Forensic Leaders Training Center® Policies

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Non-Discrimination and Equal Employment Policies

Forensic Leaders Training Center® is committed to fostering a positive and inclusive learning and working environment. FLTC does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations. These activities include, but are not limited to, the appointment to and termination from its Advisory Board, hiring and firing of staff and contractors, acceptance of members, selection of volunteers, selection of vendors, and the provision of services.

Disclaimer of Guarantee and Refund Policy

FLTC is not an educational institution. In the course of its regular business, FLTC does not provide Members with a guarantee of promotion, pay raise, or any other improvement in career metrics upon completion of any of our classes or workshops. Any such claims by FLTC employees do not represent FLTC's policies and are therefore regarded as personal opinions, not a guarantee. Our classes and workshops provide training on skills and concepts in current trends in leadership and management, and they are not necessarily the best or only way to achieve career improvement or advancement.

Membership with FLTC and enrollment in FLTC courses constitute an agreement with the above disclaimer.

Current tuition and membership rates are published on the website at https://www.forensicleaders.org. All tuition and coaching/consultant fees are refundable on a case-by-case basis; refunds for live course cancellations are provided up to 24 hours before the course’s occurrence. Membership payments are non-refundable.

Member Code of Conduct

Forensic Leaders Training Center® (FLTC) requires all Members to adhere to this Code of Conduct, which applies to conduct that occurs while you are a member of the FLTC Community and while you attend or participate in FLTC-hosted or -sponsored classes, workshops, and events. The Member Code of Conduct also applies to conduct outside of FLTC-based activities that adversely affect FLTC, the forensic science community, and the pursuit of FLTC's objectives. Each Member is responsible for their conduct from the time of membership through the completion of courses, even though conduct may occur before courses begin or after courses end, during periods between terms of actual membership (and even if their conduct is not discovered until after membership is granted), and while participating in FLTC-based activities as Members. The Member Director shall decide whether the Member Code shall be applied to non-FLTC-based activities, on a case-by-case basis, at their sole discretion.

Prohibited Conduct

Any Member found to have committed or to have attempted to commit the following misconduct is subject to disciplinary sanctions:

CHEATING, PLAGIARISM, OR OTHER FORMS OF ACADEMIC DISHONESTY
For purposes of this policy, the term “cheating” includes, but is not limited to: (1) use of any unauthorized assistance in taking quizzes, tests, or examinations; (2) use of sources beyond those authorized by the instructor in writing papers, preparing reports, solving problems, or carrying out other assignments; (3) the acquisition, without permission, of tests or other academic material belonging to a member of FLTC staff (4) engaging in any behavior specifically prohibited by an instructor in the course syllabus or class discussion; (5) soliciting written projects or case study solutions from other Members or third-party sources.

The term “plagiarism” includes, but is not limited to, the use, by paraphrase or direct quotation, of the published or unpublished work of another person without full and clear acknowledgment. It also includes the unacknowledged use of materials prepared by another person or agency engaged in the selling of term papers or other academic materials. Additionally, we consider submissions of work previously submitted by the Member for a different purpose or project plagiarism ("self-plagiarism").

Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, distributing completed coursework to other Members of the program or otherwise making FLTC coursework available publicly online.

FURNISHING FALSE INFORMATION TO ANY FLTC DIRECTOR, STAFF MEMBER, OR OFFICE, OR ENGAGING IN DECEPTIVE, FALSE, MISLEADING, COERCIVE, OR FRAUDULENT BEHAVIOR.

FORGERY, ALTERATION, OR MISUSE OF ANY FLTC DOCUMENT, RECORD, OR INSTRUMENT OF IDENTIFICATION.

VIOLATING APPLICABLE LAWS OR REGULATIONS.

DISRUPTING OR OBSTRUCTING TEACHING, RESEARCH, ADMINISTRATION, DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDINGS, OR OTHER FLTC ACTIVITIES.

USING RUDE OR DISRESPECTFUL LANGUAGE TOWARDS FLTC MEMBERS, FACULTY, AND STAFF OR OTHERWISE CONTRIBUTING TO A HOSTILE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT.

ENGAGING IN THREATENING, HARASSING, VIOLENT, MENACING, DISORDERLY, STALKING, VULGAR, LEWD, OBSCENE, INDECENT, OR DEFAMATORY BEHAVIOR.

COLLECTING PERSONAL INFORMATION FROM ANOTHER WITHOUT EXPLICIT CONSENT, SUCH AS MAKING AN AUDIO OR VIDEO RECORD OF A COMMUNITY MEMBER WITHOUT KNOWLEDGE OR CONSENT WHEN SUCH A RECORDING IS LIKELY TO CAUSE INJURY OR DISTRESS.

