Alumni & College Guest Conduct Policy

The College’s expectations of conduct are rooted in its three core Values: 

Community – We are friendly and engaged in College life. We demonstrably promote access, embrace Diversity, and drive Inclusion. 

Excellence – We strive for excellence in everything we do.

Custodianship – We are building a College that future generations can be proud of. 

Alumni and external guests make an important contribution to College life, and we are grateful for their continued engagement. All who attend College events or engage with members of the College community are expected to uphold these Values in both spirit and behaviour. The College does not tolerate any form of harassment or victimisation. It will act to respond to allegations or evidence of infringement of this Policy and may take appropriate action where behaviour falls short of these expectations. 

Definitions

1. The College community: senior members, junior members, and staff of Jesus College. 

2. Alumni: persons who have completed at least one academic year at Jesus in a teaching, learning or research capacity and who are not also members of the current ‘College community’ as defined above. 

3. Alumni events: events organised or hosted by the College, either online or in person.

4. Harassment: a person subjects another to harassment where they engage in unwanted and unwarranted conduct which has the purpose or effect of: 

· Violating another person’s dignity; or

 · Creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for another person. The recipient does not need to have explicitly stated that the behaviour was unwanted. Harassment may involve repeated forms of unwanted and unwarranted behaviour, but a one-off incident can also amount to harassment. The intentions of the alleged harasser do not always determine whether harassment has taken place. The perception of the complainant and the extent to which that perception is, in all the circumstances, reasonable will also be relevant. 

Harassment can take a variety of forms, including: 

• Individual behaviour face to face, either verbally or physically, or electronically; 
• Conduct directed to the person concerned or to a third party;
•  A prevailing culture which tolerates harassment or bullying, for example the telling of homophobic or racist jokes. 
• Examples of behaviour which may amount to harassment include, but are not limited to:
• Insulting, abusive, embarrassing or degrading behaviour or comments; 
• Unwanted physical contact, ranging from an invasion of space to an assault, including all forms of sexual harassment, such as inappropriate body language, sexually explicit remarks or innuendo, and unwanted sexual advances or touching; 
• Offensive comments or body language, including insults, jokes or gestures, malicious rumours, open hostility, or verbal or physical threats. These include all forms of harassment and abuse on the grounds of sex, gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, cultural differences, abilities, or religion (or lack of religion). 
• Bullying is a form of harassment and may be characterised as offensive, intimidating, malicious or insulting behaviour, or misuse of power through means intended to undermine, humiliate, denigrate or injure the recipient. 

Expectations for Alumni and External Guests 

The following expectations apply to all alumni and external guests attending College events or engaging with members of the College community in connection with College activities. 

1. Community 

We are friendly and engaged in College life. We demonstrably promote access, embrace Diversity, and drive Inclusion. 

Guests are expected to:

• Treat students, staff, senior members, fellow alumni and other guests with courtesy, kindness and respect.
• Actively support an inclusive environment in which people of all backgrounds feel welcome and valued. 
• Be mindful that students may be significantly younger and are entitled to feel safe and respected in all College settings. 
• Respect personal boundaries, including physical space and privacy. 

Guests must not: 

• Engage in intrusive, persistent, or overly personal questioning.
• Make assumptions or comments about someone’s identity, background, beliefs or personal circumstances.
• Tell jokes, share stories or make remarks that could reasonably be experienced as discriminatory, exclusionary or offensive. 
• Use their age, professional position, alumni status, or influence in a way that could reasonably be perceived as intimidating, pressurising or coercive. 

2. Excellence 

We strive for excellence in everything we do. 

Excellence in conduct means modelling the highest standards of professionalism, integrity and consideration. Guests are expected to: 

• Maintain appropriate professional and social boundaries at all times.
• Exercise particular care in interactions with current students, especially where alcohol is present. 
• Engage in thoughtful, constructive and respectful conversation, including during debate or disagreement. 
• Follow instructions given by College staff relating to health, safety, and event management.
• Consume alcohol responsibly. 

Guests must not: 

• Pursue unwanted personal, romantic or professional advances. 
• Pressure students or staff to share personal contact details in a way that could cause discomfort. 
• Behave in a way that disrupts the event or undermines the safety, dignity, or enjoyment of others. 
• Use threatening, aggressive, discriminatory, or sexually explicit language or behaviour. 

Online conduct is held to the same standard. For online or hybrid events, guests must: 

• Engage respectfully in chat functions and discussions.
• Refrain from posting or circulating inappropriate, offensive, or confidential material. 
• Not record sessions or share images or personal information without explicit authorisation and consent.

 3. Custodianship 

We are building a College that future generations can be proud of. 

All members of the College community, including alumni and guests, share responsibility for protecting the College’s people, reputation and environment. Guests are expected to: 

• Respect College property, facilities and traditions. 
• Contribute positively to the atmosphere and legacy of College events. 
• Consider the longer-term impact of their behaviour on students, staff and the wider College community. 

Guests must not: 

• Damage property or misuse College spaces.
• Share images, recordings or commentary from events in ways that could harm individuals or the College’s reputation.
• Engage in conduct that could undermine trust in the College community. 

Compliance and Consequences 

All alumni and external guests attending College events are expected to comply with this Policy, any other relevant College policies, and applicable laws. Where behaviour falls short of these expectations, the College reserves the right to take appropriate action. This may include: 

• Asking a guest to leave an event;
• Restricting attendance at future events 
• Referring matters to relevant authorities where appropriate

By upholding the Values of Community, Excellence and Custodianship, alumni and guests help ensure that Jesus College remains a welcoming, respectful and inspiring place for current members and for generations to come.

February 2026