Code of Conduct for Adults with Students: Boundaries

Branson's Board of Trustees has adopted the following Code of Conduct for Adults with Students: Boundaries (“Code of Conduct”). This Code of Conduct outlines (1) standards for interactions between employees and students, and (2) standards for interactions between contractors or volunteers and students.

 

Employee Interactions with Students

 

The Branson School encourages close but appropriate relationships between students and school faculty and staff. At the same time, it is important that each employee’s conduct is at all times professional. In order to best serve the well-being of students and to avoid confusing communications and to prevent sexual misconduct, the school requires all employees, volunteers, and contractors to maintain appropriate boundaries between themselves and students to ensure that they avoid even the perception of inappropriate conduct or favoritism. Some activities may seem innocent from an employee’s perspective but can be perceived as flirtation or sexual insinuation from the perspective of a student or parent.

Below are examples of conduct that cross the boundaries of appropriate relationships with students and guidelines for maintaining boundaries. Although the examples below refer to employee interactions with students, employees must also maintain professional boundaries in interactions with any minors with whom an employee interacts as part of their employment with the school (e.g., applicants, siblings of students, former students under age 21, students visiting from other schools, etc.). Employees should also be familiar with the guidelines for contractors and volunteers that are included later in this policy.

The examples below will not address every situation an employee may encounter, so employees should confer with the Director of Human Resources or the Head of School if they have questions. If an employee encounters a situation where they find it necessary to engage in conduct described in the following examples, they must inform their immediate supervisor, the Director of Human Resources, or the Head of School in advance. If it is not possible to provide the information in advance, the employee must inform their immediate supervisor, the Director of Human Resources, or the Head of School as soon as possible after the exceptional event occurs.

All employees are expected to adhere to the following guidelines and practices: 

Unacceptable Behavior

Employees must not have unnecessary physical contact with students.

• Examples of generally accepted physical personal contact in safe-touch areas (i.e., shoulder, upper back, arm) include if the behavior is obviously appropriate, such as when giving a handshake, pat on the back, a high five, or brief embrace for celebration or support. Touching would also be appropriate where necessary for the health or safety of a student or as part of an employee’s professional duties.
• Respect a student’s right not to be touched or looked at in ways that make them feel uncomfortable.
• Where physical touch is necessary for an employee to perform their job duties, including emergency situations where the safety of a student is involved, the employee must adhere to the following:
  • Employees should not be alone with a student or in a space that cannot be observed by other adults.
  • Employees should always ask permission before touching any student.

Employees must comply with the Policy Against Bullying and Harassment Against Students in the Student & Family Handbook, including not making or participating in sexually inappropriate or culturally insensitive comments, stories, or jokes with students.

• Employees should not display sexually oriented materials in the presence of students, except where part of approved curriculum.

Employees should not intentionally be alone with a student off campus without parent and supervisor knowledge or permission. This includes meeting with individual students at your home, over coffee, socially, or otherwise.

• Employees should avoid contact with a student away from school for activities not related to school without parent and supervisor knowledge and permission.
• Employees may not tutor Branson students outside of their regular job duties or off campus.
• Advisory activities must only take place during the school day. Advisors may take a group of students off campus for an advisory lunch but must notify their supervisor in advance.
• This policy applies to babysitting or tutoring as outlined in the employee and family handbooks.

Employees should not intentionally be alone with a student (1) in a vehicle (except in an emergency situation) or (2) in a space on campus that cannot be observed by others. One-on-one meetings with students on campus should happen in public or visible places.

• If you find yourself alone in a space with a student, make sure that the space is visible to the public or that the door is open. Otherwise, move to a more public location. If a space with adequate visibility is not available, find another adult to be present.
• When a student’s privacy needs to be preserved and no appropriate location is available, consider delaying the meeting.
• If an employee must be alone with a student to perform their job duties, the employee should: (1) Inform a supervisior that they will be or have been alone with a student; (2) Meet in a public place or a place that is readily observable. If meeting in a classroom or office, the employee should have the blinds up or door open; (3) Avoid physical contact of any sort with the student; and (4) Document in writing and submit to the Head of School or Director of Human Resources any unusual incident, including but not limited to the disclosures by the student of abuse or maltreatment, behavior problems and how they are handled, injuries or any interactions with the student that are significant or unusual.

Employees may not use or be under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs in the presence of students or encourage them to use alcohol or illegal drugs.

• Branson may allow exceptions for alcohol consumption during school functions where alcohol is served and students are not present.

Employees may not engage in preferential treatment or excessive personal attention toward a particular student (or group of students), for example:

• Avoid giving gifts to an individual student that are of a personal or intimate nature.
• Do not seek emotional involvement with a student for your personal benefit.
• Do not discuss your own personal troubles or intimate issues with a student.
• Do not become so involved with a student that a reasonable person may suspect inappropriate behavior.
• Avoid excessive attention toward a particular student or group of students.

