Washington Reformed Seminary has a policy of maintaining a Drug-free Workplace. All employees and students are hereby notified that the unlawful manufacture, distribution, dispensing, possession or use of a controlled substance is prohibited in this institutions workplace. WRS requires that its campus, faculty, staff, and student be drug free.
WRS also considers tabacco to be habit-forming and addictive and strictly prohibits smoking or the usage of other tabacco substances while on any of the campuses or while attending other institution related activities.
The workplace is defined as any classrooms, hallways, restrooms, parking, or storage areas that are connected to the main campus at 10018 Burke Lake Rd. Burke, VA 22015, or any location outside of the main campus where Washington Reformed Seminary programs or courses are discussed or promoted.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY ; Non-Discrimination Policy

All aspects of The Reformed Presbyterian Seminary of Washington’s programs will be administered in compliance with Titles VI and VIII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act; the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended; Sections 503 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended; the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.
No individual will be excluded from participation in, denial benefits of, subjected to discrimination under or denied employment in the administration of or in connection with Washington Reformed Seminary programs because of race, color, age, disability, citizenship, handicap or political affiliation.
Washington Reformed Seminary’s commitment is that participation in any program shall be open to citizens and national if the United States, lawfully admitted refugees and parolees and other individuals authorized by the Attorney General to work in the United States.
Washington Reformed Seminary’s commitment is that no individual will be intimidated, threatened, coerced, or discriminated against because of filing a complaint, furnishing information or assisting or participating in any manner in an investigation, compliance review, hearing or any other activity related to the administration of Washington Reformed Seminary’s programs.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT POLICY

(1) Sexual harassment is a violation of Section 503 of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It is The Reformed Presbyterian Seminary of Washington’s policy that all its employees have a right to work in an environment free from sexual harassment in any form. Such conduct (sexual harassment) may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.
(2) These procedures clarify definitions of acquaintance rape and sexual assault, outlines the steps the institution is taking toward education, prevention and treatment, sets forth disciplinary procedures that may occur when acquaintance rape/sexual assault has taken place on the campus and explains resources available to RPSW students who are victims/survivors of acquaintance rape/sexual assault.
(3) No manager or supervisor (instructor) shall threaten or insinuate, either explicitly or otherwise to an employee that refusal to submit to sexual advances will adversely affect employees employment, assignment, promotion, transfer, evaluation, wages, or any other term or condition of employment/enrollment.
(4) Sexual Harassment is defined as: a) Unwelcome physical or verbal contact; b) Sexually explicit language or gestures; c) Uninvited or unwanted sexual advances; d) An offensive overall environment, including the use of vulgar language, the presence of sexually explicit photographs or other materials, and the telling of sexual stories or jokes. No employee shall threaten or insinuate, either explicitly or otherwise that refusal to submit to sexual advances will adversely affect the entrance or participation in a program.
Acquaintance rape is defined as forced, manipulated or coerced sexual contact by someone the victim knows. Under Maryland law, acquaintance rape is a crime. the law makes no distinction between sexual assault by strangers or acquaintances. Any forced sexual conduct including forced touching and fondling is also a crime under Maryland law. Under this law, consent cannot be given by someone under the age of 18, someone under the influence of alcohol or someone who is diagnosed with a mental disability and therefore unable to make a reasonable judgment about the harmfulness of an activity.

RACIAL HARASSMENT POLICY

Washington Reformed Seminary is committed to principles that enable educational and professional enhancement of all ethnic and racial groups. The Seminary seeks to emphasize the importance of community awareness and appreciation of diverse cultures within the United States of America and the world.
The present and future course of Washington Reformed Seminary are designed to eliminate all policies and practices that work to the disadvantage of individuals on the basis of race, and to work diligently to eliminate all forms of discrimination including institutional and personal patterns that directly and in-directly feed the destructive forces of racism.

Washington Reformed Seminary is therefore committed to consistent efforts toward maintaining a Christ centered community free of all forms of racial harassment, and has adopted a racial harassment policy as a basis for community guidance, education, and complaint resolution.

Racist and discriminatory conductmeans verbal or physical behavior that explicitly demeans the race, color, ethnic ancestry, or national origin of an individual or individuals, and: (1) has the purpose or effect of interfering with the education, the University related work, or other institutionally authorized activity of a student, employee, official, or guest; or (2) creates an intimidating, hostile, or demeaning environment for learning, working, or other activity authorized by this Seminary.
Some cases of racist and discriminatory behaviors by a student, employee, official, or guest include: (1) Physical contact or attacks for racist and discriminatory reasons. (2) Intimidation through the threat of force or violence. (3) Verbal assaults based on ethnicity that demean the color, culture or history of any person and perpetuate stereotypical beliefs about and attitudes toward minority groups. Such behaviors may include name calling, racial slurs, slang references, and jokes. (4) Non-verbal behavior that demeans the color, culture, or history of any person, and perpetuates stereotypical beliefs about and attitudes toward minority groups. Such behavior may include name gestures, portrayals, graffiti, or acts of exclusion.
In any case of racist behavior, the offended person must report the incident immediately to the President or the Dean. A student also has the option of filing a formal charge of harassment with the U.S. Department of Education. Its address and telephone number are available from the Office of WRS, 10018 Burke Lake Rd. Burke, VA 22015. (703) 801-3440.

ACADEMIC FREEDOM

In institution of higher education, like Washington Reformed Seminary, the principle of Academic Freedom is essential(distinctive) to the search for truth and its exposition. Freedom in research is fundamental to the advancement of knowledge and the right to Academic Freedom in its teaching aspect is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty and of the students in the educational process.
These concepts of Academic Freedom are promoted at Washington Reformed Seminary and they are elaborated as follows: The faculty, staff and of the students of WRS is entitled to full freedom in research and in publication of the results, subject to the adequate performance of Faculty’s other academic duties. The faculty member may take on additional employment, including research for pecuniary return, without the approval of the University’s officer or President of the Seminary, provided it does not interfere with his/her duties at the Seminary. The faculty and of the students of WRS are entitled to freedom in the classroom to discuss their subject, but should exercise this freedom in a responsible manner.
The faculty, staff and the students of WRS may exercise their rights as citizens when speaking or writing as citizens and should be free from institutional censorship or discipline, but the faculty members special position in the community imposes special obligations. As a member of the teaching profession, and as a representative of an educational institution, the faculty member should remember that the public may judge his/her profession and his/her institution by his/her utterances.
Hence, the faculty member, staff and students should at all times be accurate; should exercise appropriate restraint; should show respect for the opinion of others; and should make every effort to indicate that (s)he is not speaking for WRS. Any faculty member and students who believes that his/her rights have been abridged or ignored by an administrative officer or employees of Washington Reformed Seminary and who is unable to obtain redress which is satisfactory to the faculty member within his/her own department, shall have the right to appeal to the President of the Seminary.