Safety and Conduct

CTD's Civic Education Project (CEP) staff takes every reasonable step to ensure the safety and well-being of every CEP student, by practicing the following: 

Hiring Experienced Staff Members 

Our staff is a talented group of educators brought together by their commitment to teaching highly able young people about civic engagement, leadership, and social responsibility.

• Our instructional staff are typically outstanding teachers from secondary schools or universities, graduate students, or youth development professionals with expertise in service-learning.
• Our residential staff are typically college graduates working in the education or nonprofit fields or junior- or senior-level undergraduates with backgrounds in residential life.

All staff are selected through a highly competitive process that weighs such factors as academic background, service-learning experience, and experience working with youth in a residential setting. The process also includes a criminal background check.

Working with Established & Well-Respected Community Partners 

We work closely with host organizations to provide safe volunteer and learning environments. Our community partners orient students to the communities and activities they will be engaged in and outline precautions students can take to minimize risk and help ensure the safety and well-being of all group members. 

Providing Careful Supervision 

While students are ultimately responsible for their own conduct, our trained staff teams work together to provide clear guidelines and careful supervision. Our programs maintain small class or group sizes of 12 to 18 students, and offer a high staff to student ratio of at least one staff member for every six students during class time and field experiences, and by the residential staff during evening and weekend hours. Administrative staff also provide support and supervision, and CEP's full-time staff are on call 24/7 to on-site staff during residential programs.

Requiring a High Standard of Student Conduct

Our programs are highly structured and operate with a strict set of rules regarding campus and community boundaries and appropriate staff supervision. These rules help to ensure the well-being of our students and staff, and all students who attend must be committed to respecting them. Students and families are asked to review our  Honor Code  so that all participants are aware of the program's expectations and their personal responsibility to contribute to a positive living and learning environment.  

Safeguarding Student Health

Staff keep health information about all students on hand at all times and are available to screen student medical concerns and provide first aid. Students who become ill or injured are taken to walk-in clinics or emergency rooms for treatment. Families are responsible for all health care costs incurred by their children during the program. 

Ensuring Emergency Preparedness

We are committed to ensuring the highest level of preparedness for all types of emergencies. Creating and maintaining a safe and secure program environment is a responsibility shared by administrators, staff, and students.

• Administrators organize service experiences and plan travel routes with an eye to safety and supervision.
• Staff monitor weather conditions and alter outdoor program activities in the event of inclement conditions.
• Staff are trained on fire, weather emergency, and evacuation plans and protocols and prepared to manage emergency situations.

Finally, students are oriented to ways they can help ensure their own and their fellow group members' safety and well-being. 

For more information about how we manage Internet use and student privacy, as well as discrimination, disabilities and sexual harassment, please review CTD's Policy Statements.