Employees must keep communications with students professional and, when communicating with students, may not:

• Use pet names or terms of endearment for students;
• Use sexualized or suggestive language;
• Gossip about, disparage, or share private information of other students or adult members of the school community;
• Ask students personal or intimate questions unless this is part of an employee’s job duties (e.g., the school counselor);
• Share the employee’s personal or intimate information with a student or discuss the employee’s personal problems with a student;
• Discuss drug or alcohol use (except when necessary to the purpose of the employee’s professional duties);
• Keep a student’s secrets or ask a student to keep secrets from other employees or their parents or guardians.
• Send communications to students of a personal nature if the content is not about school activities.

Employees must limit electronic communications with students as follows:

• When using a social media site, employees may not include current students of any age or former students under the age of 18 as “friends,” “followers,” or any other similar terminology used by various sites. (This applies to all social media)
  • After a student has graduated from Branson, employees may accept social invitations from former students over the age of 18 if they choose.
  • Be aware of inappropriate use of social media content about students.
• Employees should not use personal email or texting with students.
  • Avoid telephone calls or text conversations with individual students rather than using school’s email and communication systems. If it is necessary to text for student safety while off campus for a class or other school-sponsored activity, use group text. If texting an individual student is necessary, make sure to include another adult in the messaging.
• Avoid communications with others containing inappropriate information if there is the likelihood that the receiving party will share it with a student – for example, sending content to a former student who is likely to share it with a current student.
• Avoid sending communications of a personal nature to students or other messages not about school activities.

Keep the parents and supervisor informed when a significant issue develops about a student.

Duty to Report 

The School encourages parents or other members of the school community who have concerns about adults crossing appropriate boundaries with students to inform the appropriate division head or the Head of School.

School employees have an obligation to report to the Head of School any behavior they deem inappropriate between an adult employee, volunteer or contractor, and a student. The school has the right and responsibility to investigate adult compliance with this code of conduct even if no report has been made.

If an employee finds themself in a difficult situation related to boundaries, the employee should ask for advice from a supervisor or the Head of School. When an employee becomes aware of another employee crossing appropriate boundaries with a student, the employee must report the matter to the Head of School as soon as possible. If the Head of School is not available, contact your supervisor, the counselor, or the appropriate dean. In some circumstances, employees will also have the duty to report such conduct in accordance with mandated reporter requirements.

Branson will not retaliate against anyone who reports conduct that may violate this boundary policy. An employee who retaliates against an individual who makes a report under this policy will be subject to discipline.

 

Interactions between Contractors or Volunteers and Students

 

Below are examples of conduct that cross the boundaries of appropriate interactions with students and guidelines for maintaining boundaries. The examples below will not address every situation a contractor or volunteer may encounter, so they should confer with the Branson administrator overseeing their work if they have questions.

Contractors and volunteers may not have physical contact with a student except in emergency situations where physical contact is required to prevent physical harm to the student and no school employee is available to assist.

Contractors and volunteers may not engage in conduct that would violate the Policy Against Bullying and Harassment of Students in the Student & Family Handbook including:

• Making, or participating in, sexually inappropriate comments; sexual jokes, stories, or jokes/comments with sexual innuendo with or in the presence of students; or
• Displaying sexually-oriented materials in the presence of students, except where part of approved curriculum.

Contractors and volunteers may not intentionally be alone with a student (1) in a vehicle (except in an emergency situation), (2) in a space that cannot be observed by others, or (3) away from campus, without permission of a School administrator and the student’s parent or guardian;

Contractors and volunteers may not have contact with a student or group of students off campus, outside of school-sponsored activities (except for volunteers who are also parents of school students who oversee contact between their children and other students).

Contractors and volunteers may not be under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs in the presence of students or encourage them to use alcohol or illegal drugs.

Contractors and volunteers may not engage in preferential treatment or excessive personal attention toward a particular student (or group of students) including:

• Giving gifts to a student that are of a personal or intimate nature;
• Seeking emotional involvement with a student for the adult’s benefit;
• Becoming involved with a student so that a reasonable person may suspect inappropriate behavior.

Contractors and volunteers must keep communications with students professional and, when communicating with students, may not:

• Use pet names or terms of endearment for students;
• Use sexualized or suggestive language;
• Gossip about, disparage, or share private information of other students or adult members of the school community;
• Ask students personal or intimate questions, share their own personal or intimate information, or discuss their personal problems;
• Keep a student’s secrets or ask students to keep secrets from employees or the student’s parents or guardians.

Contractors and volunteers may not connect with students (other than their own children or family friends) on any social media platform.

Contractors and volunteers may not have electronic communications (including email or texting) with students except that volunteers supervising students away from school (e.g., on sports teams or field trips) are permitted to text or email with students for communications about logistics, such as changes in schedules or locations for sports practices. When texting a student, they should send group texts and include a school employee on all communications.

 

As of January 1, 2018, California AB 500 requires schools to share their student/employee interaction policy in their employee handbooks, on their school websites, and in writing to all parents at the beginning of the school year. Effective January 1, 2026, California SB 848, "The School Employee Misconduct: Child Abuse Prevention Act" created new child-safety and compliance obligations for California independent schools. The above policy has been updated in compliance with this new law. 

This policy was created in May 2018, and was last updated in August 2026.