Parent Code of Conduct & Partnership Agreement

1Preamble: Partners in Wisdom and Action

HIS is a sandbox, not a school — a protected environment where children attempt real things: experiments, ventures, performances, projects, work. Safe enough to try and fail; real enough for the attempt to matter. Enrolling a child at HIS is a decision to raise that child in partnership inside this sandbox. HIS develops doers — young people who apply knowledge to real problems, pursue mastery in an art and a sport, work in real workplaces, and build character for life. None of this succeeds without parents who understand the model and pull in the same direction.

This Code describes that partnership. It asks of parents what we ask of students and coaches: integrity, respect, and conduct worthy of the community. It is part of the Enrollment Contract (B.3); signing one includes accepting the other.

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2Scope

This Code applies to parents, guardians, and any family member or representative acting on a student's behalf:

• on campus and at all school events, on and off site — performances, matches, house competitions, exhibitions, trips, and ceremonies;
• in all communication with coaches, staff, leadership, other parents, and students;
• online, including social media, messaging groups, and review platforms, whenever the school community is affected;
• in dealings connected to the school, including internship hosts, sister companies, and vendors.

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3The Partnership: Five Commitments

Mirroring the five student commitments, every HIS parent commits:

1. I trust the sandbox — and let my child do the work. HIS teaches through real problems, real projects, and productive struggle; honest failure inside the sandbox is protected learning, not something to be prevented or hidden. I let my child attempt, meet deadlines, carry consequences, and own their victories and failures. I do not do my child's work, negotiate their grades, or shield them from the accountability that builds a doer.

2. I respect the professionals. HIS coaches are selected from top scientists, researchers, artists, athletes, and practitioners. I treat every coach and staff member with courtesy, address concerns to the right person through the right channel, and never berate, threaten, or publicly disparage a member of staff — in person, in parent groups, or online.

3. I engage as a partner. I attend Head Coach conferences, read reports, engage with my child's Individual Student Development Plan, and share information the school needs — including health, custody, and wellbeing matters (R.6). I support the whole program: academics, arts and sports mastery, house life, internships, and the nutrition program, including its rules on outside food (D.22).

4. I model the standard. My conduct at competitions, performances, and events shows my child what character looks like: I respect officials, opponents, and other performers; I cheer for effort, not just results; I never coach from the sideline against the coaches' instructions. I follow campus rules — sign-in, safeguarding, smoking, parking, and photography (J.4, K.10).

5. I protect the community. I safeguard other children's privacy — I do not post images of students other than my own without consent (K.10). I raise safeguarding concerns immediately and only through proper channels (J.1). I do not seek unfair advantage for my child — in admissions, casting, selection, house competition, or internship placement — through pressure, gifts (M.14), or connections, including at sister companies.

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4Communication and Concerns

HIS wants concerns raised — early, directly, and in the right place (R.3):

1. First: the relevant Subject Coach or program coach, for matters in one class or activity.
2. Then: the Head Coach, who owns the complete picture of your child's development.
3. Then: the Division Principal, and, for unresolved matters, the formal complaints procedure (R.5) up to the Head of School.

Parents can expect acknowledgment of messages within the timelines in R.3, professional honesty about their child's progress, and early contact when something matters. In return, the school expects communication that is factual, courteous, and directed to the person who can act on it — not broadcast to parent groups, other families, or social media. Coaches' personal contact details, evenings, and weekends are respected; urgent safeguarding or safety matters are the exception and have dedicated channels.

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5Boundaries of the Partnership

• Decisions that belong to the school. Curriculum, pedagogy, grouping, casting, team selection, house assignment (permanent by design, T.1), staffing, and the application of policy are professional decisions. The school explains them; it does not negotiate them family-by-family.
• Decisions that belong to the family. Pathway choices (DP vs. HCP), the child's mastery art and sport, internship preferences, and consent decisions are made with the family, with the school advising.
• Custody and court orders. The school follows R.6 exactly and cannot take sides between parents.
• Volunteering and events. Parent help is welcome and governed by J.4 (safeguarding vetting where required). Volunteering confers no influence over school decisions.
• Gifts. Appreciation is expressed within M.14 limits; hospitality and gifts that could influence, or appear to influence, a decision are declined.

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6Conduct That Breaches This Code

• abusive, threatening, intimidating, or persistently unreasonable communication toward staff, students, or other parents;
• public disparagement of the school, its staff, or its students, including on social media and in parent messaging groups;
• attempting to obtain advantage through pressure on staff, improper gifts, or misuse of sister-company or personal connections;
• breaching safeguarding rules, photography and privacy rules, or campus access rules;
• undermining school decisions to a child in ways that make the partnership unworkable;
• misconduct at school events, including sideline abuse of officials, coaches, or young competitors;
• providing false information to the school, including in admissions, health, or custody matters.

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7Responding to Breaches

The school responds in escalating steps, always documented, always with the aim of restoring partnership:

1. Conversation — a direct discussion with the Head Coach or Division Principal, naming the conduct and the expectation.
2. Written agreement — a communication plan or conduct agreement: designated contact person, agreed channels, meeting protocols.
3. Restrictions — where conduct continues: restricted campus access, attendance at events by arrangement only, communication through a single named channel.
4. Enrollment consequences — in serious or unremedied cases, the Head of School may conclude that the partnership required by the Enrollment Contract no longer exists, leading to non-renewal or termination of enrollment (B.3). This step is never taken to punish a child for a parent's conduct, but the enrollment relationship is with the family, and it requires the partnership this Code describes.

Immediate threats or safeguarding matters skip these steps and are handled under J.1 and, where necessary, with authorities.

Parents may raise concerns about the application of this Code through the complaints procedure (R.5).

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8What Parents Can Expect From HIS

Partnership runs both ways. HIS commits to parents: professional, courteous treatment by every staff member; honest and early communication about their child; clear channels and published response times (R.3); explanation of decisions and policies; a fair hearing for every concern (R.5); protection of family data (O.1); and a genuine welcome as the school's most important allies in raising people of Wisdom and Action.

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9Acknowledgment

Signed at enrollment and re-affirmed at each re-enrollment as part of the Enrollment Contract:

We have read and understood the HIS Parent Code of Conduct & Partnership Agreement. We accept the five commitments and understand how the school will respond if the partnership breaks down.

Parent/Guardian: ______________________ Date: ______

Parent/Guardian: ______________________ Date: ______

Student(s) and Grade(s): ______________________ House(s): ______________________

Reviewed annually by the Director of Communications and Division Principals with input from the Parent Association (R.4); approved by the Head of School. The version in the current Parent Handbook (R.1) is authoritative. Where a translation is provided, the English version prevails.

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