Victoria Academy of Ballet is certified with the Private Training Institutions Branch (PTIB) of the British Columbia Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Training.

Before you enrol at a certified private training institution, you should be aware of your rights and responsibilities.

You have the right to be treated fairly and respectfully by the institution.

You have the right to a student enrolment contract that includes the following information:

• amount of tuition and any additional fee for your program
• refund policy
• if your program includes a work experience, the requirements to participate in the work experience and the geographic area where it will be provided
• whether the program was approved by PTIB or does not require approval.

Make sure you read the contract before signing. The institution must provide you with a signed copy.

You have the right to access the institution’s dispute resolution process and to be protected against retaliation for making a complaint.

You have the right to make a claim to PTIB for a tuition refund if:

• your institution ceased to hold a certificate before you completed an approved program
• you were misled about a significant aspect of your approved program

You must file the claim within one year of completing, being dismissed or withdrawing from your program.

For more information about PTIB and how to be an informed student, go to:
http://www.privatetraininginstitutions.gov.bc.ca/students/be-an-informed-student

Institution must pay the tuition or fee refund within 30 days after receiving notice of withdrawal or refusal of study permit; providing a notice of dismissal, or the date on which the first 30% of the hours of instruction are provided (no-show).

Bridge Program: Homestay Refund Policy:

Upon withdrawal from Victoria Academy of Ballet’s Homestay Program, fees for the following will be owed regardless of the reason for cancellation:

• Homestay Coordination Fee is non-refundable.
• Homestay Accomodation Fee for the month of June is non-refundable.
• If needing to withdraw from VAB’s Homestay Program, one full month’s written notice will be required and one additional month of Homestay Accommodation Fee will be due.

A work and learning environment that is comfortable and professional requires adherence to high standards of personal conduct. Victoria Academy of Ballet is committed to providing a work and learning environment that is free of all forms of harassment, including bullying and harassment, sexual harassment and discrimination. In keeping with this commitment, harass­ment of any kind will not be tolerated, and harassing conduct may result in disciplinary action up to and including immediate dismissal depending on the severity of the behavior.

This harassment policy applies to all workers and students, including permanent, temporary, casual, contract, volunteer, and student workers. It applies to all interactions, including inter­personal and electronic communications such as email.

The contents of this harassment policy will be reviewed at least annually and updated as re­quired.

Definitions:

For the purposes of this policy, harassment includes bullying and harassment, sexual harass­ment and discrimination.

Bullying and harassment means any inappropriate verbal and/or physical conduct by a person towards another person that the first person knows or should know would cause the second person to be humiliated, intimidated or degraded. Generally, it means engaging in conduct that is known or reasonably known to be offensive. Bullying and harassment does not include reasonable action taken by an employer or supervisor relating to the management and direc­tion of workers, or students.

Examples of bullying and harassment include verbal aggression or insults, calling someone de­rogatory names, harmful hazing or initiation practices, vandalizing personal belongings, and spreading malicious rumours.

Sexual Harassment means unwanted and unwelcomed conduct of a sexual nature, either ver­bal or physical, that interferes with a person’s work, study, or job opportunities. It can include sexual advances, sexually oriented remarks and behaviour or any unwelcome sexualized suggestions or comments.

Some examples of sexual harassment include offensive, degrading or derogatory remarks, sexually implied jokes or comments, touching, rubbing or brushing up against another per­son, unwelcomed invitations or propositions, impeding or blocking the movement of another person, distributing obscene pictures or cartoons, making insults about a person’s gender, and asking for sexual favors. Sexual harassment does not include reasonable body and move­ment correction and demonstration by an instructor, which may necessitate a professional touch or direction of a dancer’s limbs, extremities, head, abdomen, or other body parts, excluding genitalia.

Discrimination means a distinction, whether intentional or not, relating to personal character­istics of an individual or group which imposes burdens or limits access to opportunities.

Personal characteristics include: age; race; colour; ancestry; place of origin; political belief; religion; marital status; family status; sex; sexual orientation; gender identity or expression, mental or physical disability; and criminal or summary conviction unrelated to legitimate em­ployment considerations.

Reporting Procedure:

1. If you have reasons of observation, experience, or knowledge to believe that you, a fellow worker or student, or a worker or student who reports directly to you is a victim of harass­ment, you are required to report it immediately in accordance with this policy.
2. If the individual to whom you would normally report an incident in accordance with this policy is the person who has engaged in or is engaging in conduct that you believe amounts to harassment, report the incident or complaint to the alternate reporting contact, or another member of management.
3. Incidents or complaints of harassment may be reported verbally or in writing. When submit­ting a written complaint, please use the harassment complaint form. When reporting verbally, the reporting contact, along with the complainant, will fill out the complaint form.
4. Be prepared to tell exactly what happened, when it happened, where it happened, whether there were any witnesses to the incident, and any other information that may help with the investigation. All complaints will be handled discreetly and promptly investigated.

Investigation Procedure:

1. Once an incident or complaint is reported, management will initiate an investigation. Most investigations will be conducted internally by the designated supervisor or, if the supervisor is the person alleged to have engaged in conduct amounting to harassment, by another member of management. In complex or sensitive situations, an external investigator might be hired. Management will assign an appropriate person to conduct the investigation and to provide a written report with conclusions.
2. Investigations will be undertaken promptly and diligently and will be as thorough as necessary given the circumstances of each case. Investigations will be fair and impartial, providing both the complainant and the person accused of engaging in harassment with equal treatment in evaluating the allegations. All information received in the course of an investigation will be treated in a confidential manner. An investigation is focused on finding facts and evidence. Management will incorporate, where appropriate, any need or request from the concerned parties for assistance during the investigation process.
3. Investigations will include interviews with all concerned parties and potential witnesses in order to determine the nature of the incident(s). All workers and students are expected to cooperate with the investigator and provide any details of incidents they have experiences or witnessed. The investigator will also review any evidence, such as emails, handwritten notes, photographs, or physical evidence like vandalized objects.
4. Once an investigation is complete, management will review the contents of the investigator’s written report and will advise the concerned parties of the investigation findings. As appro­priate, management will review and revise procedures to discourage any future harassment incidents in the future. Appropriate corrective actions will be taken within a reasonable time frame.
5. We ask that you keep written accounts of incidents to submit with any complaints. Manage­ment will keep a written record of investigations, including the findings and follow-up action taken.

Retaliation:

Workers and students will not be subjected to retribution or reprisal for filing legitimate com­plaints, participating in any investigation, or reporting any violations of law or policy. Retalia­tion of any type against any worker or other individual will not be tolerated and such conduct may result in disciplinary action up to and including immediate dismissal. Workers are encour­aged to report retaliation to their immediate supervisor and to any other appropriate manage­ment.