New England Ski for Light   

Code of Conduct Policy

New England Ski for Light (NESFL) seeks to establish and maintain a safe, healthy and welcoming environment for all participants. This includes volunteer guides, participating individuals with disabilities, and other volunteers or guests attending any NESFL function.

The Code applies to both in-person and virtual settings and governs all interactions reasonably associated with NESFL-sponsored and related activities.  Individuals attending an NESFL function must conduct themselves in accordance with the highest standards of integrity and ethics and in compliance with federal, state, and local laws. Examples of improper conduct may include, but are not limited to: bullying, endangerment, unwelcome verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature, abusive language, discrimination,  conflict of interest,  harassment, irresponsible substance use, and other behavior detrimental to the best interests and reputation  of NESFL, its participants and partners.  

This code of conduct policy is intended to encourage and enable any person involved with the NESFL organization and/or program to raise serious concerns internally so that NESFL can address and correct inappropriate conduct and actions.

It is the responsibility of all persons involved with the NESFL organization and/or program who believe that they have witnessed or been subjected to an incident of improper conduct to report the incident to any NESFL board member. The NESFL Vice President shall be the Compliance Officer for the organization unless the report is related to that person. In such a situation, the Compliance Officer for the complaint shall be the board member who received the report.

It is the responsibility of the Compliance Officer to investigate the complaint entirely. The Compliance Officer may involve other persons not related to the complaint, including the NESFL President, executive board members and/or outside resources as appropriate and necessary to conduct a thorough investigation. The investigation shall be conducted in a confidential manner to the extent consistent with a reasonable investigation. While reasonable efforts shall be made to protect the identity of the person filing the complaint if so requested, disclosures may be made in furtherance of the investigation as practical and necessary given the nature, scope, and details of the complaint.

If the incident being reported involves a potential or actual violation of law, the Compliance Officer shall contact the appropriate authorities and strongly encourage the  complainant  to file a report with them immediately. Actions taken by NESFL will occur independently from any actions by local authorities.

When the Compliance Officer   and designated team have completed the investigation, they shall submit a report to the Executive Committee, except that if the party about whom the complaint is made is a member of the Executive Committee, they shall not be a party to evaluating or deciding on the merits of the complaint. The report shall include an assessment of whether the submitted complaint violated an NESFL policy or whether inappropriate conduct occurred, as well as a recommendation for any corrective actions that may be appropriate. The Executive Committee shall endorse or modify the conclusions and recommendations of the report and take appropriate action to address the current improper conduct and prevent future similar conduct. In situations where the alleged improper conduct does not violate any local, state, or federal law, the action of the Executive Committee shall be final.

Consequences for violations: Any person found to have violated the expectations outlined in this Code may be subject to a range of consequences, up to and/or  including  a verbal or written warning, assignment of a different partner or roommate, removal from the event with no refund of event fees, termination of volunteer status, and/or exclusion of participation in NESFL events.

Restitution may be assessed against the offender in cases where restitution would be appropriate to make the aggrieved party whole.

The person against whom a complaint is filed will be given every opportunity to be heard and to present their version of the facts surrounding the complaint. The Compliance officer may assess the credibility of the competing versions of the facts of an incident and give appropriate weight to the version of the facts from the person that is found to be more credible.

Retaliation against anyone for filing a report, or against any board member involved in the investigation or resolution of a complaint, shall also be considered a violation of the code. Individuals experiencing retaliation are strongly encouraged to report such incidents to any NESFL board member.

Approved as amended by the Board of Directors of New England Ski for Light April 15, 2026.

The term of this agreement is the year 2026.