THEFT, DESTRUCTION, OR DEFACEMENT OF THE PROPERTY OF FLTC OR ANOTHER PERSON, INCLUDING DISTRIBUTION OF FILES CONTAINING POTENTIALLY DAMAGING SOFTWARE OR PROGRAMS.

PROMOTING BIGOTRY, RACISM, HATRED, OR HARM AGAINST ANY GROUP OR INDIVIDUAL.

ASSAULT OR SEXUAL MISCONDUCT.

CONDUCT THAT VIOLATES FLTC'S TERMS OF USE, PRIVACY POLICY, OR OTHER FLTC POLICIES OR PROCEDURES.

THEFT OR ABUSE OF FLTC'S INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY OR COURSEWARE RESOURCES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:

• Unauthorized access to or use of the FLTC's website, or other FLTC resources.
• Use of another Member’s identification and/or password.
• Use of information technology and FLTC resources to interfere with the work of another Member, staff member, or FLTC official.
• Use of information technology and FLTC resources to send obscene or abusive messages.
• Access to or use of information technology and FLTC resources to interfere with, damage, disable or impair the normal operation of the system, platform, or website.
• Falsification of digital records pertaining to class/workshop performance or activities.
• Publishing coursework solutions on third-party platforms.
• Use of information technology and FLTC resources in violation of FLTC's policies or federal, state, or local laws or another’s legal rights (including intellectual property rights, rights of privacy, or publicity). FLTC reserves the right to revoke a Member’s use of the community or other information technology resources at any time with or without notice or cause. FLTC resources are the sole property of Forensic Leaders LLC. Use of FLTC resources and emails or other electronic messages received or sent to FLTC is not guaranteed to be private as we maintain the right to monitor their use at any time with or without notice.

Procedure In Case of Violation

For the protection of the FLTC community, Members engaging in behavior that violates the Code of Conduct will be subject to immediate removal from the FLTC community and/or live online or in-person events. Members may have their membership privileges reinstated pending the outcome of the disciplinary process. FLTC reserves the right to suspend a Member who is accused of violating the Code of Conduct pending an investigation.

Any member of the FLTC community may file a complaint (“complainant”) against a Member (“respondent”) for violations of the Code of Conduct. A complaint shall be prepared in writing and emailed to [email protected], addressed to the Member Director. A complaint should be submitted as soon as possible after the event takes place.

The Member Director will first determine if the complaint, if true, would constitute a violation of the Code of Conduct. If it would not, the Member Director will notify the complainant that the complaint is dismissed. If the complaint, if true, would constitute a violation of the Code of Conduct, then the Member Director will initiate an investigation and notify the complainant and respondent in writing of the allegations and that an investigation has been initiated. The Member Director will convene a three-member ad hoc Hearing Committee consisting of FLTC staff and/or Directors to investigate the allegations. The complainant and respondent will both have an opportunity to be interviewed by the Committee and provide evidence.

FLTC reserves the right to suspend a Member who is accused of violating the Code of Conduct pending an investigation.

After completion of the investigation, the Hearing Committee will determine whether the Code of Conduct was violated and the appropriate course of action. The Member Director will communicate the determination as to whether the Code of Conduct was violated and the corrective action, as applicable, to the Member accused of violating the Code of Conduct and the community member who filed the complaint. Privacy will be respected, and information will only be shared on a need-to-know basis at the discretion of the Member Director. The Director's decision is final unless the Member is removed from the program and seeks reinstatement, in which case the Appeals Process applies.

In determining sanctions, several factors are taken into account, including the severity of the infringement, intentionality, and whether there is a history of misconduct. A Member who violates the Code of Conduct may be subject to the following actions, including but not limited to:

• Revising and resubmitting an assignment;
• Completion of an alternative assignment;
• Receiving a zero for an assignment;
• Permanent removal from the FLTC membership;
• Removal of any Certificates of Completion issued;
• Permanent exclusion from online and in-person events;
• Removal from the FLTC leadership program;
• Refusal to grant the Member in question any Certificate of Completion.

FLTC disciplinary proceedings may be instituted against a Member charged with conduct that potentially violates both the law and this Code of Conduct without regard to whether a legal proceeding is pending. Proceedings under this Code of Conduct may be carried out prior to, simultaneously with, or following civil or criminal proceedings off-campus at the discretion of the Member Director.

Appeal Process

If a Member is removed from the program due to conduct violations, he or she may appeal the decision at [email protected] within three days of the determination requesting reinstatement. Both the complainant and the respondent will have an opportunity to submit written statements to the Executive Director, who will decide the appeal. The decision of the Executive Director is final and may not be further appealed.