while at our host facility.
19. Participants aged 12 and under will need to have parent/guardian sign-in and sign-out for drop-off and pick-up from the program.
I understand that staff members have the right to ensure that I will adhere to these standards including by excluding me from functions and/or separating me from others. Further, the director of the program has the right to expel me from the program if he concludes that my presence means that these learning, health, and living issues cannot be assured.